I got this set in a bucket of LEGOs for Christmas back in 2013. It was the first set I realized that was actually complete in the box and the first one I built.

Minifigure

Astronaut male this guy was pretty typical of the astronaut minifigures of that time the only real interesting thing was his head printing is a bit more unusual.

Astronaut female is your typically 2011 astronaut.

Station operator is an interesting minifigure with an unusual head hair and torso print.

Fuel guy is your typical silver sunglasses utility wearing tow truck driving LEGO city guy who populated sets for like five years or more.

The Build

The Rocket is the main focus of the build. It has room to seat on astronaut or to load the satellite into the rocket's cone. The launchpad has a fuel tank tool rack and a countdown to launch thing. Locks to lock the rocket sled with and an elevator to take the astronauts up to the top of the rocket.

The launch center has a radar dish and a desk with a bunch of monitors and a seat for the controller.

There is also included a small buggy to cart the astronauts around the launchpad on.

Overall

This is an excellent set. I spent hours of my childhood playing with it, and it was an excellent addition to my city. If you can, I would highly recommend acquiring this set for your collection.

For the last 30 years, the Space Shuttle was the iconic image of NASA, the United States space program. Now that it has been retired and is no longer in service, it is fitting that Lego has introduced a new space center that reflects the direction that NASA will be turning in the wake of the shuttle's demise. Although I've never been a big fan of space exploration, I did own the first "Space Shuttle Launch" set 1682 originally released in 1990. However, further inspection into this set's offering inspired me to purchase it to add to my son's collection to mark the era of space exploration that will define his generation.

Pros

• Build quality. Lego's designers did an excellent job piecing together all aspects of this set. No pieces look or feel excessive or out of place in the design.
• Attention to detail. Compared to my space shuttle set from over 20 years ago, Lego has since evolved into a more sophisticated system that incorporates many, small details, such as the "crash phone" and display panels of the launch command module, the wheel valve and gas tank at the base of the tower, the hose line attached to pivoting arm along the tower, and the spot lights at the ends of the platform. By themselves, they appear as nothing more than nuances, but, collectively, really show why Lego is the leader in building toys.
• Rocket / Moving Platform. The main attraction of this set, of course, is the rocket, and Lego has really done some outstanding work piecing this together. The lines, size, and overall appearance of the rocket lend to a great level of realism, plus the ability to carry men or satellites into space allows for different types of launch missions. The moving platform the rocket sits on is simplistic in its build, but is also convincing in appearance and is a nice feature to have in terms of playability. The ingenious locking tabs that are in place to hold the platform adjacent to the tower are, in my book, an appreciated addition.

Cons

• Vehicle. I'm not sure what Lego was trying to accomplish with the little cart, other than to have "something else" in the set. A van, of sorts, might have been a bit more realistic. But hey, they could have not included one at all, so from that perspective, it's acceptable.
• Minifigures. I love the minifigures provided in this set, and the fact that some of the accessories for them are very rare, but I feel that Lego should have either had at least 1 more minifigure - an extra ground crew member. Therefore, they either could have given us five minifigures, or, to keep cost the same, replace one of the astronauts with a ground crew member. It doesn't make sense to have two astronauts when the rocket can only carry one at a time, but this is a VERY minor gripe, and really doesn't hurt the overall rating of the set in my eyes.

I typically only buy Lego sets that I have a strong interest in or desire to own, hence, almost all sets I review will have very good scores; consider it a bit of a bias. But, given that I wasn't even really in the market for a space-themed, city set, the fact that I purchased this set on a whim lends strongly to its quality and value. If you have even an inkling of interest in the space program, you should definitely check this set out, especially since it is the first set I've seen from Lego that does not feature the space shuttle, thus it is not a dated set. And, if you're like me and are looking for newer sets to replace older ones, this set is a significant improvement over the previous 1682 set I had (I can't comment about the other space shuttle sets from the mid-to-late 90s - I never owned them) and is a nice example of the first steps toward a post-space shuttle age of space exploration.

The Space Center #3368 a very great set. My dad ordered me this off of Fingerhut.com, it was worth $100, but I only got it for $63, a great sale price. Though its regular price on Lego.com is $70 dollars and it has only 494 pieces, the Lego City Fire Station #7945, another great Lego City set that I own, was worth only $50, and it had 600 pieces, that's a mix up right there. But besides the price and piece mix up, the set is great, here are some great stuff about it.

Accessories:

1.This set comes with a Satellite, a little machine with 2 gun pieces, a car, countdown clock, tools, rocket holder, gas pump, and locks for the rocket holder.

2.They are great, especially the countdown clock, in which animators on Youtube who have this set can count down when the rocket will launch.

3.The locks are another great feature, they hold the little rocket holder, so it does not roll off the station and demolish.

4.The gas pump is also a great feature to this set, it is long grey piece hooked to some yellow technic pieces, to fuel the rocket before it launches.

Rocket/Saturn V:

1. The Saturn V is a great addition to the set. You can sit the satellite, or machine with the 2 gun pieces on its pole on the surface, and when its in space, you can take off the top and take which either object off the pole and put it in space.

