LEGO® CUUSOO 空想 - Turn your model wishes into reality

[CMP]

So just to clarify, if sometime receives 10,000 votes and LEGO decides to release it, it will ONLY come out in Japan?

If so, why would anybody outside of Japan bother with this?

No, I think they tested this whole idea in Japan, as a regional thing, I believe. If it happens now, I'm sure it'll come out internationally, the United States at the least.

[Aanchir]

So just to clarify, if sometime receives 10,000 votes and LEGO decides to release it, it will ONLY come out in Japan?

If so, why would anybody outside of Japan bother with this?

Nope, not at all. The reason the sets so far have been Japan-exclusive is because the site itself was, at the time of the voting, Japan-exclusive. Open beta for other countries just recently began, so presumably anything that gets through the new Cuusoo site will be designed for worldwide release.

[SilentMode]

The only fresh ideas that seem to be popular on LEGO Cuusoo are the piano and De Lorean suggestions everything else just seems to be bring back this and bring back that. There are entire threads about stuff like Zoo animals. Why are we not supporting this more? What about new stuff? New themes or stuff for NXT? What about the people who want new colored pieces? Why aren't we posting and supporting this stuff? Monorail? We have an entire discussion about bringing it back yet very few seem to be supporting it where it really matters.

I'd agree with this sentiment; IMO the fact the older modular buildings aren't widely available any more are what make them so appealing, and I think more focus should be put into creating new ideas that people will miss just as much.

In the meantime I've submitted one of my MOCs to the site...

[Haltiamieli]

I think more focus should be put into creating new ideas that people will miss just as much.

Well, I think we have to give the project some time. It takes something like five minutes to post a "Bring back 6573 Arctic Expedition" suggestion, but much, much longer to prepare most of the more original suggestions, especially if started from scratch when the project was announced to have gone global.

I'm considering whether I should enter my "Wagon of the Vagabond Jesters" just to bulk up the amount of Castle-themed sets and thus support the theme (still sadly underpresented), but on the other hand is it better if we just leave the few brightest stars alone so they can be found more easily?

Edited October 14, 2011 by Haltiamieli

[KyleJohnson11]

I am so excited about the Cuusoo website! Being a huge sports fan, I started one for an American Football theme: http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/1471

My thoughts are to offer team sets in different colors to allow for people to create their own teams in colors of College or NFL teams.

One big item I am pushing for and working through prototypes on LDD is a modular stadium. My thoughts are to offer a range of different stadium sections on either 32x16 or 32x32 baseplates to let people make their own stadiums!

[L@go]

I am so excited about the Cuusoo website! Being a huge sports fan, I started one for an American Football theme: http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/1471

The best of luck to you! :)

You need to remember, though, that in virtually every part of the world apart from the US, this is a sport most people don't care about at all. I know it's huge across the pond, but I'm a European sports journalist, and where I work we hardly ever mention American football... :)

[Matn]

I must say I was really interested in this. After someone suggested it, I almost uploaded my latest creation (a train station), which I have designed to look like an official LEGO set. In the end I didn't, I just made an LDD-file of it for everyone's pleasure. What put me off, was the fact that once you upload your creation to LEGO Cuusoo, your creation is totally owned by LEGO. If I am correct, even if you don't reach to 10,000 votes, they could develop your idea without giving you a penny. However, I could change my mind. I made the creation for fun, what loss would I have with uploading it to LEGO Cuusoo?

[Lyichir]

The best of luck to you! :)

You need to remember, though, that in virtually every part of the world apart from the US, this is a sport most people don't care about at all. I know it's huge across the pond, but I'm a European sports journalist, and where I work we hardly ever mention American football... :)

Yeah, the best I can hope for (and hope for it I do) is that an American football player is made as a collectable minifig. Mind you, that's not just because of the worldwide obscurity of the sport, but also because LEGO hasn't made a full sports theme in ages.

