The reason 10497 Galaxy Explorer is missing some classic elements

A new interview with two of the designers behind 10497 Galaxy Explorer reveals why some classic elements are missing from the upcoming set.

Fans of LEGO Classic Space sets will no doubt have been over the moon to learn about the announcement of 10497 Galaxy Explorer at last weekend’s LEGO CON. During the event details were revealed about the upcoming set which is being released as part of the LEGO Group’s 90th Anniversary celebrations this year.

Now, thanks to an interview with the two lead designers on the project, more information is emerging about this recreation of an iconic LEGO model. Brickset sat down to speak with Mike Psiaki and Milan Madge to discuss the development of 10497 Galaxy Explorer and what considerations led to its final form.

Although the new LEGO ICONS set is similar to its 1979 counterpart, 497 Galaxy Explorer, the new version is missing a number of elements from the original model. Psiaki talked about why the set isn’t an exact recreation of the classic version and how it evolved over time.

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‘Initially, we were considering including the ground structure, which also meant bringing back the old moon baseplate,’ he says. ‘We know that people love that plate and we certainly do too. There would be complications in doing that, but it is certainly not impossible. Nevertheless, including the crater baseplate ultimately seemed weird, especially as the vehicle had become bigger, relative to the original model.’

‘Also, the conflicting grey between the Galaxy Explorer and the baseplate could create issues, so we thought about changing the colour to tan because that complemented the ship but updating the colour of something so iconic felt wrong.’

Psiaki goes on to discuss the alternate builds for the model, which he also talked about in a recent interview with The Verge. He adds that the actual instructions for the additional 10497 Galaxy Explorer models will be available online at some point and that all of the bricks for the alternate versions are included with the set.

LEGO ICONS 10497 Galaxy Explorer will be launching on August 1 for £89.99 / $99.99 / €99.99 and can be pre-ordered from the official online store right now.

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