REVIEW: 75972 Dorado Showdown

[Oky]

It's high noon! And you know what that means - it's time for a showdown! A Dorado Showdown to be exact. Dorado is a city that is located at the coast of Mexico and powered by giant ziggurat-like fusion plants and today is Festival de la Luz in Dorado, an annual celebration of the end of the Omnic Crisis, so let’s join the festivities!

About Overwatch

For those who are unfamiliar with Overwatch, click below for a brief summary of what it is:

 

Overwatch is a team-based multiplayer first-person shooter video game by Blizzard Entertainment. It was released on May 24, 2016 for PlayStation 4, XboxOne, and Windows, and it has since gathered a huge fanbase and has even become a popular esport. What sets Overwatch apart from other first-person shooters such as Fortnite or PUBG is that it encourages teamwork as players are put into two teams of six, with each player selecting from a roster of nearly 30 characters, known as "heroes", each with a unique style of play whose roles are divided into three general categories that fit their role: tank, damage, or support. Players on a team work together to secure and defend control points on a map or escort a payload across the map in a limited amount of time.

This is the first Lego theme based on a first-person shooter game (unless you count the Star Wars Battlefront subtheme) since those usually go against their brand values, so many were shocked when this theme was announced. However, what makes Overwatch different from most other shooters is that it has a stylized kid-friendly look to it and takes place in the future with fictional weapons much like Star Wars, so it doesn’t violate TLG’s no-modern-warfare rule. This is also the reason that drew me to this game as I don’t like depictions of realistic war in video games either.

Another great thing about Overwatch is that it has a lot of lore behind it. While there sadly is no story mode in the game, the backstory behind the setting and its characters is revealed in web comics and beautifully animated short films. Seriously, even if you have no interest in playing the game, I strongly recommend you go check out the shorts on YouTube; they just might change your mind with their Pixar-level quality. The story of Overwatch is basically that in a future Earth, there was a golden age of technology where humans and robots called Omnics lived together in peace until the Omnics decided to rise up against the humans. A team of the world’s finest heroes called Overwatch was formed by the UN to fight off the robot uprising and they succeeded. Overwatch kept the peace for several decades, but due to in-fighting between its members and allegations of failure, Overwatch was eventually shut down. Six years later, with a terrorist organization called Talon causing trouble all over the world and a second Omnic Crisis on the horizon, former Overwatch member Winston decides to reform the team and save the world once again. This is where the game begins.

Add to that an ever-growing roster of fun and diverse characters and a relatively positive and creative fan community and you can see why TLG chose to make a theme based on this game. I bought Overwatch on a Black Friday sale 2 years ago and have been playing it almost every day since then because it’s just so fun and addictive! So let’s see if the sets are just as fun.

Set Number: 75972
Name: Dorado Showdown
Theme: Overwatch
Year of Release: 2019
Pieces: 419
Minifigs: 3
Price: £29.99 / $29.99 / 29.99€
Links: S@H Brickset Bricklink
S@H description:

Quote

Now your favorite Overwatch® fan can build an iconic Dorado building and payload truck with LEGO® Overwatch 75972 Dorado Showdown! Based on the internationally acclaimed team-based action game, this Overwatch building set features an instantly recognizable building from the popular Dorado map and 3 characters, Soldier: 76, Reaper and McCree. With Overwatch weapons, Dorado building, and a payload truck like in the game, fans of Overwatch will want to build and display it for their friends to see, while youngsters will like playing with the vehicle and mini market building from the game.

The Box

I am detecting a pattern with these Overwatch sets where the front box art has the wrong background and the back has the correct one. This set is no different as the background isn’t even from the right map. It’s from the Dorado Deathmatch map, not the Escort map that the set is based on. Close enough, I guess, but still a strange choice. We can see Soldier: 76 moving the payload through the first choke point from the Escort map while Reaper is trying to attack him and McCree seems to be hanging on for dear life in the back. A very colorful and action-packed image. As always, you got the white Lego Overwatch logo with Tracer up top, a Blizzard logo in the lower corner, and the set info written in the in-game font on the left.

Sure enough, the back of the box features the correct Dorado map in the background, showing the bridge right where it should be. The art depicts the set from a different angle and shows the minifigs with name tags locked in what I can only describe as a Mexican stand-off (get it? ). What’s a bit strange, though, is that the picture is in portrait format and therefore sideways, resulting in the two tabs for opening the box being at the bottom.

The top of the box features the set name in six different languages, an ad for the Lego Life app, and a line-up of the three minifigs at actual scale.

On the bottom there is a bunch of choking hazard warnings in different languages.

One side of the box has a render of the minifigs striking poses with their weapons while the other side just has the Overwatch and Lego Overwatch logos.

