Hero Factory 2014 Discussion

[Aanchir]

Instructions have been added to LEGO.com! You'll have to scroll down a bit, or click the building instruction icons on this page. Figured I'd share this since so many people wanted to see all the comics. Sadly, they're pretty grainy. Edited January 2, 2014 by Aanchir

[VBBN]

I'd like to point out to look at the end of the instructions where the three headed beast is shown; Two of the heads are misprinted- Flyer beast has a messed up version of the orange beast's print, and the azure head has Jaw Beasts eyes printed on it.

[DraikNova]

From the looks of it, Crystal Beast may have a large azure armor plate on it's back, the "basic" type. However, I wouldn't be too surprised if the red creature is actually CB (and the crystals are rubies).

[BrickBuilder3213]

I think Crystal Beast will have lots of trans-blue/trans-azure armour on it's body. After all, that seems to be the most ideal way to convey that he's partially crystalized.

[takarawarrior2014]

hi. i'm a new member. i am really excited for the invasion from below sets.

i saw the new videos. the heroes look really human, but still cool.

Edited January 3, 2014 by takarawarrior2014

[Ikkad555]

Okay, it's nice to see that I'm not the only one who's certain that CB is the blue one and TB is the red one. The piece counts are a mystery, but I'm pretty sure that's only because we haven't seen them in their entirety yet.

Besides the argument that CB would have to be the one who looks to have trans-blue, I think the low stature along with the multiple limbs on the red one fits a digger than it does a beast that is supposedly composed of crystals. Also, the blue guy has only been seen in the crystal-filled areas of the caves, while the red guy has so far only been seen in the rocky area.

..Yeah. Theories, man.

Slightly off-topic: Has anyone else felt the Exo-Force/Power Miners crossover emanating from Invasion from Below?

Edited January 3, 2014 by Ikkad555

[Vinyl Scratch]

Just wanted to mention that the Chameleon Hunter from Exo-Force is pretty much ideal for a proper Breez mech. Thank the heavens that I haven't put my Exo-Force sets apart yet.

[Logan McOwen]

It's still bugging me that people are saying Ghost animated the new video. I'm pretty sure it's still Tinsel Town Toons doing it, as this looks nothing like Ghost's stuff.

[Gatanui]

It's still bugging me that people are saying Ghost animated the new video. I'm pretty sure it's still Tinsel Town Toons doing it, as this looks nothing like Ghost's stuff.

It was announced last year that Ghost would be doing it. I guess Ghost is just imitating the TT animation style to make the change less jarring.

-Gata

Edited January 3, 2014 by Gatanui

[Aanchir]

It was announced last year that Ghost would be doing it. I guess Ghost is just imitating the TT animation style to make the change less jarring.

-Gata

Not just that. I think to a certain extent they kept the animation style because they could. It's certainly not a bad style, and has higher detail than the sets, which is what you want in a TV special like this so the characters don't just look like they were plucked from a toybox.

Ghost did the same exact thing for the CGI segments of the 2010 Hero Factory commercials and Savage Planet commercials. I'm pretty sure they did the HeroPad challenge videos as well, which likewise used the exact same character models as the TV episodes.

Edited January 3, 2014 by Aanchir

[Aanchir]

If anyone's interested, Huw from Brickset posted a review of 44018 Furno Jet Machine! It's generally rather positive, even though he made some slight mistakes in the build.

He does say some disparaging things about previous Hero Factory sets, but in general I think it's worth the read just to get a different perspective on things. I know from experience that it's easy to dismiss a set as crude and simplistic if you aren't interested enough to buy it and see how it's built — I ignored 3829 Fire Nation Ship at first due to its blocky exterior, but eventually got around to building it on LDD and realized just what a treasure I had missed out on. The fact that this set succeeded in piqueing a dedicated system builder's interest enough to buy it where previous sets failed is a testament to how much potential the switch to minifigure-based sets has to expand Hero Factory's audience.

[BrickBuilder3213]

Hey, does anyone think that Lego might make a polybag set with an exclusive hero minifig and a Jumper Beast, this year?

[Shakar]

"Since HERO Factory was launched in 2010 the sets have been rehash after rehash with little evidence of any real innovation."

"Different perspective" I get, but he has no idea of what he's talking about. I'd rather see no Constraction reviews than reading stuff like this.

[BrickBuilder3213]

That review is so basic... Compared to VBBN's review of Furno Jet Machine, this one is just so... lackluster.

[takarawarrior2014]

That review is so basic... Compared to VBBN's review of Furno Jet Machine, this one is just so... lackluster.

i agree with this,

[Aanchir]

"Since HERO Factory was launched in 2010 the sets have been rehash after rehash with little evidence of any real innovation."

