MindWare Mega Marble Run Building Set - 215 Durable Pieces and 40 Marbles - Build, Engineernig and Sceince Toy - Ages 4 and Up

This was my 2 1/2 year old's christmas gift. He loved it, and we continue to play with it about every day. I usually tear it down and build a new arrangement every week or until we grow bored with the current set up.Beware, if you enjoy this as much as we do, you may find yourself seeking out additional sets.Sneakily, Mindware has tucked in one or two unique pieces into each set. That means, if you want just one unique special piece, you'll likely need to order an entire set for it. You'd think this MEGA set would have all of the pieces, but after investigating, I'm telling you, even the plain version of this set has a piece or two this one doesn't.I also ended up buying the larger Sparkle Marble Run + Add on Sparkle Set for the giant spiral vortex, as well as the now out of print Krazy Kingdom set (got it used) for another alternating switch piece and a couple other cool unique pieces. Check out Mindware's website for more sets, there are some that aren't currently up here on amazon, like the spiral catcher piece.There are still others I'd like, but for now, we have more than enough pieces to make a giant set with multiple entrances, switching paths, and exits. It's a blast.I wish there were mirrored versions of some of the pieces, but alas, it's not to be. There's still plenty of variety out there. You'll have a lot of fun, and while I haven't had experience with competitor sets, I heard in another review that this one had the sturdiest plastic, and from my experience with it, I imagine that's true!

My son is a huge Marblelympics fan, so we decided to get this as a fun Easter present.ProsMost pieces mate well for a sturdy structure (some are a little hard to put together, some a little easy)Some pieces are transparentLightweight and compact storageFun for whole familyConsMarbles that came with it aren’t all that colorful (if you care about that)Feet pieces could be biggerThis is a great first marble run. I’d like to see some more creative pieces, or at least more variety. For example there are no “plinko” pieces or loop-de-loops, but there are 2 funnels pieces and 1 jump piece. There are two fork pieces as well, but it would be nice if there was at least one more of those. The spinner pieces seem fine. They can get stuck, but are usually fine if you reinstall them.The pieces are pretty tough, but could probably break with excessive force. However, I wouldn’t mind just buying more pieces to replace them.

I bought two of the mega marble runs because I LOVE the unique pieces. Two splitter pieces, a funnel combining two, and a splitter combining THREE!!! I have never seen pieces like this in a marble run. It is so much fun to plan routes and see controlled chaos in action! All pieces fit nicely together. And while you can’t pick it up and expect it to hold together like the snuggly fitting Discovery Toys marble run (yes, I own that one as well), I find it is perfectly stable and easy to build. In many ways, it is actually easier to build. These will be played with for a long time.

This review is for the Mindware Mega MarbleRun.I purchased this MarbleRun for my 3 year old son, but it is often used by everyone in my house- ages 3, 10, 13 and 40.Out of the several brands we've tried of marble runs, this set has been our favorite- giving us the best quality with a reasonable price point.The Mindware Mega MarbleRun is a large and colorful set with various attachments which allow for endless possibilities of configurations (see included image for what's included). All of the pieces fit together snugly which prevent the accidental tumbles that occur with flimsy sets. Although the ideal place to use this is on a hard flat surface, it does work quite well on carpet. This marble run uses standard size marbles (also included with purchase). The pictures that Mindware have used showcasing this item- specifically the size and vibrancy- is very accurate. You get exactly what is shown (which, as we all know, isn't always the case).This particular set comes with an alpine slope which causes the marbles to fly off the slope and land in a chute that is set up nearby. Once you get the correct height and width set up between the slope and the chute, it performs with amazing accuracy. The slope seems to be a favorite of everyone who uses it. Please see included image to view the alpine slope in action.My 3 year old is not able to assemble the marble run himself, but kids 6+ seem to have no issues assembling this independently. The nice part about how sturdy it is and how snugly the pieces fit together is that I can assemble a marble run for the kids and it holds together well thought hours of playing. I can build one large marble run and have it last for days worth of play without having to worry about it falling apart. Our previous marble run was so flimsy, I found myself building and rebuilding several times a day.TIP: The box it comes in is sturdy and suitable for storage, however- I recommend getting a container to store it in. I find that the kids have a hard time getting the pieces in the box and getting the lid shut for storage. I purchased a plastic container with a snap on lid (please see included image) which makes it easier for clean up time, as well as makes it easier to find the pieces you want without dumping everything out.