Contents

Inside the box you will find three numbered bags, a sticker sheet, and two instruction booklets - one for the fruit stand and truck and one for the building.

Instructions

The first pages of the instructions show you how to build the set using the numbered bag system and how to download digital building instructions using the Lego Life app. I've tried it, though, and it doesn't work as these sets aren't available on there yet.

Here is a random instructions page. Like with all the Overwatch sets, the call-outs are pretty clear and the light blue background is pleasant.

Notable Parts

We get a few parts in rare colors in this set such as dark red and yellowish orange. We also get that new candle flame piece from the Wizarding World sets, a bunch of the 1-stud brackets, and the new gun mold that is used for many of the weapons in this theme in dark gray. The only part that is printed in this set unfortunately is the 1x1 trans-light-blue cylinder with a slanted red cross on it. Every other decal is a sticker, like the silver decoration on the grill of the truck (sorry I forgot to take a picture of the part before applying the sticker).

The minifigs

We get three minifigs in this set: Soldier: 76, Reaper and McCree. It makes sense to include Soldier: 76 in a Dorado based set since he is seen serving as a vigilante in that city in the animated short “Hero”. Soldier: 76 a.k.a. Jack Morrison and Reaper a.k.a. Gabriel Reyes have quite a history together, so it also makes sense for them to appear in a set together. They were both turned into super soldiers by the soldier enhancement program, America’s initial answer to the Omnic Crisis. They joined Overwatch together and rivaled each other for the leadership of the team. After Overwatch’s headquarters got attacked and the team dismantled, the two were presumed dead, but later reemerged as the vigilante Soldier: 76 and Talon terrorist Reaper. During his time at Overwatch, Reyes also recruited outlaw Jesse McCree who was a member of the Deadlock Gang. I guess that’s why McCree is included here as the third hero.

They all look pretty good, especially Soldier: 76 with his gunmetal jacket and pants. He gets a cool new ruffled hairpiece while McCree and Reaper each get a new type of cape to represent their poncho and trench coat respectively. The printing on their heads and torsos is nicely detailed, but McCree is the only one who has leg printing sadly. Soldier: 76's heavy pulse rifle and Reaper's Hellfire shotguns are brick-built while McCree comes with a standard revolver to represent his Peacekeeper. I don't mind these brick-built solutions at all, although Soldier: 76's rifle looks quite massive, even considering how big it is in the game.

When compared to their video game counterparts, they hold up pretty well. It's unfortunate, though, that McCree doesn't have his signature cigar and belt buckle that reads "BAMF", but it's understandable that they wanted to make him more kid-friendly for the set. Also, Reaper's mask looks a bit scrunched and not as long as it should be, but I can see why they didn't want to create a new mold just because of that, so this is as good as they could do. However, I do like how the McCree minifig has one dark tan hand and one gray hand. That's good attention to detail.

The figs look quite good from the back as well. Soldier: 76 has some nice back printing that shows his number and McCree's back has plenty of detail as well. Reaper's slim cape is probably as close as we will ever get to an official minifig trench coat, and it does the job fairly well, so I'm OK with that.

Reaper has some back printing too. Here he is with McCree with their capes off to get a better view of their printing. None of the figs have an alternate face, but that's excusable. To make up for that and his missing cigar, McCree comes with a hairpiece for when he is not wearing his cowboy hat which is a nice bonus.

While it may make sense for Reaper to appear alongside Soldier: 76 and McCree, it's still disappointing that he is in this set because he is exactly the same one that appears in the Watchpoint: Gibraltar set. Below you will see the full roster of playable characters that are currently available in the game. With so many to choose from, it's unfortunate that we already get a repeat in the first wave. For instance, Sombra would have made a better choice since she is from Dorado. Oh well.

The Build

The first bag contains the parts for the power generator, market stand, Reaper, McCree, and their capes in a separate box.

These two builds are fairly simple and are finished pretty quick. Since we don't have a building to attach the string of lights to yet at this point, the instructions have connect them to the top of the power generator for now. That way the lights will have power until we can plug them into the building. The generator has SNOT plates all around it that not only look accurate, but keep it stable as well. I also like the little bull-shaped pinata and the way they used diamonds to represent low-poly light bulbs, although there are far too few lights on the chain. Like in the other location-based Overwatch sets, there is a small health pack included here even though there is none in this particular area of the map. Maybe TLG just wants to send a message to kids about how healthy fruit is. Either way, I'm always happy when these health packs are included.

The fruit stand itself is pretty basic and the posts holding up the canopy are a tad flimsy, but it looks fairly accurate.

The second bag contains Soldier: 76 and the parts for the truck.

The truck is built around a couple of long Technic beams which keep it stable. Note the dark gray 1x2 plates with rail towards the front which are cleverly used to later hold the fenders in place without making the fenders look too thick.

