Mike Yates

Mega Bloks

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*sigh* Here we go again with eurobricks' trademark brand loyalty. Seriously, I've never understood why so many members here bash megabloks and other clone brands for the sole reason that it ISN'T LEGO. I mean, come on - that's like bashing Sony and Microsoft for making systems just because Nintendo was there first!

In all honesty, I feel that if a product is not illegally ripping off another company (like Shifty did to many of TLC's sets), then you should judge them solely on their quality. And no, that doesn't mean that you should go "hey, most people say they're crap, so they must be poor quality and I shouldn't even touch them." If you really want to back your comments up (positive or negative), you need to actually experiment with the pieces, like I have.

And actually, Megabloks isn't as bad as some of you guys make it out to be. Sure, the quality is definitely lower than lego, but it's improved vastly from their early days. Plus, Megabloks does have some very interesting pieces - the walls used in the Dragons line have a great texture and design, for example. And concerning acessories, I think they've really done an execellent job. Their fantasy themed lines have some very cool handweapons, and those guns that were posted above look nice too. Plus, Megabloks actually had the guts to produce a military themed line, which TLC will probably never do.

Of course, my opinion about them is rapidly changing, as they seem to now be focusing less on their stud based play line and focusing more on novelty toys like Magnetix, Struxx, and Neo Shifters, which IMO is just an obvious cash in on Bionicle's success. Still, I honestly feel that anybody who doesn't at least try out Megabloks toys has no right to bash them.

*prepares to get bashed himself*

Very well said Grevious. :classic:

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Very well said Grevious. :classic:

Ditto.

I don't own any and as far as I can remember, I never have. If folks like them, so be it.

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Honestly I don't like them that much because they have stolen some of Lego's profits, by stealing their building block design...

But I've also tried them a few years ago I bought many Megabloks Dragon themed sets, since it was either them or Knights Kingdom :sick: . For the most part the part quality wasn't that bad, but I still had a fair share of faulty pieces that didn't fit properly, or broke easily. For example in one particular fraction of knights, the arms and legs always broke often right out of the box, but all the other fractions had no widespread problems. Overall set designs were okay but many sets relied heavily on <insert that tiresome argument> wall and floor pieces, and . Minifig wise for the most part I think that Megablocks may have tied or even out did Lego, since sets included many more minifigs on average than Lego, plenty of accessories, and fairly nice details on the minifigs. They also made nice battlepacks for most themes, which is never a bad thing :wink: . Also since the prices were lower, you could buy more, to replace faulty pieces.

After Revenge of the Sith came out I returned to Lego, and eventually got rid of my Megabloks. Currently I'm only buying Lego because they are now producing better sets, and themes, as well as adding more minifigs and accessories to themes for the most part.

*Scurries into bunker for oncoming bashing*

Except that its not stealing. Megabloks is doing something that is perfectly legal - since TLC's patnent on the lego brick ran out, other companies now have the right to produce bricks as well. Yes, they are taking advantage, but they are certainly not stealing. Stealing is when you take something that legally belongs to someone else. And in reality, the brick no longer belongs solely to TLC.

Still, I totally agree with what you've said about Lego's products - they now have far surpassed Megabloks, which keeps sinking lower and lower with their new "innovations," instead of focusing on their good themes. Strange, that almost sounds like lego's dark ages... :wink:

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*sigh* Here we go again with eurobricks' trademark brand loyalty. Seriously, I've never understood why so many members here bash megabloks and other clone brands for the sole reason that it ISN'T LEGO. I mean, come on - that's like bashing Sony and Microsoft for making systems just because Nintendo was there first!

In all honesty, I feel that if a product is not illegally ripping off another company (like Shifty did to many of TLC's sets), then you should judge them solely on their quality. And no, that doesn't mean that you should go "hey, most people say they're crap, so they must be poor quality and I shouldn't even touch them." If you really want to back your comments up (positive or negative), you need to actually experiment with the pieces, like I have.

And actually, Megabloks isn't as bad as some of you guys make it out to be. Sure, the quality is definitely lower than lego, but it's improved vastly from their early days. Plus, Megabloks does have some very interesting pieces - the walls used in the Dragons line have a great texture and design, for example. And concerning acessories, I think they've really done an execellent job. Their fantasy themed lines have some very cool handweapons, and those guns that were posted above look nice too. Plus, Megabloks actually had the guts to produce a military themed line, which TLC will probably never do.

