Hasbro Design Process

[lancalot]

Here an article and video of how they design predaking ....

Autobots Assembled: How Transformers Come to Life
Kyle Wagner


"So how are Transformers conceived? A lot like many humans, it seems: with some rough play and an exchange of body parts. At least, that's how Transformers Senior Design Director Josh Lamb and Product Designer Lenny Panzica did it, as we sat down with them in a workshop at Transformers HQ just outside Providence, Rhode Island, and started tearing apart old Zoids and Transformers."


http://gizmodo.com/5994962/autobots-assembled-how-transformers-come-to-life

[griffin]

Beat me to it...

For those who haven't yet seen the design process detailed here at the Hasbro tour in 2007 (http://www.toycollectors.com.au/bc07/bc07ht.html), we get another look at some of the steps taken on some toys due out this year, mirrored here for future reference (http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-news/transformers-prime-39/how-transformers-come-to-life-177280/).

[Omega Metro]

Great artwork! Shame the toys look nothing like them.

[Bidoofdude]

The artwork looks pretty good, but it kind of pains me that they start to go for gimmicks and mechanisms first... :(

[griffin]

Looks like a second part was produced, as it has been posted up now as well (http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/inside-hasbro-model-shop-magic/27125/).

[Bidoofdude]

Saw the second part. I think the second one was much better.:)
The first only focused on gimmicks basically. :(;)

That pose Metroplex is in makes him look a lot bulkier and better-proportioned, IMO. :cool::D

[Sam]

I think these kinds of jobs (designing and producing toys) might seem like fun, but can probably get pretty stressful.

[Trent]

I think these kinds of jobs (designing and producing toys) might seem like fun, but can probably get pretty stressful.

I agree. There would be the toy you want to design, and then there would be the toy your budget allows you to design to.

2 VERY different ways to approach it. That's not even taking into account things like time constraints or whatever someone from marketing says they think should (read:will) be incorporated.

[UltraMarginal]

I think these kinds of jobs (designing and producing toys) might seem like fun, but can probably get pretty stressful.


I agree. There would be the toy you want to design, and then there would be the toy your budget allows you to design to.

2 VERY different ways to approach it. That's not even taking into account things like time constraints or whatever someone from marketing says they think should (read:will) be incorporated.


I'd suggest that most design/engineering jobs on the planet are like that. I had one project where week to week, the message from above changed from "design to save weight", "design to reduce manufacturing cost" and "design to reduce long term cost" and back again. you can probably imagine that these three targets are not the same.

[griffin]

A third article from gizmodo (http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/new-gizmodo-transformers-article-michael-bay-is-why-transformers-got-so-complicated/27167/) looks to go into the over-complicated engineering of the recent Movie toys, and claims that Hasbro is trying to pull it back to more simplistic, intuitive designs. (I guess the feedback from kids and parents was that they were too complicated to be fun, playable toys)

The TFPrime and Beast Hunters toys are certainly getting simpler, as most of the Beasts just stand up to be transformed. Okay, to be fair, the Generations toys are an improvement on the element of balance of complexity and playability, which can make the toys more fun, but still provide a challenge to kids.

[doublespy]

A third article from gizmodo (http://www.seibertron.com/transformers/news/new-gizmodo-transformers-article-michael-bay-is-why-transformers-got-so-complicated/27167/) looks to go into the over-complicated engineering of the recent Movie toys, and claims that Hasbro is trying to pull it back to more simplistic, intuitive designs. (I guess the feedback from kids and parents was that they were too complicated to be fun, playable toys)

The TFPrime and Beast Hunters toys are certainly getting simpler, as most of the Beasts just stand up to be transformed. Okay, to be fair, the Generations toys are an improvement on the element of balance of complexity and playability, which can make the toys more fun, but still provide a challenge to kids.

The third one is not nearly as good as the first two IMHO.

I think the simplifying started with DotM. Maybe the marketing guys found out that even the parents couldn't get those amazingly CGI-accurate yet puzzlingly complicated RotF figures to transform even remotely near what was shown on the back of the packaging..



I agree. There would be the toy you want to design, and then there would be the toy your budget allows you to design to.

Yup, so the designers always design to their best capacity first and then cut back on design elements to meet the budget and other constraints of a certain price point/class. Part of the reason I'm very looking forward to the Japanese-exclusive TF Go combiner teams. Takara has a more flexible pricing structure so that the designers could really achieve most of their design intentions without compromising too much to plastic weight, part count, etc.