At the end of bag 2, the truck is finished and looks quite good with its mix of 1950's and futuristic aesthetics. I like how they used 1x6 tiles on the sides of the cabin to keep the back wall of it steady.

The truck looks good from the back too, although it's missing its rear lights. I don't know what the regulations for hovertrucks are in the future, but I don't think this is up to standard.  The flatbed of the truck has a 2x2 jumper plate that is used to easily mount the power generator at a 45 degree angle.

The third and final bag contains the parts for the building. Lots of tan and gray here.

Despite its size, this is a pretty simple build since it's mostly made out of large plates, bricks and wall elements, so I won't bore you with in-build shots of it. This is what it looks like when finished. It may be a simple building, but I do like how they used SNOT tiles to represent the archway and stepped window frames.

The backside is open and completely empty aside from a single candle. There is no roof over the doorways on each side, making the roof look unfinished. While this hallway is empty in the game too, I think they could have at least included a few more candles.

There are three stickers that you need to apply in this part of the build. One of them is on the right side of the building that depicts an ad for Lucio with graffiti over it and the old Overwatch poster that Alejandra removed in Hero, although it should have been on the inside of the bridge, not outside. Still, it's a nice reference.

Instead, the inside of the bridge features a seal that reads "Justice" and "Jack Morrison" with a relief of Morrison in the center. There is no such seal in the game, but I guess they just wanted to add something to make these walls more interesting.

Directly on the other side of the seal there is graffiti of Gabriel Reyes shrugging. The messy look of the graffiti provides a nice contrast to Morrison's nice and clean seal on the other side and fits Reyes' rogue personality. It hints at the idea that these two former leaders of Overwatch are in some ways two sides of the same coin. Pretty deep for a couple of stickers.

Spare Parts

The good news is that there are several of the usual small pieces left over after the build which include an extra candle flame, so at least you can add one more candle to the building if you have another white cylinder as well.

The Completed Set

Once you put it all together, you get quite a nice scene. It really looks like something straight out of the game.

If you compare it to the image below from the game, they managed to capture the look of the Dorado marketplace and the payload very well. The truck is spot-on and is only missing its rear view mirrors. You can see the market stands in the back and the building with the archway on the left.

If you look at the building in the screenshot above, you will notice some differences to the building in the set. There are no lanterns and instead there are some banners and street signs on its facade. That's because the building in the set seems to be based on the backside of the bridge rather than the market-facing side. As you can see in the screenshot below, the backside does have the lanterns and no banners, so if you compare the set to this image, it's pretty accurate, except for the missing plants and strings of light under the bridge. It's strange, though, that they chose to do this.

Play Features

Even though this is a playset, there aren't too many play features. The roof and windscreen of the truck are only attached by two studs, so they can easily be removed to seat a minifig inside. There's only one seat, so there's plenty of room to store the minifig's weapons.

The truck has train wheels hidden underneath, so it can easily be rolled around, and the bridge has plenty of clearance for the truck to move through under it. I'd actually love to see a MOC of the entire map where the payload moves down its path on train tracks.

Also, the shutters on the windows of the building can be lifted up so that the heroes can shoot out of the window.

And... that's basically it. No trap doors, no flick-fire missiles, nada. I guess that's accurate to the game, but I was still expecting a bit more.

Ratings

Design: 4/5 - Visually, they pretty much nailed the look of Dorado. The truck is spot-on, the fruit stand is simple but serviceable, and the building, while based on the wrong side, looks accurate as well, although I wish they would have fleshed out the roof and back a bit more and included a few more candles and light bulbs.

Build: 3/5 - Aside from a few good uses of SNOT, there is nothing too challenging in this build, but it's not bad.

Minifigs: 4/5 - 3 Minifigs is a decent number, although only two of them are exclusive to the set. They look very close to the characters in the game, and while some minor details may be missing, the extra hairpiece for McCree makes up for it.

Playability: 2/5 - You can roll around the truck and open the windows on the building. That's it. Not a whole lot of playability for such a decently sized PLAY-set.

Parts: 4/5 - There is a good number of parts in rare colors.

Price: 5/5 - At a mere 7.2 cents per piece, this might just have the best value for a licensed set I've ever seen!

Overall: 4/5 - I think the designers did a good job recreating this part of the Dorado Escort map in such a fairly small set. You get a few good minifigs, some useful parts, and some decent looking scenery. There could have been more play features and details, and it would have been nice if they would have at least given Reaper a different skin or something to make him exclusive, but at such a ridiculously low price I can't even be mad. Even if you're not an Overwatch fan, the set is worth getting for the parts alone.

