Star Wars Constraction 2018 Discussion & Rumors

[Azani]

Funny as it is, that has nothing to do with it. It's still a guess, despite the fact that people seem to not get it time and time again/

I'm not sure if you were ever a fan of constraction, but there are some nice builds out there. Might want to check them out.

Edited December 7, 2017 by Azani

[ZORK64]

Going by the stores I frequent in my region, it mostly depends on the sets in question. Some of them did sell rather poor, others however are doing very well.

 

Gotta have to agree on the pricing though. The Bionicle Sets had more smaller parts for functions and such, but were not as pricey as the SW folks now.

[VBBN]

What I think a lot of people need to realize is that you are looking at these sets as compared to Bionicle. Star Wars carries a brand name that hold 100+ times more value than the Bionicle name. Stores order far, far more of these sets than they ever ordered for Bionicle. I live in a fairly busy city where store shelves are often heavily shopped at, and Star Wars merchandise in generally always holds one of the largest aisles in the toy section, and when you look at the Lego section in general, 3/4s of it tends to be Star Wars. (at least, in my case.) Just because you see a lot on store shelves doesn't mean it isn't selling, it could mean that the store is constantly stocking it because they know it sells. I mean hell they do Force Friday for example, what other toylines have such a dedicated day to merchandise and products?

Also, we are looking at these prices as Bionicle fans. yeah, the sets are pricey and make a Bionicle lineup look much better to your wallet. But these carry the Star Wars name. Lego is not just attracting fans of Lego here, they attracting people who walk into a store and want a SW figure. Everything with the SW name on it is going to carry a heavier price tag. And for a generic person walking into a target, they are not compring a Bionicle set to a Darth Vader buildable figure, they are comparing Darth Vader to other vader figures. Based on the prices of things like black series figures, the price gap suddenly becomes a lot less of an important factor.

As for myself, I love star wars. Unfortunately these sets have just not been doing it for me. For parts they aren't horrible if you can get them for cheaper amazon prices, but as display pieces not so much. I've dwindled my collection down, and the higher end style that I'm shooting for in my home has left me appreciating things like Hot Toys figures more than these. And I'm personally not that interested in their builds at this point, and the prices make it hard to collect these- I haven't bought any since the Rogue One figures and probably won't be getting any others- The new Vader looks marginally better than the old one, and Boba is of course always a great design, but I think I'm just burnt out with these. I miss the originality of design of in house brands and that's really what I'm looking for from Lego with constraction.

[TwistLaw]

So, let's wrap this up.

-constraction fans dislike Star Wars CCBS because it's expensive and repetitive

-LEGO Star Wars fans dislike it because it's constraction (they didn't even want this topic in their sub-forum, come on...)

-generic Star Wars fans aren't crazy either about the theme since other brands produce more accurate and less uncanny figures (even though more expensive, sure)

 

Well, that's not exactly a nice landscape we're staring at right here.

My best bet is that these figures are part of a much broader deal between LEGO and Disney. Like "you make these figures until episode IX so we can see if it's more profitable for us to have our figures produced by you rather than Hasbro, if the answer is yes you get the exclusive right since the next trilogy" kind of thing. Of course, that's just a theory, but considering what we know it wouldn't be science fiction.

[Lyichir]

32 minutes ago, TwistLaw said:

So, let's wrap this up.

-constraction fans dislike Star Wars CCBS because it's expensive and repetitive

-LEGO Star Wars fans dislike it because it's constraction (they didn't even want this topic in their sub-forum, come on...)

-generic Star Wars fans aren't crazy either about the theme since other brands produce more accurate and less uncanny figures (even though more expensive, sure)

 

Well, that's not exactly a nice landscape we're staring at right here.

My best bet is that these figures are part of a much broader deal between LEGO and Disney. Like "you make these figures until episode IX so we can see if it's more profitable for us to have our figures produced by you rather than Hasbro, if the answer is yes you get the exclusive right since the next trilogy" kind of thing. Of course, that's just a theory, but considering what we know it wouldn't be science fiction.

Sounds like science fiction to me. I can't imagine any universe where Disney even floated the idea of abandoning the sales of "traditional" Star Wars action figures. If anything they are looking to expand their product offerings into new segments, not draw consistently strong-selling ones to a close.