Minifigures:

4 minifigures (2 astronauts male and female, machanic, and boss or chief) are great additions for the set, though they should add 1 more astronaut or mechanic in here. Its great that there is a female astronaut in here, the last set to have a female astronaut was the Shuttle Expedition, very great. Also, Lego City starting to add more woman minifigures to their sets is great, they've been having too many male minifigures in their sets.

Space Station and Red Building:

1.The red building is a great feature. It has a comuter, a desk, a TV showing the Saturn V, and a red phone with a machine. There hasn't been any set in Lego City with a phone ever since the Sports Car #8401, its great they've added a phone, and hopefully there will be more phone pieces in future sets.

2.The station is awesome. Its big, with an elevator, camera, lights in the front, oil tank, and 3 or 4 levels on it.

3. The elevator is my favorite accessory, by going up and down so smoothly, and you can stick the Satellite or machine with the 2 gun pieces on the grey tile with one stud. Also you can add a minifigure on it too.

4.On the 1st level, there are some tools, 2nd level, nothing, and 3rd level, the gas pump. On the flat tiles are stickers that say, '' keep clear, '' as well as the lights to show the rocket.

Overall, this set is great, it is my favorite set of Lego City for 2011, as well as the Public Transport #8404 is my favorite set of Lego City for 2010 and the Garage #7642 for 2009.

I recommend you get this set, you'll have fun building and playing with it. Like I did.

I got this set at a TRU BOGO 50% off sale. SO I really got this set for $35 which was a great start to an amazing set. The design of the set itself is good and it is a very realistic model.

Pros:

-Fully functional lift to reach the top of the rocket

-Tools and gas tanks are the details that make all the difference in this set

-The radar dish is cleverly designed

-I am most impressed by the phone+receiver which is outstanding

-The carrier for the rocket was brilliant and the locks on each side are as well

-I got an extra set of stickers!

-The guy who sits in the office has a really nice hair piece

-The orange hat is one of the rarest pieces Lego has made

Cons:

-The windows on the office do not fully close;the pieces pop up a tiny bit, not a major detail but a little bit of a pain

-Lego sets are starting to contain less pieces and bigger pieces which takes away from the building experience

The idea of Space for the Lego City theme was a good idea but they can't really make any more sets for it. The last thing needed is to start making the City so it looks like Jetsons city.

The yellow and the black pieces contrast very nicely but the tool rack (from far away) looks like a jumbo bumblebee. There should be a compartment on the rocket where the satellite can be attached so both the person and the satellite could go up at once. The helmet is a nice piece because Lego is very exclusive with gold pieces.

To me, this model was quite reminiscent of the good old Lauch mission, as seen here: models http://brickset.com/detail/?Set=6339-1

The newer model is, I think, all optimised for play: the build is simple- simpler than the old lauch pad. It looks a bit more toy-like too, with it's vibrant color choice and stickers (no sticker on several pieces- take that launch mission!). The stickers are not too numerous mind you, and even without them it looks good. Sadly they are not easy to put on the rocket.

The build begins with the little car- it's not all that usefull or well-built but fun, and again strongely ressembles older cars in that respect (cf http://brickset.com/detail/?Set=6544-1). The minifigs are sweet, the new helmet is great, the astronauts (two!) have as usual beautifully detailled torso prints. We only get one launch crew member, though he's sporting a great jumpsuit and an ORANGE cap. The launch scientist looks a bit too much like a business man however (great hair though).

We then build the rocket and it's components. These are a little pod for an astronaut and a satelite. Their design is simple and quite low in pieces, but effective. The satelite pannels look great (sticker though), and it's body is built with those sweet pillar pieces, in grey.

The rocket itself is quite big, and probably a Saturn 3E or Saturn 4. It's a lovely rendition, is rather sturdy and features nice pieces. It makes a bit clicky noises with the pod in it though.

It's little trail is looking a bit blocky, though. Here again, effective, but simple. A little seat with a control or something would have been nice.

The space station is made in two parts. The first is a control station for the scientist (businessman?) with a simple build, but fantastic rendition. The inside has a beautifull dark tan desk, with a printed computer, a big screen and an awesome red phone.

Last but not least, the station. The old one had a snazzy rocket lift, which we lost here. We do win a few things: a working lift, A countdown (stickers. This time they don't look so great, transparent on black let you see the air bubbles), and a little Octan tank to fill the rocket up. The tower is made with rather big pieces, and is built fast. It is quite big and sturdy in the end and looks quite nice. Other than the lift, the camera does a bit of realism.

The road has a bit of detailling, and a few "keep clear" stickers. Good idea. A little tool rack and a lock-on system for the rocket trail complete it.

In the end, the space centre is not as sophisticated as the old model. It does, however, live up to it playability-wise. The ensemble looks great, and it's quite a big model in the end: although it doesn't have so much pieces lots of them are quite sizeable. The price is therefore ok (I paid 65€).

The clunky look and unfinished design of some part are a bit of a draw though. the car, lift and trail can be easily improoved- which children will probably do.

But yeah. It looks good, has a big size and is all about playability. And frankly, it's a fun model- and that's what it's all about.