18. April 2020 - Anika Semmer
Gravitrax Marble Run – Experience Gravity Playfully | Review
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When constructing and playing with the GraviTrax marble run, young and old learn fascinating things about the laws of nature. How great is the fun potential for kids and adults? Is the starter set enough or is it worth investing in a catapult, hammer, tunnel and the like?
Fascination Gravity, kinetics, magnetism, gravitation! Why, why, why does the ball stop, where does the sudden speed come from? Try again! Even with the starter set of the GraviTrax marble run, you can build different marble runs. Simply put the parts together, combine them as you like and rebuild them. The GraviTrax marble run quickly takes shape and, at the latest when trying it out, with the first failures and sense of achievement, the fun really starts.
The fact that children actually learn how gravity works in a fun and playful way makes the GraviTrax marble run a great toy. Apart from the starter set, there are now many extensions – from bridges and tunnels to catapult, cannon and lift. Is the additional investment in one or the other extension worthwhile?
At first glance, the GraviTrax marble run is a toy that will cast a spell over many children and adults. How good is GraviTrax really – for example in terms of stability and quality of the components? How long does the fun of playing last or does the initial enthusiasm quickly wear off?
Note: The game manufacturer Ravensburger kindly sent us a starter set and two expansions as review copies. However, this review is unpaid and reflects our honest opinion. I purchased more action pieces and a second starter set for more components myself and we tried out the GraviTrax marble run with players ranging from toddlers to grandparents.
The GraviTrax Marble Run at a Glance
- Game type: Construction game, Family game
- Age: 8-99 years
- Players: 1 player or more.
- Duration: any
- Publisher: Ravensburger
- Development / Editing: Ravensburger InnoLab
- Publication year: 2017
- Game objective: Build a marble run from various components that the metal ball runs through to the finish line or in a circular course.
GraviTrax Marble Run – Understand the Laws of Nature Through Play
Multi-level marble run
Fascination with physics – you had me in your grip even as a child! Why does the ball behave like this? How does the ball get the speed it needs to reach my destination? Why does one thing not work, but another does?
Let’s go. Put the components on the table, copy the construction plans or design them with the app and fire away for the GraviTrax marble run.
How the Construction Toy Works
There are over 100 components in the GraviTrax starter set
There are two different starter sets with components from Ravensburger. Each set makes it possible to build marble runs – depending on how extensive, the more and more challenging marble runs become possible. This can be done according to the provided construction plans or free to build creatively according to your own ideas. You don’t necessarily need the free GraviTrax App to play. However, you can use it to design and save ball tracks and experience them from the ball’s point of view, which looks pretty cool.
First you lay out floor plates. In the recesses, you can use height plates to build plateaus at any height, over which you lay tracks for the marble run. Alternatively, you can use several height plates to attach transparent level plates – these can also be built upwards in several tiers. For example, you can build a marble run in which the marble rolls over different floors like in a multi-storey car park.
Does the marble run through from top to bottom without any problems?
Now you construct the marble run with hexagonal marble run parts, long and short plastic rails and the available action bricks and send one or more balls of metal off. Included building elements are, for example, the “free fall” (the marble falls down into a hole in the middle and the “Gauss cannon” (the marble gets a decent speed boost) and more. There are also lots of extensions that lead to action and even more fun or variety in building – they work with magnetism, gravity, kinetics and gravity and thus propel the ball.
The aim is for one or more balls to reach the end of the track or to run endlessly in a circuit without coming to a standstill or flying off track.
Gravitrax Starter Sets, Extensions and Action Pieces
Components are curves, crossings, rails, points and more
My tip beforehand: With two starter sets and desired expansions (with initially Jumper, Transfer, Cableway, Flip, 1 more Gauss Cannon and Hammer) you can build a long time and a lot without getting bored as well as construct more challenging, interactive tracks.
- GraviTrax Starter Set: Sufficient for beginners and includes everything you need to build smaller and larger tracks with approx. 100 components. The set includes construction plans that are designs for building tracks and only need to be copied, for example, to get started before you dare to build your own tracks.
- GraviTrax BigBox: A recommended starter for ambitious marble run builders. Included in the set are more components than in the starter set as well as the action bricks Looping, Hammer.
- GraviTrax Pro Starter Set: Comprehensive starter set that makes it possible for the first time to build vertically quickly and allows more complex constructions. For real GraviTrax fans, there is no way around this starter set.
- PRO Starter-Set Extreme:
- GraviTrax Power Starter Set Launch:
- Power Starter Set XXL:
- Speed Starter-Set:
![Ravensburger 27412 GraviTrax Starterset Speed mit 185 Teilen, Kugelbahn für Kinder, Interaktive Murmelbahn, Konstruktionsspielzeug für Jungen und Mädchen ab 8 Jahren,[Exklusiv bei Amazon]](https://www.abenteuerfreundschaft.de/relaunch/wp-content/plugins/aawp/public/image.php?url=YUhSMGNITTZMeTl0TG0xbFpHbGhMV0Z0WVhwdmJpNWpiMjB2YVcxaFoyVnpMMGt2TlRGdGJVMVBkRXRGVTB3dVgxTk1NVFl3WHk1cWNHYz18MTcxNDMzMTU5OA=)
Expansions and Action Bricks for More Fun Playing and Building
The action bricks Transfer (left), Flip (back), Hammer (middle front) and Jumper (right)
- Trax: More height bricks, curves and tracks to build higher and bigger ball tracks.