Of course, my opinion about them is rapidly changing, as they seem to now be focusing less on their stud based play line and focusing more on novelty toys like Magnetix, Struxx, and Neo Shifters, which IMO is just an obvious cash in on Bionicle's success. Still, I honestly feel that anybody who doesn't at least try out Megabloks toys has no right to bash them.

Good, sensible post. :thumbup:

The only Megabloks I have are from some old set in the 90s, and a scammed Lego set I got off ebay (supposedly MISB but had its contents switched with a random bag of Megabloks). I got a refund on it, but there were some useful slope pieces in that bag that don't exist in Lego, so it seemed worth holding on to.

As far as I can tell, the relative quality improvement has more to do with the change in Lego than anything else. MB seems to be the same as it was 10-15 years ago, but Lego has regressed noticeably.

Edited by CP5670

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15 years ago? I thought Megabloks has only made Lego clone bricks for two years or so.

I have never seen them in real life so I can't really comment on them. The only ones I have actually seen are Ministeck. They look halfway decent but nowhere near Lego and when you click the wheels on the holders they don't stand vertically but with an angle. Not a big success.

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Mega-Bloks. The pieces don't fit together well, and as of now, they are more expensive than Lego. When I was about 5 years old, there was a big Mega-Blok battleship at a garage sale for 7$. I bought it, not knowing any better, and when I opened it, it was just a bunch of grey basic pieces with no instruction manual. Luckily, it had some real Lego mixed in, by far the best part. :grin: I couldn't build the actual model without the instructions, so in my Lego bin it went. About two months later, I got so frustrated with the pieces not fitting that I sorted all the Mega-Bloks out and threw them away.

Then recently I bought a very expensive bag of Lego from the resale shop in town, it was 17$ for two smallish bags, but there was a lot of classic pirate and arctic stuff and I figured it was worth it. Anyways, i brought it home and opened it, and, what do you know, it was a bunch of clone bricks. I was furious, and resale shops don't accept returns, so I sorted the real Lego out, cleaned and dumped it into my collection. Then I took the clone bricks to the old, unused sandbox in my yard and built fortifications for some plastic soldiers. Then I blasted it to bits with a combination of a .22, BB gun, and 9mm guns. :devil: After the bricks were tiny chunks of cheap plastic, I piled them up and burned them. :skull:

In conclusion, Mega-Bloks and other clone brands are only good for one thing, destruction. :skull:

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I'm a sucker for "clone brand" discussions. I also love it when folks accuse other brands of stealing LEGO designs and sales when interlocking bricks were never original to LEGO to begin with. Not only have the patents expired, and MB has beat LEGO in court for the right to produce the bricks, but LEGO took the idea from british toymaker Kiddiecraft who manufactured the interlocking bricks years before, but was never as successfull as LEGO.

http://www.hilarypagetoys.com/

If MB is "stealing" then IMHO, LEGO has done the exact same thing.

That said, I am first an foremost a LEGO fan. LEGO still makes the best sets and the widest variety of pieces, and while MB quality has improved, LEGO is still the leader in brick quality and sheen. I do dabble in the "clones" but mostly for certain colors, and accessories. Most MB, Cobi, Enlighten (they really are crooks), Tyco, etc that I find goes into a bin for give-away. There are exceptions of course. The 2400 piece MB Sea Wolf sub was one of the most enjoyable set-building experiences I ever had.

As the OP has pointed out, other brands can be great for accessories. Guns, interesting headgear, riot vests, unique windows and doors, etc. are nice additions to my LEGO layouts. Also, some of the more blatant copycat brands can yeild LEGO elements in new colors such as chrome pirate pistols and swords, brown bandanas, etc.

In short they aren't "the same" but they do have their uses.

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I think mega blocks is ok there are some interesting pieces that work well and I have some guns from mega blocks that are the kind of guns brick arms would make. Also the pieces are not as bad quality as you think. I agree they can be frustrating but they can be good. I once got a dragons castle brand new for £20 and it was huge. About as big as vldeks dark fortress. Also I must admit the pirates of the carribean line is quite interesting.

I think to judge them you should try them and by that I do not mean have a look at one then try atttaching a lego piece but insted building a decent model and seeing how it turns out. I would always choose lego over mega blocks but I think mega blocks also has it's good points. One more thing mega blocks was not made so it can fit on to lego perfectly so do not complain when lego does not fit on to mega blocks perfectly.

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some megablocks have infiltrated my big box of second hand lego, but if i'm honest i've not noticed it was a different brand when I was building, i've noticed a lack of quality compared with lego bricks though.

