I am asking myself what the majority of AFOLs without kids do with a set when it is built? It's clear that there are sets meant to be played with, others rather meant to be displayed only and some qualify for both.

 

What do you buy sets for? Which are the ones you play with (on your own), which do you only put up to display?

I'm an AFOL with kids, but I also squeeze in a bit of time every once in a while for my own Lego time.

 

I think it depends on your definition of "play."  As a kid, I would build the sets and then set them up in scenes, then I would take them apart, build my own stuff, and set that stuff up in scenes, rinse and repeat.  I had a sprawling Lego city setup on the floor of my bedroom as a kid, complete with the 6990 monorail modified to look like the Detroit People Mover (I know it's kind of a joke as a mode of mass transportation, but as a little kid living in the Detroit area I thought it was cool!)   I loved Lego for building and for scene building, and that's how I "play" with it as an adult too.

 

This is kind of why the "play features" aspect of today's sets are lost on me.  Maybe the kids today like them, but I never played with Lego as if they were action figures, I had GI Joe for that.

I build sets I like, am impressed by the build, the design, I look at it in every corner, and then I unbuild it in some big parts and put it in the box. I have no place to display sets.

Sometimes I customize them to improve some sets, sometimes I create something new.

But everything is about the built and the design. I do not "pew pew woof woof bang boom" with my legos if this is your question. ^^

I don't play with Lego in the same manner as a child aside from the building process and finding a good spot (or nearest open one) to present them. Back then I remember sticking pieces together just for the heck of it, rolling 'vehicles' (anything with a pair of tires strapped) across the floor, and whooshing anything that was supposed to be some sort of spacecraft (and even things that weren't). Now I am just trying to get caught up on a very long absence from building while at the same time reorganizing my room to better suit the habit with sorting drawers, work area, and display spaces. Anymore I mainly continue to enjoy the build experience and find delight with the displays as well as coming up with custom designs.

I think when you grow up, your idea of fun can change from acting sporadically to being methodical and maybe even a little 'artsy-fartsy'. Ha. I've always enjoyed large scale dioramas therefore I would like giving that a go with my Lego. Also cityscapes are really cool too, which is another item on my bucket list. Another thing is stop motion animation; now there's an interesting way of playing with your Lego as a grownup. ;)

Well I do not really play with them as kids do (like fight with figs in castle etc)

 

Its more (like others) build it, find a nice spot, and make a good scene and scenery out of it.... so I can look at it and enjoy the sight... then sometimes I add something or take it away...

I actually like playing with my Lego sets once completed. One of the ways I do it is to play the associated movie (Lord of the Rings/Star Wars/Harry Potter/Pirates of the Caribbean) and act out what's happening. I move the guys around accordingly and the music / SFX from the movie helps bring them to life. Helms deep was one of my favorites, blowing up the wall in time and jumping to my Tower of Orthanc was too much fun. Also, the Death Star is A New Hope in a nutshell, so you can just rotate that thing around, move some minifigs to the scene and let the surround system take control.

The other way is to just get a few beers in me, smoke some weed and just go crazy with a goofy narrative...taking pictures along the way. I work in LA as a TV editor, so I use this as a storytelling exercise.

Lastly, I almost always adjust my layouts...my modulars have new characters in and out of stores on a weekly basis...the fairground mixer gets condensed to the trucks...and then opened up again...and my Simpsons house often opens up for rearranging/display. I don't whoosh whoosh bang bang as much, but I do continually change my displays :)

"Whoosh whoosh bang bang".... wasn't that the title of a movie?

I got back into lego with the Arch sets so it was strictly build and display. Now I have done SW, Creator, Modulars, and technic. When I first build a set I like to check out all of its features wether it is the "swoosh ability " of an X wing or using the Crane of of the Sandcrawler, then it either gets modified ( like combining 3 sail barges into 1) or displayed. There are no sound effects, talking minifigs or scene reenactment going on but I did find something I actually played with the technic Pull Back Racers like the 42010 and 42011 you can build them combine them then rebuild them but best of all they remind me of my SSP racers I had as a kid

So yes that was me a 50 year old man racing them down his driveway and it felt good

So yes that was me a 50 year old man racing them down his driveway and it felt good

There is always an inner-child within us. It feels good to enjoy Lego for what they are really meant to be.

I enjoy building them a lot with wifey.

Afterwards, we play with them for a while with the new features and then put them in the display corner.

I am being tempted by trains at the moment so that would be a whole new ballpark as the display/play thing goes.

I have been guilty of swooshing my star wars ships from time to time.  You're never too old for a good swooshing.

I'm young at heart and can't resist having a play.

I got back into lego with the Arch sets so it was strictly build and display. Now I have done SW, Creator, Modulars, and technic. When I first build a set I like to check out all of its features wether it is the "swoosh ability " of an X wing or using the Crane of of the Sandcrawler, then it either gets modified ( like combining 3 sail barges into 1) or displayed. There are no sound effects, talking minifigs or scene reenactment going on but I did find something I actually played with the technic Pull Back Racers like the 42010 and 42011 you can build them combine them then rebuild them but best of all they remind me of my SSP racers I had as a kid

So yes that was me a 50 year old man racing them down his driveway and it felt good

Wow. Your post brought back memories. I use to have the demolition SST cars that blew apart on impact. I remember have a SST like Evil Knievel cycle I would sent off the ramp into his camper, like real live

Girls play with toys to practice and work out relationships between them and the world and them and other people, mostly. By the time we're my age, we're usually pretty busy with real relationships, and it's no longer necessary to us to have one minifig explain to the other that her brother is a doody-head.

If my girlfriend sees me pushing my newly built 10220 along the lounge carpet, I'll just tell her that I'm playing with myself.

You gotta try out the features, you know just to make sure they work.  Sometimes adding sound effects makes it work better...who I am I kidding, yes I play with the Lego sets when I finish building them for a few minutes depending on size and then I either take them apart or display them depending on the theme.  

how could you not make the sound effects when picking up a spaceship.  or resist the urge to rumble a car over a pile of bricks? yes i play and will probably always play