LEGO® CUUSOO 空想 - Turn your model wishes into reality

[Bricksan]

I predict the next big one to take off will be a nice well detailed but reasonably sized model of the Curiousity Rover. It just screams "make me in Lego".

There is one already and it's made by someone who worked on the real one --> http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/3431

[Faefrost]

It looks like the Sandcrawler hit 10k. At least I assume so. It needed about 50 votes last night, and seems to have scrolled off the main page.

Congrats!

[purpleparadox]

There is one already and it's made by someone who worked on the real one --> http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/3431

And it looks like it's taking off! Over 3,000 supports already.

It looks like the Sandcrawler hit 10k. At least I assume so. It needed about 50 votes last night, and seems to have scrolled off the main page.

Congrats!

Sweet! Let's hope this one makes it through review.

[Bobsy]

I do wish they'd hurry up with the results of the current review. Words can't express how badly I want that Eve Online Rifter.

[Erik Leppen]

I would love a "hell no" button.

Why? If 10,000 people want something, who are you to say they shouldn't be able to get it? Frankly, TLG isn't interested in the amount of people who don't want something. ;) There're a lot of projects that I find totally uninteresting. But if 10,000 people want it, then why would my opinion matter?

It would be interesting if support required a commitment to buy at a maximum price of what you entered when you supported, and obviously dumb amounts wouldn't count.

So when someone puts $1 for how much they'd pay for a UCS sandcrawler, not only doesn't it count - the user should have their account suspended. But if they put $500, then if LEGO makes the set and sells it for any amount $500 or below, they should be obligated to buy it.

As much as I agree with the $1 problem you outline, I think one cannot oblige people to buy anything, unless it would make them buy right away. Which would means that voting costs money. Doing that would change the idea from a voting mechanism, to a mechanism where the required funds are collected before considering production. It'd be safer for TLG. But no one would vote... And it's not what CUUSOO is about. It's about ideas. TLG always wants to have the deciding hand in anything.

Edit: I want to add that, yes, I'm very opinionated and vocal about things - I know that turns off a lot of people, but let's face it - in this case, Cuusoo is a great idea that's being completely abused by users. People show off their 10k part MOCs that will never be made into sets - they are great MOCs, but they are unrealistic as sets.

As long as they represent new, interesting and viable ideas, there's nothing really wrong with a bad model. A good example is the Sandcrawler that just got the 10,000. The model is unrealistically bug - but that's not what it's about. 10,000 people wanted a sandcrawler and told TLG how much they want to pay for a sandcrawler. Based on that data, the design team will design a sandcrawler set.

At the same time, people with no ability submit pictures of cars or cartoons they want made with no attempt at even building anything on their own, in LDD or otherwise.

CUUSOO should not require "ability" to propose an idea. Remember - it's still about the idea. Not about the model representing that idea.

PS It's good to be opinionated. Without opinionated people there wouldn't be discussion.

And I've had conversations with people here who have supported projects they had no intention of buying just because they were well done - there's a reason they ask how much you'd pay and how many you'd buy... if 10k people say they'd buy it, and only 5k do when they release it, you can kiss such a great opportunity for sets we'd like to see made good-bye. I'd say a huge portion of the submitters are using Cuusoo just to show off their MOCs that have no chance of being made into a set at all... there are other websites for that!

Agree 100%. A lot of projects aren't viable because they aren't interesting ideas. However - the 10000 vote requirement filters out most of them.

Edited August 13, 2012 by Erik Leppen

[SilentMode]

CUUSOO should not require "ability" to propose an idea. Remember - it's still about the idea. Not about the model representing that idea.

As much as I try to remind people, unfortunately it is about the representation of the idea, much like in competitions or anything else. Perhaps unless it's a licence project, it doesn't matter how good the idea is or how well thought out it's been; for most of those potential supporters it's going to be about what they can see visually.

[Faefrost]

And it looks like it's taking off! Over 3,000 supports already.

Sweet! Let's hope this one makes it through review.

At what point does TLG say the heck with CuuSoo projects and just hire Marshall outright?

[Bobsy]

Suggestion: should Eurobricks have an index of Cuusoo projects started by its members? Seems a sort of thing that should exist.

[Anio]

As much as I try to remind people, unfortunately it is about the representation of the idea, much like in competitions or anything else. Perhaps unless it's a licence project, it doesn't matter how good the idea is or how well thought out it's been; for most of those potential supporters it's going to be about what they can see visually.