"Different perspective" I get, but he has no idea of what he's talking about. I'd rather see no Constraction reviews than reading stuff like this.

The important thing to remember is that a lot of the people who read reviews on Brickset are also people who might never give constraction sets a chance based on the official pictures and descriptions alone. It's too alien to them to grasp its appeal. So being shown high-quality photos and positive descriptions of a constraction set that gained the favor of a person with a similar perspective is likely to leave a positive impression with those kind of builders. I think that's valuable regardless of whether the reviewer has a lot of meaningful firsthand knowledge of constraction sets.

Would a review from a committed constraction collector and MOCist offer a more accurate perspective of the category as a whole? Sure. But a review from a relative newcomer is more likely to communicate on a level that other System builders can relate to. And if it can communicate that via a channel that other non-constraction builders are likely to be exposed to, all the better.

Reviews from sources outside our bubble of shared expertise can also give us a new perspective on how these kind of sets appear to people who haven't been watching them develop for years. And that's important. The new building system may have revolutionized constraction building, but to somebody who didn't already collect constraction themes and understand their assets and limitations, it had no impact whatsoever on the sets' shelf appeal. That's knowledge you wouldn't get by reading a review written by someone who could see what the new building system was offering at a glance.

Understand also that this isn't a perspective exclusive to non-constraction builders. Many BIONICLE fans also fail to understand how the new building system improved the overall building experience. They grew up learning constraction building in the language of pins and axles, so sets where that aspect of the construction was so heavily reduced seemed to them to mean the construction was dumbed down and the complexity was reduced. There are still many BIONICLE fans convinced that the overall complexity of Hero Factory sets is less than that of BIONICLE sets.

Furthermore, a lot of these old-school constraction fans feel like sets that use the same pieces are, in a nutshell, the same. The idea that these parts do not become obsolete after three years of use like the BIONICLE torso pieces of old does not immediately occur to them. Those fans, too, might need sets like this one, which are radically different from past sets not only in aesthetics but also in overall subject matter, to demonstrate that to them. And a review from someone who hasn't dabbled in constraction sets in recent years can help show that to them.

Hey, does anyone think that Lego might make a polybag set with an exclusive hero minifig and a Jumper Beast, this year?

Someone asked a similar question a couple pages ago. An exclusive hero is not likely unless they use an existing helmet — there certainly aren't going to be any new helmet molds designed for an exclusive polybag set. But that doesn't rule out the possibility of exclusive recolors, since we got one of those this year in the form of the black brain.

[BrickBuilder3213]

So we might get an exclusive colour of Jumper Beast and an existing hero?

[Ikkad555]

So we might get an exclusive colour of Jumper Beast and an existing hero?

Maybe even something better - a recolor of an existing Herofig that gives us either a unique character, or a Stringer/Nex with the wrong helmet to keep us at bay while we wait for correct-helmet releases.

[BrickBuilder3213]

Maybe even something better - a recolor of an existing Herofig that gives us either a unique character, or a Stringer/Nex with the wrong helmet to keep us at bay while we wait for correct-helmet releases.

So what you're saying is that we may get a black Surge or an orange Evo?

[coolcab1]

That would be cool for mocs.

[Vinyl Scratch]

So what you're saying is that we may get a black Surge or an orange Evo?

I'd rather take that than not have a minifig Stringer/Nex at all.

[Shakar]

I agree, it's not the best but it's better than nothing, as they say. As for the existing helmet that could be used, I guess I would make it like this: Breez's helmet for Nex, Stormer's helmet for Stringer. They lack some defining features but they're the closest ones in terms of general shape.

[DraikNova]

A recolored jumper (a totally black one or GitD one would be interesting, although blue seems more probable) seems slightly more likely to me, as what it is is more obvious to people than a recolored hero fig. Not only that, the hero fig would require three recolors (legs, arms and head) rather than just one.

[Aanchir]

A recolored jumper (a totally black one or GitD one would be interesting, although blue seems more probable) seems slightly more likely to me, as what it is is more obvious to people than a recolored hero fig. Not only that, the hero fig would require three recolors (legs, arms and head) rather than just one.

The jumpers also offer a play feature. Though if there were a polybag with a recolored jumper AND a recolored hero, that'd be quite nice. Might be too much to hope for though.

All in all, the switch to minifigs offers a whole lot of potential for polybag/promotional sets since they are no longer restricted to being a mere accessory for the larger figures.

[vexorian]

Like I am not asking a new comer to HF not to do reviews. But if someone who is a newcomer to HF wants to include authoritative in their reviews, then they better be accurate.