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NickLafreniere

[MOC] Robo Raptor Xtreme (LEGO Ideas Space Contest)

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Hi everyone, I would like to show you my newest creation, Robo Raptor Xtreme. This has been submitted in the LEGO Ideas "Out of this World Space Builds" contest, where the winner's set will be turned into a Gift with Purchase set.

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This set is inspired by the RoboForce theme from 1997 and is a new vehicle design. Here is the original 2152 Robo Raptor

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The original Robo Raptor set was one the coolest sets of the old space era, and it inspired me to me remake that concept of a robotic dinosaur. The new version features ball joints for better mobility. I have also changed the accent color to neon trans-orange to differentiate it from the original set. I want the raptor to look "evolved"

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As you can see, the back of the legs are made of mailbox/container pieces. The original RoboForce sets had storage, so including that in the design was crucial. That crystal is a reference to the Rock Raiders theme.

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The Robo Raptor has a front seat and a back seat, and they have enough space to accommodate the minifig's oxygen tank. In the back the seat, the minifigure can face the front or the rear.

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I tried my best to design this set in a 90's style - using basic, simple bricks. I tried to use angular slopes instead of curves as much as possible for a retro look.

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By the way, the set is 220 pieces, which also the same piece count as the original 2152 Robo Raptor.

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The submission phase of the contest will be over in a few days and after that the judges will pick the top 15 entries. When the top 15 have been selected, fans will be able to vote for their favorite entry to become a free GWP!

Let me know what you think, and be sure to check out my LEGO Ideas contest entry page.

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Awesome, I have 2152 on my shelf! Roboforce is an underrated theme with lots of potential, especially with the new ball joints we get now. You really captured the feel of the original hands while keeping it to modern pieces. My only suggestion would be to articulate the head more; if you're playing with a dinosaur you'll want to be able to pose the head for biting action. Might be hard with the hoses and keeping the exact part count though.

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I like it!

I just wish something like this could win the contest. Last time we got a @#$%ing coin-op ride. :/

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2 hours ago, EamonnMR said:

Awesome, I have 2152 on my shelf! Roboforce is an underrated theme with lots of potential, especially with the new ball joints we get now. You really captured the feel of the original hands while keeping it to modern pieces. My only suggestion would be to articulate the head more; if you're playing with a dinosaur you'll want to be able to pose the head for biting action. Might be hard with the hoses and keeping the exact part count though.

Thank you! Yes, the hands use a very similar building method, but with modern pieces and proper claws. The tail and the front seat are also similar to the original, but with slight variations. 

I wanted to make the head be on a ball joint or turntable, but then it would have been a bit too clunky. The hoses would have also made it not really work out. The mouth can open and close though, so there's that :P

1 hour ago, danth said:

I like it!

I just wish something like this could win the contest. Last time we got a @#$%ing coin-op ride. :/

Thank you, I agree! In the contest, this is currently the most popular entry that people want to vote on the most:

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Look familiar? :P

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There's a great chance that we will basically get the same thing again.

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1 hour ago, NickLafreniere said:

In the contest, this is currently the most popular entry that people want to vote on the most:

My god. :sick:

Yeah, people who vote in Ideas are lemmings. They just vote for the same thing that won last time. After something wins, you see a ton of copycats, and they all get tons of votes.

After the Fisherman shop we got a ton of sets that were just "ramshackle buildings" in some form. The tree house, the Barracuda Bay, the Blacksmith. Funnily, the final sets removed most of the ramshackle look from those!

The same thing happened with 80's cars, Sitcom locales, etc.

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1 hour ago, danth said:

My god. :sick:

Yeah, people who vote in Ideas are lemmings. They just vote for the same thing that won last time. After something wins, you see a ton of copycats, and they all get tons of votes.

After the Fisherman shop we got a ton of sets that were just "ramshackle buildings" in some form. The tree house, the Barracuda Bay, the Blacksmith. Funnily, the final sets removed most of the ramshackle look from those!

The same thing happened with 80's cars, Sitcom locales, etc.

There's even a chance that the judges don't pick this one for the final 15. The judges' picks in the previous contests have always been unexpected, usually not picking the most popular ones for whatever strange reason.

I could possibly see the judges not picking it because it's too similar to the Rocket Ride. Also without the text saying "USS Cardboard", some people might not understand what it is supposed to be. It also kind of relies on out-of-production parts, which seem crucial to the look.

Although I like it, I would rather get some kind of 90's themed set, or 80's classic space if need be. The guy who made it is very talented though  and made the Sesame Street LEGO Ideas set!

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@NickLafreniere Interesting build with very recognizable source material for 90's kids!

2 hours ago, danth said:

My god. :sick:

Yeah, people who vote in Ideas are lemmings. They just vote for the same thing that won last time. After something wins, you see a ton of copycats, and they all get tons of votes.