Thanks for reading and please check out my other Overwatch reviews! If you'd like to learn how to do high-quality reviews like this, come join the Eurobricks Reviewers Academy! Special thanks to TLG for sending me these sets for review. Lego Overwatch sets are currently available for pre-order and will go on sale January 1, 2019!

What do you think of this set? Will you be buying it? Let me know in the comments and vote in the poll above! Oh, and if you're an Overwatch player, shoot me a PM with your player name so that we can play some games together!

Fun Fact: When there are two or more of the same hero on a team, it's referred to as a hero stack.

[Clone OPatra]

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, since I don't care for mechs, this is certainly my favourite of the Overwatch sets. The building has excellent style (at least from the front) and I love the truck with its cross between vintage style and futurism. The value of the set for the price is also pretty good.

Still, I wish the building had a little more going on inside even if the interior would be purely made up by LEGO and not based on anything in the game.

I've seen other people comment that Soldier 76's hairpiece would be a decent purist custom one for Grindelwald. Do you have a Grindelwald figure Oky, and if so could you take a picture of him with that hairpiece?

[Oky]

14 minutes ago, Clone OPatra said:

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, since I don't care for mechs, this is certainly my favourite of the Overwatch sets. The building has excellent style (at least from the front) and I love the truck with its cross between vintage style and futurism. The value of the set for the price is also pretty good.

Still, I wish the building had a little more going on inside even if the interior would be purely made up by LEGO and not based on anything in the game.

I've seen other people comment that Soldier 76's hairpiece would be a decent purist custom one for Grindelwald. Do you have a Grindelwald figure Oky, and if so could you take a picture of him with that hairpiece?

Not a bad idea. I do have the Graves figure, so here you go. Not a bad combo, but I think I prefer the official hairpiece.

[Clone OPatra]

Thanks Oky! Seeing your picture, that doesn't look as good as I hoped. It's a bit too chunky on the sides. The official hairpiece isn't a good match either, but then again I hated the character design in the film itself. That, however, is getting off topic.

[Digger of Bricks]

On 12/24/2018 at 12:45 AM, Oky said:

He gets a cool new ruffled hairpiece while McCree and Reaper each get a new type of cape to represent their poncho and trench coat respectively.

I have two requests: Could you show Reaper's cape unfolded apart from his figure, and then maybe could you fit it onto a random Batman figure, perhaps a grey-suited one so it can contrast from the rest of the suit? 

Thanks! 

1 hour ago, Oky said:

Not a bad idea. I do have the Graves figure, so here you go. Not a bad combo, but I think I prefer the official hairpiece.

Cool! I kinda wondered how that hairpiece would look on an "unmasked" character.  

[Oky]

1 hour ago, Digger of Bricks said:

I have two requests: Could you show Reaper's cape unfolded apart from his figure, and then maybe could you fit it onto a random Batman figure, perhaps a grey-suited one so it can contrast from the rest of the suit? 

Thanks! 

I probably should have included this in the review, but anyway, here is a picture of both Reaper's and McCree's capes unfolded. Ironically, Reaper's cape sort of looks like a skull.

I'm not sure if this cape really works for Batman, but here you go. I'm sure it would look great on the Nick Fury from the Helicarrier though which I sadly don't have.

[zoth33]

Nice set.  I like the price and comes with three figs I really want.  The parts will be good for my moc's too.  Definitely getting this one.  

[Digger of Bricks]

Just now, Oky said:

I probably should have included this in the review, but anyway, here is a picture of both Reaper's and McCree's capes unfolded. Ironically, Reaper's cape sort of looks like a skull.

Thank you!  I must say, it's shape is actually not as subtle as I was expecting it to be... 

Just now, Oky said:

I'm not really sure this cape really works for Batman, but here you go.

Hmmm, kind of? I suppose if one were to pluck his grey arms and swap them with Black ones, it'd look a little better. 

2 minutes ago, Oky said:

I'm sure it would look great on the Nick Fury from the Helicarrier though which I sadly don't have.

Oooooh, most indeed! I don't have that figure myself either, but I'm most certain someone out there has had the same idea for it. 

[Don Neimoidte de la Mancha]

Thank you for the great review, and for the photos, what kind quality of cape is the Reaper?

[Oky]

3 minutes ago, Don Neimoidte de la Mancha said:

Thank you for the great review, and for the photos, what kind quality of cape is the Reaper?

Reaper's cape is the classic thin kind while McCree's is the spongier new type interestingly.

[Don Neimoidte de la Mancha]

2 hours ago, Oky said:

Reaper's cape is the classic thin kind while McCree's is the spongier new type interestingly.

Oh interesting, I was not expecting of this.

[WhiteFang]

I felt this set is lacking in details especially on the built. It is quite bare and empty. I am not quite impressed with it. I will probably get the minifigures from BL instead.