LEGO Rock Raiders

From Research Realm

LEGO Rock Raiders was a LEGO theme focused on underground mining equipment. The theme consisted of eight main construction sets released in 1999, followed by seven smaller promotional sets in 2000. It also had a number of tie-in products, including three books and a video game.

Story

The Rock Raiders

LEGO Components

Sets

The Rock Raiders sets

Set No. Name Released Pieces Minifigures Designers
4910 The Hover Scout 1999 39 Jet
4920 The Rapid Rider 1999 38 Bandit
4930 The Rock Raiders (UK)
Rock Raiders Crew (US)
1999 38 Axle, Bandit, Docs, Jet, Sparks
4940 The Granite Grinder 1999 108 Axle Jens Kronvold Frederiksen[1]
4950 The Loader-Dozer 1999 89 Axle, rock monster
4970 The Chrome Crusher 1999 167 Axle
4980 The Tunnel Transport 1999 341 Docs, Jet
4990 The Rock Raiders HQ 1999 402 Bandit, Docs, Jet, Sparks, rock monster Jens Kronvold Frederiksen[1]
1274 1 Light Hover 2000 Jet
1275 2 Chain Dozer 2000 Bandit
1276 3 Heli Transporter 2000 Docs
1277 4 Drill Craft 2000 Sparks
3347 Rock Raiders #1 2000 Chief
3348 Rock Raiders #2 2000 Bandit, Docs, Sparks
3349 Rock Raiders #3 2000 Axle, Docs, Jet

Play Features

Minifigures

Unique parts

The theme introduces an abundance of unique parts. Many of the parts are large and have been criticised for being "juniorized".

Media

Video games

A video game of the same name was developed by Data Design Interactive and published by LEGO Media in November 1999. Two different versions of the game were published on Microsoft Windows and PlayStation. The Windows version is a real-time strategy game with elements of resource management and construction. The player controls a team of Rock Raiders through a series of missions, completing tasks and constructing units while fending off hostile creatures and managing environmental dangers. The PlayStation game is an action and strategy game focusing around vehicle usage. The player controls a single character through missions, using any resources and equipment found to complete tasks.

Development of the LEGO Rock Raiders video game began in late 1997. Unlike previous LEGO video games, the LEGO Rock Raiders theme and game were developed simultaneously. The PlayStation version was initially conceived as a port of the Windows game before being redeveloped in only six months between February and August 1999. While released in Europe alongside the Windows game, in North America its release was delayed until August 2000.

Comic books

Each set had comic books!

Rock Raiders comics also appeared in a number of magazines, including LEGO Mania Magazine, LEGO Adventures!, Klick, and The Beano.

A number of comics were also created for the theme. Each of the original eight sets featured small mini comic books in certain specially-marked releases (which ones?). There were also Rock Raiders magazine comics published in LEGO Mania Magazine and LEGO Adventures!, as well as an appearance in the Time Cruisers comic and an eight-part comic in The Beano.

Story books

Rock Raiders got 3 separate story books:

  • Rock Raiders: An Interactive Puzzle Storybook– An illustrated storybook written by Anna Knight, illustrated by Roger Harris, and published in 1999 by Dorling Kindersley as part of the LEGO Game Books series. The book is divided into fully-illustrated two-page spreads, with each scene containing a short amount of story and a puzzle for the reader to solve.
  • Rock Raiders: High Adventure Deep Underground – A graphic novel written by Alan Grant and illustrated by Robin Smith and LEGO Media, published in 2000. The story is divided into chapters, and features occasional narration by Jet, as well as puzzles on certain pages and ideas for LEGO models the reader can build.
  • Race for Survival – A short novel written by Marie Birkinshaw and published in 2000 as part of the Dorling Kindersley Readers series. Unlike the other two books, which retell the theme's story, this story is set six months later, featuring the Rock Raiders returning to the theme's alien planet. Each page features brief articles on geology relevant to events in the story.

History

The Rock Raiders theme began production in 1997 with the codename "Underground". The sets stopped being produced in 2000.

The sets were designed by Jan Harder Blaesild, André Sang-Tae Stenbryggen, Betina Barkholt Krøigaard, Jens Kronvold Frederiksen, Troels Halken, and Søren Gehlert Dyrhøj at LEGO Futura.

Prototypes

RR Prototypes r kewl.

Release

Rock Raiders was commercially okay-ish.

Legacy

Many speculate the Raiders are still Rocking to this day.

LEGO Rock Raiders was succeeded by the incredibly popular BLock Raiders - an absolute marvellous game made by Stewart Green, a legendary computer programmer.

Oh yeah there's also Power minurss

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Frederiksen, Jens Kronvold [lego] (11 April 2019). Hello there. I’m Jens Kronvold Frederiksen. I'm the Design Director for LEGO and have been designing LEGO® Star Wars™ sets for the past 20 years. Ask Me Anything!. Reddit. Archived from the original on 15 April 2019. Retrieved 13 June 2023.