Super STEM Marble Madness

I'm a grown man who bought the XXL set and a few hammers, scoops, flip accessories to finally try my hand at marble runs again. Now, free hand build this is a lot of fun and you can make a lot of really diverse and gimmicky runs but the full potential of what you can create is unlocked with the help of the App which has a kiddie version of 3D AutoCAD for this set. That's right, you can design multi level, multi dimension runs of insane depth and tricks, test the runs out for potential flaws before the Real Life Build and then when you're happy with the plans- Follow the Step by Step picture Build Instructions to Built it! That's just friggin awesome.

Once we got oriented to the pieces, we all had a blast! My grandsons just wanted to start building right away, and my 91 year old father was intrigued. Amazing to find a toy that appeals to the age range of 8 to 91.
I would suggest that you work through the first instructions...there aren't any words, but once you grasp the concept, it is easy to start creating. My grandsons (8 & 11) worked only the first few designs, then went crazy creating.
I gave it only 4 stars for sturdiness. The silver ramps don't fasten securely onto the hexagons, so if the puzzle gets bumped, tend to slip off. Doesn't seem to bother my grandsons.
I went ahead and purchased the expansion pack and was glad that I did since the boys had fun building higher puzzles.
I also purchased the magnetic cannon...wow! fun!
I still think this is expensive, but I know the product is well thought out.
I am buying other accessories for Christmas! I can't wait to play it with my grandsons and Dad!

This is extremely fun and brings out the best in creativity of myself and my 3 boys. I only wish it was sold in deals of much larger kits. I've had to use 4 of these starter packs to enjoy it without the limitations we often found ourselves against. With enough pieces, this is absolutely ENDLESS fun!!!

My nine year old son and the seven year old neighbor friend loves it. I need a separate table because this has taken over our dining room table. The suggested builds were a great way to get started but we've already had hours of creative building time. No electronics needed!!!

I bought this set as a birthday gift for my 8-year-old nephew. It's the perfect gift for a child who likes building things. I like that you can create it 100 different ways so it doesn't get old. It's a great way to have early science discussions about gravity and force while also having fun.