Very, VERY true.

You worded precisely what I think about the cuusoo.

No matter how interesting an idea can be, how well executed a MOC can be, if the presentation sucks (poor photos, basically), be sure that the project will never get 10,000 supporters.

That's why I generally do not post my models on the Cuusoo anymore.

[Aanchir]

Very, VERY true.

You worded precisely what I think about the cuusoo.

No matter how interesting an idea can be, how well executed a MOC can be, if the presentation sucks (poor photos, basically), be sure that the project will never get 10,000 supporters.

That's why I generally do not post my models on the Cuusoo anymore.

Also the same reason I have never made any Cuusoo proposals. There are a couple ideas I have that I'd love to create good images of for a proposal, but often they're too controversial for me to be confident that my efforts won't be wasted. Examples are my modular road system I've been working on for the past couple years (perhaps I can work further on that for my industrial design classes at the college I'm transferring to) and a BIONICLE tribute series using existing Hero Factory parts (which would be divisive among both BIONICLE and Hero Factory fans, both of whom probably form a minority on Cuusoo anyway).

One advantage of this is that Cuusoo tends to show favor to MOCs that had a lot of effort put into the design. Simple LDD-based MOCs, for instance, can take the least time to create and put on Cuusoo, but as a consequence they tend to lack the refined look of well-photographed physical models or more time-consuming and labor-intensive drawings and renders.

Edited August 20, 2012 by Aanchir

[Bobsy]

The deadline for the autumn fall review is the 3rd of September, and the results of the summer review are supposedly to come out in a matter of weeks. How many weeks? Apparently that's too much of a commitment I guess. Ah well.

I think the results of the summer review are going to play a large part in shaping how Cuusoo works in the future. With 3/4 being new licenses and the fourth being absolutely frickin' huge and needing substantial redesign, none of these are exactly a shoe-in for being accepted, and every rejection will cause tremors in the ideas being submitted to Cuusoo.

Of the licenses, I think the most likely to be accepted by a long way is the Eve Rifter. The company and community behind Eve Online is immensely supportive of one another, and very keen to promote the game however they can. There's already been a tacit approval by CCP in a video they posted (which also helped boost the supporters a long way) and I think they will easily agree to having Lego make the set. CCP are similar to Mojang in this respect. As for the set, it's a good size - big, but not impossibly big, fitting in reasonably well with Star Wars and other Space sets.

The least likely to be approved is probably the Zelda project. A new license, and one from a very different company to CCP. Nintendo have toy licences all over the place, making this project a legal minefield. In addition, the requirement for newly-moulded pieces make it expensive to produce. The one thing it's got going for it is that it WILL sell - no question. Will it sell enough though? Bear in mind Cuusoo sets don't appear in mainstream toy shops, so casual purchases will be minimal.

An even tougher call is the Back to the Future set. I really don't think I can say which way this one will go. As the movie is old, the licence is a lot more flexible. It really comes down to Universal's decision. They do still produce collectable toys based on the movie, so they may be open to having it done in Lego... or perhaps they would prefer a better offer from Megablocks or Kre-O. We'll see.

The Modular Western Town will make the cut on idea, easily. It's not a licensed property, it's not a theme Lego have touched in years... there's nothing to stop it. Except of course it's about 6 times the size of a regular lego set. Hell, the stagecoach alone would make for a mid-price set. I think everyone reasonable fully expects this to to be hugely reduced, and the best case scenario we can hope for would be the Western equivalent of the Pet Shop/House modular building set, with two narrow buildings that can be placed together. It's the most likely to have a set made of it, but the least likely to be released in its current state.

[SilentMode]

My money's on the Eve project, but we'll see what happens.

[Faefrost]

We were spoiled by having that Minecraft set come up as the first real licensed set. What we tend to forget is Minecraft is basically sole proprietor owned, and he went into the game project with no real expectations of merchandising revenues. So he could easily grant a license on a whim, just for coolness factor.

While CCP tacitly approves, I'm sure there are still licensing costs involved, that will have to be squared with TLG's expected or estimated sales numbers. So that's still going to involve the lawyers etc. CCP has investors. They will want a return on any licenses.

Zelda and BTTF both have some huge licensing hurdles. They already have large working departments dedicated to licensing and merchandising. They in all likelihood have minimum licenses and require certain production amounts. Plus far more extensive veto power and creative control. Finally any licenses are subdivided by region. Are there any conflicting licenses in Japan? Europe? Etc.

