-R8-

Eurobricks Citizen
  • Content Count

    409
  • Joined

  • Last visited

1 Follower

About -R8-

  • Rank
    Golden T-1 Typhoon Reviewer
  • Birthday April 14

Spam Prevention

  • What is favorite LEGO theme? (we need this info to prevent spam)
    Bionicle

Contact Methods

  • Website URL
    http://mocpages.com/home.php/15574
  • ICQ
    0

Profile Information

  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    United States
  • Interests
    LEGO
    Music

Extra

  • Country
    United States
  • Special Tags 1
    https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/style_images/review_school/gold.gif
  • Special Tags 2
    https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/style_images/tags/LDD_builder_yellow.gif
  • Special Tags 3
    https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/public/style_images/flags/art.png

Recent Profile Visitors

3288 profile views
  1. -R8-

    [MOC] - Neo-Classic Space Bonsai

    Absolutely ingenious! Loving the colors and the contrast between the organic-ness of the bonsai coupled with the mechanistic environment.
  2. -R8-

    [MOC] Animal Crossing Nook's Cranny

    This is a really phenomenal build and loving the idea of resurrecting Fabuland figures for a Lego Animal Crossing! I especially appreciate the attention to the in-game details, such as the three apples on the tree, the texturing on the ground, the water, and of course, the colors match perfectly. Congrats!
  3. -R8-

    LEGO Catalogs

    I've noticed recently that I happened to stop receiving the LEGO catalogs in the mail. I remember in previous years, with a LEGO magazine subscription, both the magazine and catalog would come every other month and alternate with each other. As of this year, my subscription still stands, and I still receive the magazine, but I have not received a single catalog in the mail. Do the magazines and catalogs work as separate subscriptions and the catalog needs to be renewed, or does LEGO not send out catalogs in the mail anymore?
  4. -R8-

    Mars Wants Burgers

    Fantastic little scene you have here. I admire all the little details that can be appreciated even at this small scale, the way all the elements are manipulated to achieve this is quite remarkable too. Love it!
  5. -R8-

    Lego Universe shutting down

    As a former beta tester, and whatever access I had to the game in the free-to-play mode, I felt that Universe missed the integral concept of LEGO, creating something from nothing. Sure, the game allowed for building creations on properties, but I felt that the feature seemed more of an afterthought rather than a medium through which there could be a solid integration between players' creations and gameplay. My original assumptions of how the building aspect would work was not to simply show off my creations to my fellow members, but instead to play in a digital world with my creations. If I were to build a mech, then I could roam around in it; if I built a boat I could sail in it, etc. If Universe could have fostered that greater milieu for creativity, the game really could have revolutionized video gaming to bring it to a whole new level. I found the game's seemingly endless list of missions to accomplish a chore to complete, especially when considering that the great majority of the missions constituted of 'smash X amount of this creature' or 'find X amount of this object.' I didn't find that this stimulated any creativity whatsoever, just endless repetition of mouse-clicking. Granted, I'm also introducing my own bias and preference. After years of hyping up the game's release, Universe's short-lived lifespan is indeed such a huge disappointment. It's unfortunate for the company to have invested so many resources into its creation only to have it end like this. I won't call it a waste of TLG's time and money, as I hope the company will learn from whatever mistakes were made in this entire process, which in and of itself will benefit the company's approach to video gaming in the future. Yes. I was doing some reading on the official LEGO Message Boards to see how all the younger fans have been dealing with this (not pretty), and an FAQ was posted regarding the closure details:
  6. I bought this set as a present for my cousin's daughter (first cousin once-removed? ) earlier in August, when I headed down to Virginia for BrickFair. She already had a bucket of LEGO Duplo blocks, but I figured now would be a good time to transition her into actual sets. Seeing as how much she loved this little set, I will have to get thinking about which Duplo set to get her for Christmas. Name: 5644 Chicken Coop Theme: Duplo Year: 2010 Pieces: 11 Minifigures: 1 Price: USD 8.99, GBP 7.99 Further References: Brickset.com, BrickLink.com, Peeron.com, flickr These were all taken while she was at nursery school, by the way (except for the box pictures which I took before I left for VA). For those of you who may have believed that I am a toy snatcher. The Box The box is very colorful and kid friendly, making use of simple illustrations to paint a farmland to act as the background. Just like any other LEGO set, the age limit is listed on the left, although with a lower range than we've come to expect - 1.5-5 years of age. Frankly, I think most kids will outgrow Duplo long before they reach five, but since when have any of us paid attention to the age ranges anyway? After all these years, I still remember the red Duplo rabbit featured on the logo, and it's great to see it once more even on today's sets. The back of the box has various build and play options which could provide inspiration for youngsters, that is if the box manages to stay intact after a kid tries to open it! The Instructions There actually aren't any, but it's simple enough to build by looking at the box. Better yet, a toddler could use his or her own imagination to create whatever out of the 11 pieces that are included. The Pieces One of the first things I noticed was that some of the colors differed from the typical colors that we are used to. For example, take a look at the green and orange 2x2 bricks. Those colors are actually referred to on BrickLink as 'bright green' and 'bright light orange.' I really like these brighter colors, which I think are more in-sync with the early age audience as opposed to the standard green and orange shades. Notable Pieces I thought this was a pretty cool piece to have in a Duplo collection - a dark tan 2x2 brick with a nest of eggs printed on it. The Minifigures Technically, there is only one minifigure in this set, but I included the chicken in here too. The Duplo figure is that of an elderly denizen of LEGOVille, tending to her lone chicken. This is a world where the animals are huge, and the chickens are 2/3'rds the size of a person. I never realized this before actually, but all Duplo figures, including generic ones, seem to take on realistic skin tones as opposed to yellow skin like their System counterparts. I suppose this is done as a way to show children the vast diversity of races and cultures in the world, through the role-play of daily life. Design and Playability The Set Chances are that a kid will have fun just playing around with putting bricks together haphazardly, but when the set is put together, the play options are quite open-ended. That is what I like about Duplo, as it is so simple and basic that toddlers will have loads of fun just putting random bricks together, or recreating simple scenes. But, I think that is one thing toddlers have over older fans and AFOLs - they can spend hours of fun playing around with a little 11 piece set like this, while we binge on BrickLink for every single part we can get our hands on! All kidding aside, with LEGO the play options are limitless, even if it may seem like there is so little to play with. Conclusion It felt pretty surreal walking out of the toy store with a Duplo set in hand, seeing as the last time I probably did so was back in the 1990s. I was pretty psyched to see that my cousin liked it so much, and as I said before, I will have to get her a larger Duplo set for Christmas this year, so any suggestions will be helpful. Thanks for reading!
  7. -R8-