[KyleJohnson11]

The best of luck to you! :)

You need to remember, though, that in virtually every part of the world apart from the US, this is a sport most people don't care about at all. I know it's huge across the pond, but I'm a European sports journalist, and where I work we hardly ever mention American football... :)

I do understand outside of the United States, American Football is pretty much non existent. My hope is that the idea of a modular stadium where you can purchase different pieces and in a way build your own unique stadium will catch on and be able to carry the idea. I just uploaded my first version of the stadium to LEGO CUUSOO under the Football creation.

Yeah, the best I can hope for (and hope for it I do) is that an American football player is made as a collectable minifig. Mind you, that's not just because of the worldwide obscurity of the sport, but also because LEGO hasn't made a full sports theme in ages.

I am dissapointed that my Dark Ages were during the Football(soccer) and NBA themes. I feel being a sports nut, I really missed out. The hockey player gave us a facemask to make football players at least :)

I would greatly appreciate all the support I can drum up on my LEGO CUUSOO design :)

[Hrw-Amen]

I had a quick look but most of it is bring back this or that. There are one or two things I'd like to see brought back, but would prefer new stuff.

I think it would be an idea to have a sub theme maybe in each forum to get ideas togther and then everyone who is interested in that could support it. For me one of the most awkward bits is the 'How much would you pay for it?' question as this does seem quite hard to work out especially if you do not know exactly what a new model will contain. Will it have light, sound, PF etc and how many parts? If there was a sub forum to discuss this before the submission was made then a clearer picture could be obtained first and then everyone supporting it would at least have some idea of what is deemed relaistic. Also TLG would have a better idea of what people would really be willing to pay for something rather than getting wild guesses at both extremes as to a sets worth.

[Blondie-Wan]

I'd agree with this sentiment; IMO the fact the older modular buildings aren't widely available any more are what make them so appealing

I thought the thing that made the modular buildings so appealing was that they're beautiful with lots of clever, thoughtful touches. The fact that they're not widely available any more means that the desire for them goes unfulfilled; it doesn't cause the desire to exist in the first place.

[Piranha]

here is mine I started for a reissue of 10179 the UCS Falcon.

http://lego.cuusoo.com/ideas/view/3718

[Hewman]

I have posted a suggestion on Cuusoo which I think fulfils two strong desires in the AFOL community. It's a Maersk oil rig. I think an oil rig is something that has been missing from an adult style set for the whole history of Lego (well the regular minifig era at least, although there was a 70s set), and who doesn't want a continuation of the Maersk line after the last couple sets. I've done this because it is a set that I would love to see be made, and if by any miracle it did get up, I would donate all profits (because let's face it, it's not like I had to put hundreds of hours of work into it). I've included a pic of a real Maersk Oil Rig, to give people an idea of what it could look like. Yep, they even use their beautiful Maersk blue on their rigs.

Anyway, if you'd like to see a set like this made, please support it here. I think it would be great if it achieved even enough support to let Lego know that this is a set AFOLs are interested in, even if it doesn't crack the 10,000 barrier.

[Piranha]

one has reached the 10,000, the minecraft thing, I strongly doubt that will ever be made into sets

[Lyichir]

one has reached the 10,000, the minecraft thing, I strongly doubt that will ever be made into sets

Don't be so negative. LEGO's response so far has been extremely accommodating, and the fact that the creators of Minecraft seem totally on board could help immensely. I wouldn't be surprised to see a set or a small (1-3 set) theme by the end of 2012.

[Piranha]

Don't be so negative. LEGO's response so far has been extremely accommodating, and the fact that the creators of Minecraft seem totally on board could help immensely. I wouldn't be surprised to see a set or a small (1-3 set) theme by the end of 2012.

well I never heard of it until now, I just don't see the appeal for the average person to buy sets.

[Lyichir]

well I never heard of it until now, I just don't see the appeal for the average person to buy sets.

