8 replies to this topic

[Omicron Squad Leader]

Hello everyone. Today I will be doing my first review here on Eurobricks, and what better way to start my critiquing saga than by taking a look at a brand-new set? Specifically, the Hero Factory product, Scorpio.



So here we have the box, baring the usual additions such as the age range and set number, as well as a pretty generic image of Scorpio, with a rather fabulous background behind it.



The back is also what's to be expected; a battle between a Hero and a Villain taking up most of the space, in this case Scorpio fighting Stormer 3.0. We do have a new comic strip along the top for this wave however, depicting (in a very basic way) how the Savage Planet story began. The back also tells you how to shoot the launcher and, like the front, shows the set number.



Now, the parts. I admittedly did open and build this set before taking these pictures, so the pieces are not bagged up. I have however categorised them into bone elements, cladding and Technic & miscellaneous parts... With the torso piece being separate, for some reason.



Here are the pieces as they are shown in the instruction booklet, doesn't seem like much, does it? Let's now take a look at some individual parts that really stand out.



Firstly, the head itself. It is a very nice sculpt, with an extensive amount of detail and precision. Though I can't help thinking it looks more like a wasp's head.



Speaking of a wasp's head, here it is side-by-side with Waspix's. The green stands out quite a bit more in my opinion, and I'd have to say I prefer it.
ble


Moving on to some other parts of interest, here are the two new armour plates included in this set, both in lime green. You can acquire these pieces from other sets, but Scorpio is the only one to have them in this colour. I think they look pretty good, especially the one on the right.



Ah yes, here they are, the corrupted Quaza spikes, available in all 5 villain sets. I really like the blend of black and red, or, the spike and the Quaza, but they seem quite flimsy at times. What I don't understand is, why does it take 3 Quaza spikes to control a relatively small, agile creature like Fangz, but a mere 2 to control a huge beast like Scorpio?



These parts have a wide array of uses, which is evident in the sets, they serve as wings, tusks, blades and pincers (the latter being what Scorpio uses them for). Great for MOCing, I'd say.



Here we have the paw-like piece that has been featured several times in this wave. It looks very sleek, and has a number of connection points that talons, Exo-Force robot arms and more can attach to.



I thought I'd take a look at these together. First and foremost we have the biggest Hero Factory torso in solid black. Although this recolour was almost inevitable, I'm still very glad that we've got it. Secondly we have the grey bone element. Unlike the aforementioned recolour, this one seems quite pointless to me, other than to keep the skeletons somewhat original. Next we have Scorpio's unique armour plate, which I have to say, looks pretty awesome. The red and green contrast very well, and the design is fairly good. Finally we have the size 5 lime green cladding. Good for MOCing, is all I can say.



Now let's build!



Come on...



Come on...



And...



We...



Are...



DONE!



To be honest I wasn't expecting much from this set. But now I have it right here in front of me, it's simply great!



Size comparison with Rocka XL and Aldy Witch. I think this image alone is an insult to Scorpio's height, which I think that can be excused; he's a hexapod!



Waspix got her head back.



At least normal Heroes don't tower over him too much.

Ratings

Building experience: 4/5.

Parts: 5/5.

Playability: 5/5.

Value for money: 3/5.

Overall: 4/5.

I'd recommend you to pick up Scorpio any day, unless you don't have Rocka XL already, who in my opinion is slightly better, but I digress. I hope you enjoyed this review; I may post more in the future.

Edited by Omicron Squad Leader, 18 September 2011 - 12:21 PM.
Poll added!

[Nike2032]

Thanks for the review Omicron!  

The size comparison image is quite interessting, I'm rather surprised that raw jaw and scorpio are particularly short.

Edited by Nike2032, 10 July 2011 - 07:25 PM.

[Aanchir]

The Dark Stone Grey joints are probably because builders had trouble telling the 5M upper limbs and 5M lower limbs apart in Hero sets. However, it seems that Dark Stone Grey is now the default color for all 5M lower limb beams, so I'm sure many people will be as disappointed about this as they have been about red axles or blue pins (an issue that has never bothered me personally).

It could also be to make the building instructions easier to read, as mentioned in the first design consideration here.

Overall, I'm still not a fan of Scorpio, mainly because there just seemed to be no effort put towards making the legs have similar color organization. The first and third sets of legs have Black armor and Silver Metallic "feet" with Bright Yellowish Green "toes". The second set of legs is much shorter and has Bright Yellowish Green armor, Black "feet" (if you can call them that here-- they're clearly vestigial), and Bright Yellowish Green "toes". That second set of legs is really what messes everything up for me.

Scorpio does get points in my book, however, for being the only villain set this wave not to rely on warm colors. With the tremendous imbalance in the 3.0 heroes, it's a shame there aren't more greens or blues among the villain sets. Of course, I can't think of any color schemes I'd have preferred on any of the villain sets other than Scorpio, so I guess I can't complain. Thanks for the review!

[ZORK64]

As I mentioned in my review from Bulk, I like the grey limb pieces. But I do hope that there'll be still the black ones (at least via Pick a Brick).

Scorpio got good chances that I'll buy him for his parts. I'm also tempted to use his head for a MOC of Waspinator from Beast Wars.

And Omicron, your review is quite good, although the pics seem a bit dark. Ohterwise, pretty good!

[Toa_Of_Justice]

Thanks for the review, Omicron Squad Leader! Scorpio looks decent, but how well can it stand up? It doesn't seem like those limbs would support it very well, but I hope I'm wrong about that.

-Toa Of Justice

[toatyger]

Two words. Part pack.

[ben30024]

Quote

What I don't understand is, why does it take 3 Quaza spikes to control a relatively small, agile creature like Fangz, but a mere 2 to control a huge beast like Scorpio?

because fangz has more energy.
scorpio is slow, and lacking energy, so it doesn't have to have too much quaza.
but fangz has more energy to run and claw, so it needs more quaza to control it.
anyways, great review!
i am LOVING the printed armor :3

Edited by ben30024, 20 November 2011 - 12:06 AM.

[vexorian]

toatyger, on 17 July 2011 - 12:30 AM, said:

Two words. Part pack.

It looks underwhelming to me even as a parts pack. Mostly because of the lack of new exo force arms. Sets like Rocka XL or Raw-Jaw + a hero seem to be much better alternatives as piece pack and with a similar price.

[DarthVader23]

I got this set and personally, I loved it. (What can I say, I'm a hero factory/bionicle junkie).