    REVIEW: Nanoblock Manekineko!

    The size of these bricks remind me of Modulex. These look quite cute, and I wouldn't mind having one of these on my desk. Thanks for the review def, it is fun to see cultural items such as this.
  8. -R8-

    MOC: Elevated Rail

    Thanks for the comments! Most certainly. In addition, I even have plans to build a subway system underneath everything. My 'philosophy' for designing this layout is essentially to build up and down as much as possible. Since I am limited in terms of surface area, it's not really possible for me to build out like larger LUG layouts, so my goal is to deliver a variety of features and details at different levels of the city - underground, on the street, and in the floors of the buildings that will be erected one day. I agree, it will be an issue when it comes to making vehicles like fire engines and ambulances that probably won't look that great with a four-wide width. But hopefully, it will not be too detrimental.
  9. -R8-

    MOC: Elevated Rail

    Hello everybody! Here with a final update for this project: Over the summer I spent a lot of time obtaining pieces for this and another project that I have been concurrently working on. As of a few days ago, this specific project is now finished, although I may make changes to it in the future. But as you can see, the layout has been completely elevated, fenced, and detailed. One of the main issues was how to fence in the entire track. I wanted a piece that would be flexible, but a piece that was also common and simple to integrate. I came across these black ladder pieces at BrickFair, and bought a whole bunch of them (then went to BrickLink for more), and if I must say myself, there couldn't be a better piece to serve this specific purpose. Underneath the straight modules of the track, I added 8x8 grille plates that serve both as an aesthetic and design choice. Aesthetic because I think the track looks more complete with it, and design because the spaces in the grilles are meant for studs, meaning that things like traffic lights and street signs can be added underneath with no trouble. Furthermore, the grilles help to reinforce the track connections. Brick-built roads will be set to run directly underneath the track. The clearance only allows four-wide vehicles to drive in this city, but four-wide vehicles rule! Perhaps the most important goal was to ensure that each connection point wouldn't fail, even if a heavy, fast moving train was operating on it. The straight portions are composed of two double length and two standard length ME Models rails on each side, meaning it is 96 studs long total. The advantage for having longer pieces of track is less connection points - less potential failures for the track to cave in. Usually, these connection points are reinforced by underlying support beams. I couldn't add support beams here however, as then it would get in the way of a road that would be branching off right underneath here. So basically, this particular connection is reinforced by many plates, and it doesn't budge one bit. See my entire flickr set here: And feel free to ask any questions/comment!
  10. flickr MOCPages Water is the quintessential embodiment of nature. Of life. It is the natural force that nurtures all creation. These are perpetual tears of relief and refreshment, tears that help give birth to an otherwise wasted land. And so, nature's shrine forevermore guards over all that lives. What best conveys water? That is what I was constantly asking myself. I've always admired table fountains for their beautiful sculpture and eloquent displays of falling water. I roughly based my creation off of that concept.
  11. -R8-

    MOC: Women's shoes

    Absolutely wonderful! Fine work on making LEGO into something quite fashionable as well.
  12. -R8-

    MOC: Tzu-Kai

    flickr Loved making this guy. I used to love Bionicle as a kid, so there's always the sentimental value of building with Bionicle again. In my Bionicle creations, I always try to integrate System elements somehow, to show others that however different the two building systems are, they are still very much compatible with one another. Tzu-Kai is a demon born from the flames. A powerful warrior, he is notorious for the enormous path of destruction he leaves behind in the Bionicle Universe. And I love Bram spheres. Just saying. Comments and constructive criticism are welcome. Thanks for viewing!
  13. -R8-

    Bicycle and rider

    Excellent build! Ingenious use of parts, especially for the rider's feet and the pedals. Great work on incorporating many realistic details into such a small MOC.
  14. -R8-

    Racers MOCs by Toa Of Justice

    These are so cool! They look even more impressive with LDD's high graphics quality. I am stoked at the incorporation of Hero Factory parts in one of the Racers, without looking out of place or blatant. Great to see different chassis styles being used, in addition to different scales. Well done!
  15. -R8-

    [LDD MOC] TIE x1 Advanced

    Wonderful! Beautiful SNOT work on the wings. It is cool to see the outline of all the individual bricks on the wings, as it gives us a real sense of the complexity and thought that went into designing it. I am curious as to which piece you used for the angled portion of the wing. It must be studded in order to accommodate the attachment of the 1x2/3 light bluish grey tiles.