I don't see it jumping off store shelves either. But that's assuming it'll be in stores, which I see as unlikely. I think it could be genuinely successful as a D2C (Direct-to-consumer) set, purchased online through LEGO's website. Minecraft is a phenomenon, and if LEGO can make a set to attract its massive fanbase they could have a real success on their hands. Will it work? I'm not sure. But the fact that the creators of Minecraft are on board with it helps a ton -- imagine if the first thing to reach 10,000 was something like Halo, which already has a deal with Mega Bloks...

*crosses myself fervently*

Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes. This suggestion picked up steam incredibly quickly, and hasn't lost it yet. So I'm not counting this as a failure unless LEGO outright states that sets can not, will not happen.

[Omicron]

I just don't see the appeal for the average person to buy sets.

That same logic can be applied to the UCS Falcon.

-Omi

[Piranha]

guys don't take it personal JMO

[Omicron]

guys don't take it personal JMO

Don't dish it if you can't take it. :P

Even though I don't play the game, I'd like to see the Minecraft thing come to fruition, because that would be the first video game license Lego would have, and I support that.

-Omi

[Piranha]

Don't dish it if you can't take it. :P

I never was being antagonistic was just simply stating IMO.

[Omicron]

just simply stating IMO.

So were we. :P

-Omi

[CopMike]

Info from TLG about CUUSOO - please read !

Hi Everyone,

We’ve seen some comments and questions about the Minecraft project on various AFOL forums, so here’s a bit of background on it and how we view the project and idea. We’re going to post here instead of commenting online on the several places where there is discussion, this way we can focus our time on working on the platform instead of getting into multiple dialogues. Some people don’t like Minecraft, others don’t see how it would make a good LEGO product, and some are wondering how something got 10,000 votes so quickly. We’ve also heard peoples’ desires that CUUSOO would promote well-built MOCs as the next models.

LEGO CUUSOO is a place for people to share their ideas for potential new LEGO products. In response to Minecraft, Paal put it this way in the press release; “This is what LEGO CUUSOO is all about, connecting people’s passion to the LEGO brick.” While most Minecraft fans aren’t AFOLs, they are really passionate about Minecraft and happen to like LEGO products. So, CUUSOO worked just as intended here – a group of passionate people saw the opportunity to connect their interest to LEGO bricks, and we’ve identified a community with critical mass where we could produce products they would enjoy and buy.

Now we are looking to see if we can develop LEGO models which the Minecraft community would want, and that has the design quality that is expected of a LEGO product. If we succeed, we meet someone’s passion with a LEGO product and identify a new LEGO consumer – some of whom will become regular purchasers and still some who might become future AFOLs.

But how would Minecraft be a good LEGO product? Isn’t it redundant, and aren’t the blocky play set images out there just low-fi Basic sets, and wouldn’t using cubes be really unstable? Well, yes. We see the low-fi images of Minecraft models as representative of the idea of Minecraft themed LEGO products, and we know blocky play sets won’t work as products. What we do see is demand for LEGO products that celebrate the Minecraft game.

Any product given the green light through CUUSOO goes through an extensive design process with our model designers. So, it will never be exactly what is submitted (neither Shinkai or Hayabusa were that way; Hayabusa went through two major revisions to get to the final, and we’ll have news on that in the coming weeks). We’ll share bits and pieces of that process as models are produced through CUUSOO. If you’re concerned with quality of an eventual set, the designers evaluating Minecraft have backgrounds with LEGO Architecture, Blacktron I, and Space Police I, so any potential product is in very capable hands. We’re also collaborating with the two original users who created the project.

How did this happen so fast, when good models are only getting handfuls of votes? The quick answer is the Minecraft community is large, new, focused, and passionate (2 million Facebook fans/16 million players). We were taken off guard with this, and did not expect this kind of a surge in traffic to our platform that is still in beta. We’re looking at it as an amazing opportunity, though, and taking what we have learned to improve things for the future.