- Build: More floor tiles, levels, height tiles, switches, swirls and other components to build taller marble runs.
- Tunnels: The ball disappears into tunnel curves, switches and straights, makes vertical U-turns and more.
- Bridges: Spectacular alternative to tunnels to connect sections of track and overcome obstacles.
- POWER Interaction: The power bricks and expansions bring electronics into play and are especially exciting for advanced players.
- Gauss Cannon: Accelerates the ball through magnetism and helps it to master longer distances, inclines or height differences.
- Catapult: Catapults the ball into the air, e.g. to overcome differences in height.
- Hammer: Gives the ball a shove, thus accelerating it and making it better able to cope with slight inclines or curves.
- Looping: The ball needs enough momentum to make the loop – for this, the ball track must be built accordingly beforehand.
- Lift: At the touch of a button, the lift transports the ball back to the top.
- Cascade: Creates four height stones and lifts the ball to a higher level.
- Trampoline: Where does the ball hit the trampoline and how does it keep bouncing on the desired course – defy gravity!
- Jumper: When the ball rolls on en Jumper, it lifts it one level higher as it rolls. In this way, the track continues one level higher. At the same time, a tunnel is created underneath for more marbles.
- Transfer: There are three transfer stones in the set that pass the marble on as if by magic.
- Flip: Flings the ball backwards upwards, providing new energy and excitement where it lands.
- Volcano: If a ball rolls into the volcano, it erupts and shoots it further with new energy
- TipTube: Collects three bullets and dumps them out together after the third.
- Cable car: With a maximum of 2-4 height stones difference, the cable car does not jump out of the rail that transports the ball.
- Spiral: Can be assembled individually high and connects different heights together.
- FlexTube
- Balls & Spinner
- Dipper
- Color Swap
- PRO Splitter:Lets balls roll different courses depending on how it is set.
- PRO Mixer: Randomly tilts the ball towards one of the 3 outputs.
- PRO Turntable
- PRO Carousel
- PRO Helix
- POWER Lever
- POWER Elevator
Rating and Conclusion
The hammer gives the marble a push
GraviTrax offers variety, action, room for creativity and is also educational. While playing, there are many possibilities for modern, interactive and exciting marble runs, so that you can spend a lot of time without getting bored in the least. With the help of the included building plans, even children can immediately succeed in constructing functioning tracks. With the Gravitrax marble run, Ravensburger has succeeded in creating a construction toy that has delighted everyone in our family from grandpa to granddaughter (and kept them busy for days)!
Rating
excellent
Action-Packed, Interactive Physics for Kids and Adults
While building, children (and adults who have dozed off in physics class) learn how the ball behaves when. In this way, they automatically understand how gravity, kinetics, gravitation and magnetism affect and can be used. So while building and playing, they learn, can experiment, draw conclusions, recognise connections and build ever more sophisticated and complex courses. For this, it’s worth stocking up with new accessories so that the Gravitrax marble run as a toy never gets boring! The more parts and variety, the more challenging courses can be built.
Pro and Con
The components are made in the usual high quality from Ravensburger. They are stable and made of plastic, the balls of metal. We will report on how the parts perform in the long-term test ?. The test reports and reviews from parents and customers since 2017 show that the Gravitrax marble run has already convinced many. The interaction and action bricks make the construction game more exciting and clearly more versatile than, for example, Lego. In addition, building and constructing stimulates the imagination and creativity and teaches the laws of nature without taking away the fun.
The starter set can be expanded as the mood takes you with action bricks or alternative track parts such as bridges, tunnels or other components. This provides for a lot of variety and many construction possibilities. If you only buy the starter set, the possibilities for building tracks are limited and the toy can lose its appeal more quickly. For adults, the action bricks are an additional attraction.
Extensions such as the hammer, the catapult and others have to be put back in the starting position after the ball has passed through the circuit. This sometimes means that suddenly four players are busy using both hands to operate components so that the ball rolls. Not only is building and trying things out together interactive, but playing the game also takes on a highly dynamic dimension!
For Whom Is the Gravitrax Marble Run Worthwhile?
From children from the age of 8 up to adults, the marble run Gravitrax is worthwhile, as different routes can be built immediately with the help of the included building plans and the app. At the same time, the many extensions and action bricks make it possible to build sophisticated marble runs.
The interactivity makes the ball track Gravitrax a brilliant toy for everyone at special family celebrations such as Easter or Christmas, where the grown-ups can also explain the why of the action bricks and the laws of physics to the little ones.
Conclusion
Building and constructing with action and brains. The Gravitrax marble run offers fun, action and variety for children and adults and teaches how gravity works in a playful way. The interactive construction toy convinced us immediately and belongs in the play cupboard of every small and large enthusiastic builder.
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*This article contains affiliate links. This means that if a product (e.g. from amazon) is ordered through it, we receive a small commission without changing the price for the buyer.
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