They said from early on the Western Town would probably just be the tavern to start. So that drops the shear size. It will probably be something of similar size to the new MF Haunted House. Which they may be watching to gauge interest and sales of, regarding this project. (figure they would be selling into a similar audience at a similar price.)

Overall I take he long wait times on these as hopeful signs. It probably means that they passed the initial business case reviews, and are mainly hung on licensing or product design queues.

[PocasNuckie]

Hi,

I was looking around on CUUSOO like I do everyday, and I was thinking that there maybe a point probably not to far off, where no projects at all reach the needed supporters and a few quarter reviews are left empty.

It's obvious that if that happens LEGO will have to take measures to not let the CUUSOO program die. Obviously the most basic thing to do would be lowering the number of supporters.

But what if... LEGO went and picked projects that even if not having the 10k supporters are considered valuable for the company to make and sell?

How would you feel about such process (dont waste my time with comments like "id be happy if they choosed X, but not Y", thanks) and what would you think would be both the pros and cons of it?

Cheers

[Jedi master Brick]

Snip

it's unlikely because they would have other projects that have already been passed but I have not had a chance to have been made.

[Faefrost]

Given that they can only produce 1 set per quarter a few empty quarters with no projects passing review would be a way to catch up. The high frequency of projects hitting 10k has been new and unexpected. I don't think they expected quite as many to hit the review stage as they have recently gotten.

And yeah the past few weeks of new stuff on CuuSoo seems rather universally horrid. A deep mixture of "little Billy's first LDD", blocks with wheels, and reworked Batman projects that they have either already done (twice for the Batcave, one is still on store shelves!) or that have been announced as in the pipeline. (I think I counted 3 Arkham's and 500 the Bat MOC's).

But there are some interesting standout projects that will hopefully rise to the top with a bit of a nudge.

[Bobsy]

Given that they can only produce 1 set per quarter a few empty quarters with no projects passing review would be a way to catch up. The high frequency of projects hitting 10k has been new and unexpected. I don't think they expected quite as many to hit the review stage as they have recently gotten.

Only one per quarter? Have they said that? Doesn't ring any bells for me.

And yeah the past few weeks of new stuff on CuuSoo seems rather universally horrid. A deep mixture of "little Billy's first LDD", blocks with wheels, and reworked Batman projects that they have either already done (twice for the Batcave, one is still on store shelves!) or that have been announced as in the pipeline. (I think I counted 3 Arkham's and 500 the Bat MOC's).

But there are some interesting standout projects that will hopefully rise to the top with a bit of a nudge.

Yes. *nudges self*

[Haltiamieli]

Only one per quarter? Have they said that? Doesn't ring any bells for me.

Here: "We can then potentially pick one project per quarter to put into immediate production as the next LEGO CUUSOO set. [...] The remaining projects that pass Review will be placed in a queue where they will await an open production slot and may be chosen for production at a later date."

Btw. they also stated recently that an announcement about the results from the summer review "will occur in a matter of weeks, not months, and we’ll update you on the exact timeframe when we know ourselves."

[Faefrost]

Yes. *nudges self*

I will admit that yours is one of teh ones I was specifically thinking of when I said there is some good stuff there

My actor needs a stage, and my Medieval Market Village needs some entertainment beyond Saturday Night Drunken Dwarf tossing.

[fred67]

I would rather they limit the number of suggestions they get; moderate out duplicates and immediately reject things they know they won't make.

With far fewer projects, maybe more will get more support.

Edited August 25, 2012 by fred67

[Bobsy]

I would rather they limit the number of suggestions they get; moderate out duplicates and immediately reject things they know they won't make.

With far fewer projects, maybe more will get more support.

I've been wondering about the ethics of Lego promoting certain projects they themselves already like, perhaps something like 3 picks per day on the front page*. The problems are obvious: suddenly people are clamouring for he moderators' attention as well as each others, as being featured would get instant support. Plenty of users wold get fustrated: "Why did they pick THAT guy's idea? Mine is clearly better!" and lead to gneral grumpiness and negtivit. Would it be worth it for letting a few more worthy projects rise above an ocean of identical batpods, ridiculous requests for Star Wars collectable minifigs and the like.

*the Discover page's three cabtepries are beyond useless

[Haltiamieli]

I've been wondering about the ethics of Lego promoting certain projects they themselves already like, perhaps something like 3 picks per day on the front page*.