Here’s what happened: Someone put up a Minecraft project. Mojang (Minecraft creators) found it and thought it was cool, and they linked to it on Facebook and Twitter. Immediately traffic spiked and even brought down the site a couple times. Along the way there was the issue of ownership; the original poster uploaded someone else’s image and the project got popular with that image posted. We investigated and all agreed the route of making it a collaboration was best. It was clear that the Minecraft idea would gain critical mass, and we would need a license anyway. So, Mojang agreed to step in and work collaboratively on it with the users, and the users just wanted to see Minecraft happen and were happy to work together.

But what about this awesome MOC that totally deserves to be a LEGO product? As an AFOL myself, I know it’s a dream to think of your creation as an official LEGO product. In this case, the Minecraft community lacks in building skill but makes up for it in focus and passion. Think not just about building quality, but about connecting to your audience’s passion. There are a few dozen really great models on CUUSOO, with votes in the high hundreds and even in the 1000-1500 range, so it’s not impossible. Also think about what makes a good LEGO product (not just a good MOC). The game is still wide open. This is only the third CUUSOO product, and the first one on the global platform. So, get at it! J

CUUSOO isn’t just about getting great MOCs produced, it’s about connecting passion for an interest with the LEGO brick. As a business case, it’s about finding new markets for the company that we would otherwise overlook, and supporting them with data before we produce a product. We see the Minecraft opportunity as a good one. Star Wars brought in many, many new LEGO consumers and fans and 12 years on it is still a strong theme. Harry Potter, the Direct exclusives and LEGO Architecture are doing the same. Minecraft will only be a fraction of Star Wars’ success, but it is an opportunity to connect with another passionate fan community, so it’s worth exploring.

We learned a lot about the platform and user behavior through the Minecraft experience. Some of it we already knew intuitively, other things were new lessons that can only come after being overwhelmed with traffic of this nature. The experience either proved some assumptions and disproved others. We’re actively developing improvements to the platform itself, the rules, and the mechanics.

Specifically, we’re very aware of the rampant plagiarism of AFOLs’ creations. It isn’t cool at all to have a site where users do this, and the upcoming changes will have more explicit rules and make it difficult for users to plagiarize in the future by allowing for user reporting and easier/quicker administration. We believe that stamping out plagiarism and raising the project submission age to 18+ will improve the quality of models on CUUSOO so users don’t have to wade through junk. We’re also working on improvements to the sign up process, the process of submitting your first Project, and making it easier to find things on the site. We’re grateful to all of you for your help with suggestions and flagging plagiarism. We hope to have the site improvements online soon.

Hope this has addressed some of the main questions about CUUSOO and the Minecraft project.

Thanks!

Tim Courtney, the LEGO CUUSOO team

[Darkdragon]

Lot's of great info in there. I'm glad they are taking all of the AFOL comments to heart and addressing it.

[Aanchir]

If you’re concerned with quality of an eventual set, the designers evaluating Minecraft have backgrounds with LEGO Architecture, Blacktron I, and Space Police I, so any potential product is in very capable hands.

Someone knows how to lay AFOL concerns to rest.

Anyway, all of this is very good news, and I appreciate that the Cuusoo team is maintaining a dialogue with AFOL fan communities rather than planning all their changes and revisions behind closed doors.

I know many younger users on fansites like BZPower will be upset by the increased submission age, and I'm curious what effects that might have since under normal circumstances younger users are a core market. However, in the case of Cuusoo I'm sure that not only are AFOLs a more significant audience in terms of voting power, but also a better audience for many of the "niche" products that Cuusoo so far has been shown to deliver. Meanwhile, the fact that younger users will evidently still be able to vote means that they are still a part of the decision process, and of course all a younger user has to do to submit an idea of their own is to connect with an AFOL or older family member like their parents whom they're willing to entrust their idea to.

The chance of success of the Minecraft products is still entirely up in the air, but this would apply for any proposal that happened to be the first to make it through Cuusoo after its international debut. I look forward to more details on the logistical aspects of the Cuusoo platform, like how sets will be distributed and marketed.