Review: Malaysia LEGO Cultural Mini-Build Rumah Kampung

Tuesday, June 6th, 2017 by Brickfinder

The Malaysian LEGO Cultural Mini-Build Rumah Kampung set is now redeemable at the Cities of Wonders campaign that is currently available at selected stores around the nation’s capital of Kuala Lumpur.

Rumah Kampungs are the traditional dwellings of the indigenous ethnic Malays who built these houses out of timber and bamboo. The word “Rumah” in Malays is “House” and “Kampung” means “Village” so this literally translates to “Village House”.

Just like the Bunga Raya mini-build, this comes in the striking bright yellow Cities of Wonders packaging which really adds a sense of quality to this gift with purchase.

Tucked inside the box are the instructions and the ziploc bag which contains the elements that you need.

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Build Experience

The set contains 137 pcs which is just a smidge more than the LEGO Bunga Raya (Hibiscus Flower) and it took a quick ten minutes to assemble.

It is a fairly straightforward “studs-up” build which is perfect for kids or even a speed build challenge.

There are some choice elements in this set like the 2×4 dark red tiles and the 1x2x2 window frames in Tan colour which is a nice inclusion as it builders will definitely find a way to repurpose them for future MOCs.

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Design

The LEGO Rumah Kampung was inspired by AFOL builder and LOM (LUG of Malaysia) ambassador, Ng WY whose design was then modified by Nicholas Foo, Singapore’s only LEGO Certified Professional for the Cities of Wonders campaign.

As you can see that the mini-build retains a lot of the essence of a traditional kampung house with the stilts that the structure is propped up with to the step ladder that leads to the entrance of the house.

However, the roof of a Kampung house is usually made of bamboo leaves which gives it a nice texture that was not translated into the final design of the build.

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Conclusion

While simple in design and also being the least colourful of the other mini-builds, it does hold a certain rustic charm that is captured in the model’s colour palette.

The Malaysia LEGO Cultural Mini-Build Rumah Kampung is redeemable at the Toys ‘R’ Us outlet in Mid Valley Megamall when you spend a minimum of RM300 on any LEGO products. It is also available at Centre Court, Level 2, Pavilion KL; Toys ‘R’ Us outlets at 1 Utama, KLCC, 101 City Mall, Empire Subang.

Pros:

• Solid design
• Captures the essence of a kampung dwelling
• Useful elements

Cons:

• Roof design could have used some texture

Two down and two more to go! Looking forward to the next one that will be released this coming Saturday!

A sincere thank you to LEGO Malaysia for sending me this set to review. The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in this review do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the LEGO Group. Review sets sent in does not guarantee a positive review.

Also a big thank you to fan designers Ng WY and LEGO Certified Professional Nicholas Foo for their work on this set.