They are doing this, to some extent, on the Facebook page for Lego Cuusoo with "staff picks of the day". But there isn't that much followers in the group so the effect it has on supports is probably rather minimal.

Edited August 25, 2012 by Haltiamieli

[Bobsy]

They are doing this, to some extent, on the Facebook page for Lego Cuusoo with "staff picks of the day". But there isn't that much followers in the group so the effect it has on supports is probably rather minimal.

They do seem to be moving a lot slower than their own community - very cautiously 'trying out' everything on the small scale. And they're not hugely communicative. The blog hides away at the bottom of the site, rarely updated, as is the Facebook page. I don't click 'like' buttons very often, and utterly ignored that one. Had I known they actually put content on their Facebook page, I might have been more interested.

[BrickG]

I love Lego cuusoo.

I just wish Doctor Who stuff could pass but stupid Character Buildings has that license so Lego can't get it... one awesome project seemed to be going places but they confirmed, no Doctor Who. :(

I really hope the Zelda one wins, but that franchise might have difficulties. Nintendo and Lego haven't always seen eye to eye. Also, the set technically sucks but they don't have to stick to that build.

The Back to the Future one is pretty cool but I'm not sure they'd pick it since it's based on an old movie. I really don't want the plain western to win or that EVE ship. I'm not always for Lego franchises but when you pit Zelda and Back to the Future against a generic western I really hope the western loses.

As for the one that recently ended with the Portal stuff, Sandcrawler and Mars Rover... that's a tough pick.

I'd almost say the Sandcrawler will lose but still appear really quickly in the regular Star Wars sets. Valve is probably a wonderful company to work with and I doubt getting that franchise would be hard at all like with Minecraft. The Mars Rover, Cuusoo has already shown love to technology and it stands a good chance but the set is so simple I can build it myself and being a minifigure guy I want good minifigures in whatever set wins.

[Faefrost]

I love Lego cuusoo.

I just wish Doctor Who stuff could pass but stupid Character Buildings has that license so Lego can't get it... one awesome project seemed to be going places but they confirmed, no Doctor Who. :(

I really hope the Zelda one wins, but that franchise might have difficulties. Nintendo and Lego haven't always seen eye to eye. Also, the set technically sucks but they don't have to stick to that build.

The Back to the Future one is pretty cool but I'm not sure they'd pick it since it's based on an old movie. I really don't want the plain western to win or that EVE ship. I'm not always for Lego franchises but when you pit Zelda and Back to the Future against a generic western I really hope the western loses.

As for the one that recently ended with the Portal stuff, Sandcrawler and Mars Rover... that's a tough pick.

I'd almost say the Sandcrawler will lose but still appear really quickly in the regular Star Wars sets. Valve is probably a wonderful company to work with and I doubt getting that franchise would be hard at all like with Minecraft. The Mars Rover, Cuusoo has already shown love to technology and it stands a good chance but the set is so simple I can build it myself and being a minifigure guy I want good minifigures in whatever set wins.

I think you are missing how CuuSoo works. None of the sets in review are in direct competition with each other. There is no win. Only a test if each given set is a viable option to produce. What little competition there is is if they all pass review, at which point it is a matter of deciding production order. The sets do not go head to head. There is no win/lose or one better than the other.

Of those in review or scheduled for the next review, the only real slam dunk will be the Curiosity Rover. It is exactly what CuuSoo is about. It is a topical yet non pop culture subject.the project is fairly small and easy to produce. It was created by a NASA Engineer who worked on the real one, and TLG has an existing relationship with NASA. I will call it. This will bethe next set produced. The only thing they have to do is box art.

The Western Town will probably see a scaled down version. But will pass. It's non licensed. It's in one of their Evergreen themes, and it falls into that same special place as the new Haunted House. It will sell well.

The BTTF set is one I think they would like to do. But it will all depend on the license. Universal might go for it.

The Zelda set I will be astonished if it passes review. It's a minifig set with little else. Nintendo is notoriously weird with their licenses. I just don't see the strong compelling case for it.

Portal And Eve can go either way. I don't think the license will be a high hurdle, but they may be too niche in a business case. Of the two I think Portal has the bigger chance.

The Sandcrawler will probably not be made under CuuSoo. But we can hope that it gets passed over to the SW license group and produced in some form as a new UCS set, with Marshall paid as a design contractor or some such.