Lego faces are angrier now, study shows The study found the mini-figures are mostly released in sets such as Harry Potter or pirate sets whose themes have become increasingly conflict-ridden. "Lego has a considerable array of weapon systems in their program, although the weapons mainly appear in the fictional themes," it said. Lego might not be able to hold onto its highly positive reputation. Since 2003, the mini-figures have also featured different skin colours aside from Lego's standard yellow. About 4 billion mini-figures have been sold by the Danish toy maker. The lead author, Dr Christof Bartneck, a robot expert from the University of Canterbury, said the change in the faces reflected a broader shift among toy and game makers towards depicting conflict-based themes. "When I grew up the only thing I ever had was smiley faces, and I had very positive and happy memory of Lego," he said. If you go into a toy store these days what you see is that a lot of the themes and topics, particularly for the toys for the boys, are very rich in conflict and war and weapons. It seems to be a sign of the times that this is currently what is popular in toys and what sells.