I use them as "filler bricks" if i have a gap that i want filled but don't want to use the good ones to fill it.

Edited by simonjedi

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100 pence make £1, so 98p would be arounnd 70 cents (my maths isn't so good and the £-$ exchange keeps changing, but you get the gist) so 98 pence for an ok-ish quality construction toy is rather good =D

So pence are like cents in the UK like there are 100 cents in a dollar! Wait how do you know all this stuff if you are from planet Zi How do you even get C3 and megabloks if you'r on a very far away planet? You has some splanein to do! :oh:

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So pence are like cents in the UK like there are 100 cents in a dollar! Wait how do you know all this stuff if you are from planet Zi How do you even get C3 and megabloks if you'r on a very far away planet? You has some splanein to do! :oh:

Space gates, after all, humans got to Zi somehow!

On topic: The last megabloks I bought were some PotC, for the ninja like weapons. Lets face it TLC are not going to make real-ish weapons so any "clone" brands that do make such things are going to be bought by Lego fans who want minifig scale weapons.

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The Mega Bloks probuilder series did have a few gems...however, on the whole, I do dislike MB. Even though they're Canadian. It's a bit shameful for us Canadian FOLs. :blush:

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I just thought I should mention, while I was in canberra recently I went to the national art gallery (it's relevant).

We (friend and I) stumbled into this section which I believe had something to do with coming home or going home or being home or kids and home. I don't remember specifically the name but it was to do with all things homely.

We noticed, and couldn't resist a kiddy table, with an in-ground/table box of mega blocks and the green sheet with which to build from attached to the table top. We made a house with a picket fence, with a garage on the attic and cows in place of chimneys.

I did take a photo but the lighting was pretty horrid and it didn't come out well.

We were pretty impressed with ourselves :thumbup:

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Then I took the clone bricks to the old, unused sandbox in my yard and built fortifications for some plastic soldiers. Then I blasted it to bits with a combination of a .22, BB gun, and 9mm guns. :devil: After the bricks were tiny chunks of cheap plastic, I piled them up and burned them. :skull:

In conclusion, Mega-Bloks and other clone brands are only good for one thing, destruction. :skull:

Wow your dedicated. :skull:

On topic: The last megabloks I bought were some PotC, for the ninja like weapons. Lets face it TLC are not going to make real-ish weapons so any "clone" brands that do make such things are going to be bought by Lego fans who want minifig scale weapons.

No they probable wont, But I'd still rather get BrickArms then damn megablocks!

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We had a whole bunch of Megabloks back in the mid 90s when cash was tight. My brothers appreciated having them rather than sticking with their sparse amount of Lego - the Megabloks was good for providing a lot more ordinary bricks cheaply. Obviously in more affluent times, we aren't so interested in them (there is a boxload of them still) but my sister took them to fill out her small enough Lego collection (with a family, she can't afford to spend much on Lego, though she's got a fair bit more now from presents).

My youngest brother got some of the Dragon megabloks, and while obviously inferior quality to Lego, it's cleverly enough done, and good fun for kids. The "<insert that tiresome argument>" parts (e.g. decorative wall panels) have plenty of use in adding flair to a castle creation.

I wouldn't buy non-Lego brands for myself, but that's just because I have more cash. Also having a credit card and shopping online does offer the prospect of more substantial deals on Lego than the Irish retail scene (the main player is not bad, they have much of the range and at S@H prices or even sometimes less, but a lack of competition and other shops means little chance for frequent sales and deals).

I did buy some non-Duplo for my nephew, but only because it was €15 for a giant bin of ordinary blocks from LIDL. He already has now about €100 worth of actual genuine Duplo that various family members including myself got him for Christmas.

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No they probable wont, But I'd still rather get BrickArms then damn megablocks!

Ah, there is the catch. Brickarms do not do numchucks or sai. Plus they cost 100% more than a small set bought on impulse from a shop full of low price reamaindered stock...

I am planning on getting some Brickarms gear, once the weapons pack I want is in minifigsforlife. But I can't see how people make such a fuss over megabloks but still happily buy brickarms...

(which recently caused all kinds of trouble for TLC when Mr Murdock got hold of an image of a custom figure... I'm still hearing people in the toy aisle tutting over Lego Terrorists)

But that is nither here nor there, everyone has a choice. I will continue to buy really cheap off brand bricks to compare with LEGO Bricks (re-affirming that TLC is and always will be the best) and anyone who hates such off brand bricks with great loathing can repudiate them as they wish.

