Modular Space Colony: Shopping Plaza Corner

Shopping Plaza Corner is a futuristic reinterpretation of today's Modular Buildings theme, set in a module-based LEGO City Space Colony of the year 3033 AD. Introducing real three-dimensional layout building, modules can be freely combined and easily connected to each other horizontally and vertically - allowing a multitude of different setups for play and display.

The year is 3033 AD. Humankind has left earth some centuries ago and successfully colonized another planet. Providing an abundance of natural resources and energy on the one hand, mankind's new home planet is lacking a breathable atmosphere and adequate protection from cosmic radiation on the other hand. For that reason everyday life exclusively happens inside the interconnected framework of modifiable multi-purpose modules the ever-growing settlements are based on. The work that needs to be done outside the protective modules is carried out by robots (like building and repairing, mining resources or further exploring the planet).

Besides the various types of modules and standardized connection ports that have been established to date, new variants are being under development all the time. All the modules can be easily connected to each other horizontally or vertically, and be individually modified for any intended purpose.

To maintain measurement consistency for easy layout building, all modules' measurements derive from a 16x16 studs base: The smallest possible module has a base of 16x16 studs, the next possible bigger base sizes are 16x32, 32x32 and so forth. Modules can be connected via standardized ports of different sizes, with 2 black Technic pins being inserted for a solid connection (just like when connecting the sides of two of today's Modular Buildings). Currently there's a small-size port (type A) for connecting entrances of buildings for example, and a big-size one (type B) for the connection of walkways or narrow streets. Ports that are not being used at the moment can be equipped with a cover (not included in this set) which connects to the three Technic "half pins" (4274) visible on every port.

All modules' heights are identical, too, so compatibility is also maintained when connecting modules horizontally above ground level. For building the layout vertically, modules are being stacked on top of each other, held in place by jumper plates (just like it's being done with different levels of a Modular Building).

Space Colony citizens are incredibly nostalgic for anything related to planet earth. Although humankind had left the old world centuries ago already, the heritage and memories of the ancestors are being cherished and kept alive devotedly, with "retro" being a permanent trend from fashion to home decoration to shop design. The new Shopping Plaza is one of many Space Colony establishments to contemporarily reimagine the concept of the original Creator Expert Modular Buildings that had been overwhelmingly popular on earth about a thousand years ago. Overall the extra-terrestrial LEGO City provides just about the same great building & playing variety and fun as our beloved LEGO City of the present. It's just, you know ... this is the future!

While featuring a familiar urban infrastructure of homes, shops, recreational facilities, schools, restaurants and other buildings well-known from the good old LEGO City days on earth, the colonies are full of advanced future technologies like fusion power reactors, a maglev-based (magnetic levitation) public transportation tubes system, zero-G (zero gravity) elevators, hoverbikes, holographic reality (HR) environments, and all kinds of after-next-gen production & research facilities.

The set consists of 5 compatible modules which can be connected to each other in different ways horizontally and vertically. There are 2 building modules (32x32 base), 2 walkway modules (16x32 base) and 1 junction module (16x16 base). The base of the original layout (which can be seen on the main image) measures 48x48 studs and has a height of 24 studs. For maximum stability all modules bigger than 16x16 are equipped with sturdy Technic frames inside their baseplates.