After the Fisherman shop we got a ton of sets that were just "ramshackle buildings" in some form. The tree house, the Barracuda Bay, the Blacksmith. Funnily, the final sets removed most of the ramshackle look from those!

The same thing happened with 80's cars, Sitcom locales, etc.

I think I understand your point and generally agree with it, but I do not agree on the examples given here as representing the same point.

In my opinion, the "USS Cardboard" has not become popular because it is similar to the rocket ride, but rather because it plays towards the nostalgia of the freedom of childhood and imagination that is recognizable and felt by many people.  The concepts of making rocket ships and helmets out of cardboard and common household items is familiar to those of us who had an imaginative childhood either from before technology took over or by having restricted technology access.  (Not to mention that the "Space" theme in general is popular right now due to real-life events centered around space exploration)
Personally, the "USS Cardboard" would get my vote due to the connections I make to my own childhood, while that rocket ride offers nothing of interest for me.  Whether or not the "USS Cardboard" was made due to similarities to the rocket ride in hopes of gaining the same crowd is not obvious to me...

I see no connection of significance between the fisherman shop and the other three recent releases you mentioned, other than that all 4 of these sets appeal to me significantly for some similar and some different reasons.  The fact that buildings are "ramshackle" is way to broad a generalization for me to think these ideas were submitted due to influence from the previous set directly.  Most of my appeal of the fisherman shop draws from interest in fishing and wharfs/seaside/sailing tropes as well as an "I Spy" book I remember when I was young (I can't explain why I love the concept of these books in much the same way I love building with LEGO pieces, maybe creative parts usage and miniature model building?).
The appeal for the tree house is different, since it draws from my interest in woodlands, outdoors, camping, living in a tree like the Swiss Family Robinson, and even from my childhood passion for the LEGO Forestmen theme.
For the Barracuda Bay, my interest is in the connection to the LEGO Pirates theme nostalgia, pirate tropes, and actual history of the time period as well as connections to ships and sailing, though in a very different old-fashioned way than the fisherman shop.
The Blacksmith again draws from different interests such as the connection to the LEGO Castle theme from childhood, wattle-and-daub half-timbered architecture, Medieval architecture and time period in general, specific connection to my beloved Black Falcons faction, real-life interest and (limited) experience in smithing steel, and many others.
Though I personally don't like how much the ramshackle look is limited in the actual sets from the original submissions, I suspect most of this is due to making them stable playsets (albeit with some complicated building techniques - still playset-stable) for a general audience.  When I build MOCs, I use ramshackle techniques in old structures that would definitely not be play-stable for a set to be released for anyone to build.  I think that TLG limits away from building techniques that are tedious enough to annoy the general population (in the age bracket recommended).

I have certainly seen many new submissions that are very similar to previous accepted submissions shortly after they are announced or produced for sale, which is what I think you are noting.  This annoys me as well, since it just seems so ridiculous and silly to even attempt to put through an idea through the Ideas platform that LEGO has already produced.  This also applies to ideas that relate to what LEGO already has licenses or themes established, such as Star Wars (is there really an Ideas submission in this theme that is something TLG would not already consider if it is worth producing under the theme?).  I know this can seem contradictory when I am in full support of sets such as Barracuda Bay and the Blacksmith, but the difference is that I see these as support of the nostalgia of LEGO's classic themes as well as the support for themes that TLG does not seem to consider worth producing right now.  I also draw distinctions not by theme as much as specific builds.  Each Ideas submission should offer something that makes it unique from all previous sets, in my opinion.

Now, I also see similarities in the other submissions by the creator of the fisherman shop.  Though I supported the fisherman shop, I am much less likely to support the other submissions in the concept that they could be future Ideas sets.  I may have supported some others as well, but simply to show TLG that there is interest in this concept in hopes that there may be some extensions of the city theme to include more wharfs or seaports or more creator expert sets in a similar vein.  When it comes to Ideas sets specifically, I would rather see new and unique ideas that are different themes than previous produced Ideas sets.

...oh, and:

5 hours ago, danth said:

I like it!

I just wish something like this could win the contest. Last time we got a @#$%ing coin-op ride. :/

...I very much agree with this statement, though I also understand that this is due to my specific interests.

Edited by Slegengr

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It looks like this contest entry did not make it to the next phase... There were so many great entries that did not get picked as well, including the USS Cardboard and some really nice retro-inspired ideas. Oh well, it was a lot of fun! I will for sure be submitting this project as a regular LEGO Ideas project soon.

 

Edit: it was an error on the website, everyone's status in the contest has reset. I'm still in the contest :P

Edited by NickLafreniere

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How have I missed this? Okay, going over there now.

Great update by the way! We like LEGO Space and dinosaurs in our house, win -win ;-)

Good luck in the contest too :-)

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