I agree with all the budget constraint posts, LEGO can be expensive and when you want to continue your building but also need to eat and have a roof over your head then cheaper bricks are very helpful.

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Space gates, after all, humans got to Zi somehow!

Does this mean you once lived on earth?

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Ah, there is the catch. Brickarms do not do numchucks or sai. Plus they cost 100% more than a small set bought on impulse from a shop full of low price reamaindered stock...

I am planning on getting some Brickarms gear, once the weapons pack I want is in minifigsforlife. But I can't see how people make such a fuss over megabloks but still happily buy brickarms...

(which recently caused all kinds of trouble for TLC when Mr Murdock got hold of an image of a custom figure... I'm still hearing people in the toy aisle tutting over Lego Terrorists)

But that is nither here nor there, everyone has a choice. I will continue to buy really cheap off brand bricks to compare with LEGO Bricks (re-affirming that TLC is and always will be the best) and anyone who hates such off brand bricks with great loathing can repudiate them as they wish.

I agree with all the budget constraint posts, LEGO can be expensive and when you want to continue your building but also need to eat and have a roof over your head then cheaper bricks are very helpful.

No nunchucks eh? :tongue: And they dont make Sai but the Long Sword might be close enough...Also I think Brickforge might have something closer to a Sai but BF site is stuffing up for me so I cant look now...

Ahh yes Osama Bin LEGO. It was actually good for the BA, They had so many orders after the newspaper was published that they had to temporarily close the shopping car for bout a week or so :thumbup::laugh:

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Does this mean you once lived on earth?

Yup (zoids history.)

No nunchucks eh? :tongue: And they dont make Sai but the Long Sword might be close enough...Also I think Brickforge might have something closer to a Sai but BF site is stuffing up for me so I cant look now...

Ahh yes Osama Bin LEGO. It was actually good for the BA, They had so many orders after the newspaper was published that they had to temporarily close the shopping car for bout a week or so :thumbup::laugh:

Yeah so I heard, most of the comments on the article were positive, or at least sceptical. I think it's funny too, all the publicity it got. But still, some really thick people (you know, the ones who tell their kids they don't want Lego because they have to build it...) think its official Lego...

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I thought LEGO bought the patent from Kiddicraft. Have I been lied too :hmpf_bad: .

My friend you have half been lied to...

Lego sued an American manufacturer, Tyco, who had established a factory in the colony to make almost identical bricks. They won the case but Tyco appealed, and the court reversed the earlier judgement after hearing a startling admission from Lego's 66-year-old chairman, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, that he received sample bricks from a Londoner, Mr. Hillary Page, in 1947. Two years later, the company produced its first version of the idea, adapting the block one tenth of a millimetre to conform to the metric standard and changing the shape of the interlocking studs on the top.

(changing the shape means removing the dimple on top on top of the stud)

More here: http://www.hilarypagetoys.com/history.php?his_id=5 Check the gallery section also.

It wasn't until '81, long after kiddicraft founder Hillary Page had died, and other companies had begun to produce "clone" bricks that LEGO settled out of court for the rights to the remains of the kiddicraft patents.

The plot thickens....

Edited by Eilif

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I actually thought that Tyco was ok. Its not like Megabloks! I have a few Tyco bricks..... :grin:

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I actually thought that Tyco was ok. Its not like Megabloks! I have a few Tyco bricks..... :grin:

Tyco is an interesting case. I'll bet that alot of folks have a few tyco bricks in their collection and don't even know it. Tycho's plastic was so high quality, and the sheen was so good, that Tycho's blue yellow, black and red bricks (slightly less so the red ones) are nearly indistinguishable from LEGO colors except of course that they say Tyco on the top. Tyco's plates are 1/2 brick high, so it's easy to tell them from the LEGO 1/3 high plates.

One of my favorite building pieces is the Tyco 1x3 roof piece. It looks just like the lego except that it has a ridge midway up the slope to suggest roof tiles.

Unfortunately Tyco's run with bricks was pretty short, and a few years later most of the company closed it's doors.

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Lego is Lego and the rest are clone-bricks for me...

but the clone brands have some interesting bricks...

we must dare to admit that... but it will always be crap... :laugh:

Edited by Capt. Kirk

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Found some "Building Bricks" in Poundland today. £1 a bag of brightly coloured plastic bricks. They were neon pink, orange, blue and green. I was about to bu them when I noticed that a substantial amount were warped-ish and that the plastic looked more "soapy". Apart from that, the colours and shapes on offer were pretty cool.

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