For those of you who haven't been keeping up with the news, this installment of ZAM's "What We Know So Far" fills you in with all the details about the upcoming Lego Universe MMO

As the first sets of post-production screenshots began rolling in, the Lego Group began its first round of media presentations last fall, when ZAM was invited to a live demo and Q&A to learn about the MMO. The demo resulted in a wealth of information, which we collected in our Lego Universe "Key Facts Revealed" feature. We learned that the ability for players to interact with the environment is a major theme in the MMO, and that "even the log-in screen features a minifig that performs various actions when inputting your username and password."

As speculated, character creation will indeed entail customization of your own "minifig," which can be configured using an assortment of facial features, hair styles and clothing—with more options available to players as they progress in-game. In keeping with the franchise's family-friendly nature, a player's minifigure contains a "creative spark" that can never be snuffed; when players are "destroyed" or "smashed," their minifigures are merely "rebuilt" anew.

A few other notable facts we learned last October: the combat in Lego Universe will be active, with both ranged and melee weapon mechanics (both PvE and PvP content will be available). A player's "class" is dependent on the gear he or she chooses to equip, so minifigures will be able to perform multiple roles without committing to a single archetype. The MMO will feature a leveling system, although the developers intend to desegregate players of low and high levels; new players will be able to admire the gear and creations of higher-level characters.

Lego Universe will also feature many of the social elements that have become staples in many MMOs, like in-game chat, emotes and the ability to tame and collect an assortment of pets (players will even be able to mix "pet parts" to create hybrid pets, like a "Liowartagator" we mentioned in the fact sheet).

Finally—and perhaps the most-anticipated feature of the upcoming MMO—every real-world Lego brick will be represented in the virtual game world. As players progress throughout the game, they will acquire an assortment of virtual Lego bricks that can be used to create whatever object or construct they can imagine. These Lego creations can be showcased in personal collections via a proprietary social networking engine, although the developers will probably integrate the ability into popular Web 2.0 social mediums like Facebook and Twitter, eventually.

There are three methods used to build objects in Lego Universe; "Quick Building", "Choice Building" and "Custom Building", according to the official site. Quick Building allows you to "push a button and your in-game character starts swiftly snapping together a predetermined model," according to the description. "This is the primary type of building found in popular video games like LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Batman and LEGO Indiana Jones."

Choice Building allows players to choose the result of Quick Building by selecting from a variety of "predetermined" models, while Custom Building is the actual "brick-by-brick" style of construction that allows players to create the same complex structures they can with traditional, plastic Lego bricks. Last fall, we still weren't sure if the MMO would allow player creations to "come to life," although the Build section of the official site reveals that players can "build and bring to life virtually any LEGO creation they can imagine, either alone or by teaming up with friends."

For a more detailed explanation of game features, visit the official Lego Universe "General" and "Game" FAQs. For a more elaborate look and our first impression of the upcoming MMO, check out ZAM's recent "Lego Universe In-Depth Preview" and the official trailer released last month. Finally, last week we reported that NetDevil has begun accepting applications for the first Lego Universe beta test, so head on over and sign up if you want to apply. In the mean time, keep an eye on ZAM's Lego Universe portal site for upcoming news and game details!