Your perception of any of those fan groups being nearly that monolithic also seems unrealistic to me. I've seen a lot of positivity about these figures from all three groups, especially outside of the small bubble that the Eurobricks community often tends to be, and even then what I've seen only skims the surface of the largest Lego fan group of all—kids. Even for people who DO have reservations about the price, that isn't always a deal-breaker (especially when it comes to MOCists, from what I've seen, who are generally happy to get new parts regardless of the label on the box).

So far, there is literally one piece of evidence presented alleging that these sets aren't selling well, that being certain sets being shelfwarmers. And that's a phenomenon that happens all the time, even with popular themes, because it's impossible for Lego or retailers to perfectly predict demand for the entire slate of product offerings.

On a side note, I doubt it's a coincidence that the most commonly cited "shelfwarmers" are from Rogue One—I've seen plenty of anecdotes indicating that sales of MANY products for that movie didn't quite match those of tie-ins with the traditional "numbered" sequels, possibly because of its separation from the main "Star Wars" saga or its less kid-friendly tone. The new Star Wars media landscape creates a learning experience for both Disney and their partners, and I think we might already be seeing adjustments being made based on the performance of past sets (as evidenced by the new constraction sets focusing less on the standalone Han Solo movie and more on tried-and-true characters from the main saga). It would not make sense to cancel an entire product category just because one wave of sets didn't sell as well as others—better to identify WHY the sets that did sell better did so and apply that knowledge to new sets going forward.

[TheGreatSpirit]

2 hours ago, Lyichir said:

It would not make sense to cancel an entire product category just because one wave of sets didn't sell as well as others—better to identify WHY the sets that did sell better did so and apply that knowledge to new sets going forward.

If only they used this advice for Bionicle lol

[Lyichir]

3 hours ago, TheGreatSpirit said:

If only they used this advice for Bionicle lol

If Bionicle had been a highly successful theme that was merely branching into Constraction, as opposed to solely a Constraction theme, that might have worked. But when all your eggs are in the one basket of the constraction line and that fails (and the onus to revitalize the brand falls on you and not a powerful external licensor with cash to spare), there's less potential for a dramatic recovery.

That's why I specified product category instead of theme. Even if a wave or two of Star Wars constraction figures falters, the Lego Star Wars theme as a whole can still soldier on, and the more dramatic success of, say, the Episode VII constraction sets can be recaptured come the next high-profile movie event. A long-running in-house brand can probably benefit from a similar effect (in fact, the Ninjago theme arguably has done so, with a periodic return to spinner-based sets without that segment sticking around long enough to wear out its welcome). But without the strong foundation of a successful System-based theme to fall back on, the Bionicle reboot didn't have the luxury of weathering a drop-off in popularity.

[ZORK64]

I bought the first Darth Vader and the Imperial Stormtrooper as display pieces, which is something that seldom happens for me when it comes to constraction (the only other constraction figure that I don't intend to take apart for MOCing is Lil' Ekimu). I got Blaze and the Praethorian Guard with a price cut for their parts. and while I also think that the pricing could be better, I'm not too bothered by the same-y builds of these sets (though I would appreciate it if they would also incorporate more unusual builds into the theme, just like they did with General Grievious back then).

Also, just like Lyichir already mentioned, it's very plausible that the SW Constraction sets are simply more popular with kids. When I was still in an age where I actually played with my sets rather than putting them on my shelf, I would've certainly loved stuff that would allow me to cross Bionicle over with Star Wars.

[Leewan]

The new sets are listed on the s@h. They will indeed cost 30 and 40 €/$ (while Boba costs 26£ and Vader 35£, for those who live in the UK).

[ZORK64]

I just looked on the German Lego Shop, that's the first time that I actually get a proper look at both Fett and Vader.

Boba Fett was already a sure buy for me because I like him, but Vader is also seriously tempting. He looks very cool, and he apparently also fixes the one issue I had with his first release (the cape).

[Tazakk]

geez, he's a giant! 

[ZORK64]

Damn, and I thought I'd be able to resist updating Vader, but that picture alone makes me want him even more.

[VBBN]

And to add to the excitement some further 2018 sets were leaked today, I noticed they were being discussed in the regular System Star Wars thread but not here about them- construction Super Battle Droid and 501st Trooper with AT-RT are coming. 

[Leewan]

It's nice to see Lego wants to continue making "character+vehicle" sets. 

So far there's seven sets we know of for 2018. I wonder if there will be a fourth wave in December, although it might be a bit early to speculate about that.

[Takanuinuva]

I'm probably going to grab the new Vader when he is on sale.

[Aethersprite]

As a fan of Phase II clones and character+vehicle sets, the 501st Clone and AT-RT has got to be my most anticipated set for next year! I just hope that it's at an affordable price point. The Scout Trooper and Speeder Bike was quite decently priced.

[Leewan]

The AT-RT seems to use more parts than the Speeder Bike, so I think it will be a bit more expensive.

[ZORK64]

I'd prefer a regular Battle Droid over the Super variant, but I'm nonetheless happy that we get another droid build in the theme.

Also, I wonder what kind of blue the set will use - I can never have enough blue parts.

[Digger of Bricks]

On 12/22/2017 at 3:19 PM, VBBN said:

And to add to the excitement some further 2018 sets were leaked today, I noticed they were being discussed in the regular System Star Wars thread but not here about them- construction Super Battle Droid and 501st Trooper with AT-RT are coming. 

I initially missed this piece of news amongst some of the other leaks, but dang, both of those sound like wild sets, especially the AT-RT!

28 minutes ago, ZORK64 said:

Also, I wonder what kind of blue the set will use - I can never have enough blue parts.

Wouldn't it be crazy if this set reintroduced that one shade of metallic blue, the one seen on these guys back in 2002? 

If so, it would be the perfect color to construct both Gypsy Danger and/or Gypsy Avenger. 

[VBBN]

The super battle droid is gunmetal. I’m Interested to see how the head elementworks- it appears to be a large piece that fits over the top of the figure (in conjunction with the usual torso shell) sort of in a Humongosaur style  

 

The fact we are getting one does give me hope that we may we may see a Droideka eventually. 

[Leewan]

Hmm... Better pics appeared today, and it seems that the Super Battle Droid's left arm is made with system parts. If it's the case, it's more probably going to be dark bley rather than gunmetal (I don't remember having ever seen a whole assembly made of gunmetal system parts only, but I can be wrong). But it's not going to be metallic blue, that's certain. 

From these new pics, we can see the AT-RT a bit more clearly, and it looks like it will use #3 and #4 (3*7) and #17 and #18 (5*11) panels in blue. That should make Technic builders happy.

 

7 hours ago, ZORK64 said:

I'd prefer a regular Battle Droid over the Super variant, but I'm nonetheless happy that we get another droid build in the theme.

 

3 hours ago, VBBN said:

The fact we are getting one does give me hope that we may we may see a Droideka eventually. 

A droid-focused wave would be nice : a Battle Droid, a Droideka, and a bigger set with C-3PO and R2-D2. However, I think they would have to heavily rely on Technic.

[Aethersprite]

On 12/25/2017 at 2:20 AM, VBBN said:

The super battle droid is gunmetal. I’m Interested to see how the head elementworks- it appears to be a large piece that fits over the top of the figure (in conjunction with the usual torso shell) sort of in a Humongosaur style  

 

The fact we are getting one does give me hope that we may we may see a Droideka eventually. 

Oh man, a Droideka would be a dream come true. The standard human builds are getting really stale, so I'd be glad to see Lego branch out more into vehicles/funky droid designs like K-2SO or a possible Droideka.

[Kalhiki]

Haven't bought any SW Constraction sets outside of Kylo and Grievous, but I'd totally be down for a Droideka.

 

[Bbrink1996]

On 24-12-2017 at 11:06 PM, Leewan said:

Hmm... Better pics appeared today, and it seems that the Super Battle Droid's left arm is made with system parts. If it's the case, it's more probably going to be dark bley rather than gunmetal (I don't remember having ever seen a whole assembly made of gunmetal system parts only, but I can be wrong). But it's not going to be metallic blue, that's certain. 

Where can I find the pictures of these sets?

[Aethersprite]

Do we know what figures we're getting in the Solo wave? Some sets leaked last week and we saw the Han Solo figure. We also know that we're getting Maul in the Spring wave. What's the last figure from Solo? Has that information been leaked yet?