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Thread: Cyberverse - are the toys getting too simple or are people getting dumber?

  1. #61
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bemblebuu View Post
    Thank goodness for 3rd party TF toys!

  2. #62
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    Quote Originally Posted by GoktimusPrime View Post


    *waves Planet X Vulcun in your face*
    I'm really just here for the free food and open bar.

  3. #63
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    Unfortunately, if TakaraTomy are now just a clone of Hasbro (no more alternative versions of Hasbro toys) and Hasbro are producing less dedicated-collector toys, with the focus being on Cyberverse, Rescue Bots and Movie toys (being mostly aimed at under 10s), the unauthorised toy producers are going to get a lot more popular in the next few years as fans look for more homage toys or toys of characters that have never been produced officially.
    I may not support or advocate unauthorised toys, but I understand and accept why they exist and why the demand is growing... because Hasbro are almost giving up on catering to the dedicated collectors, by eliminating the fan convention and cutting back on exclusive toys, which are getting harder to acquire (really limited release in very few countries).

  4. #64
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    Quote Originally Posted by griffin View Post
    Unfortunately, if TakaraTomy are now just a clone of Hasbro (no more alternative versions of Hasbro toys) and Hasbro are producing less dedicated-collector toys, with the focus being on Cyberverse, Rescue Bots and Movie toys (being mostly aimed at under 10s), the unauthorised toy producers are going to get a lot more popular in the next few years as fans look for more homage toys or toys of characters that have never been produced officially.
    I may not support or advocate unauthorised toys, but I understand and accept why they exist and why the demand is growing... because Hasbro are almost giving up on catering to the dedicated collectors, by eliminating the fan convention and cutting back on exclusive toys, which are getting harder to acquire (really limited release in very few countries).
    As Gok pointed out, the early 90's spelled the end for G1 due to lack of diversity and it looks like a lesson was learned as TFs became so diverse that the brand could handle damage caused by a persona non grata such as Michael Bay.
    So if what you're saying stays true Griff, then that means there's a devolution towards an early 90's direction.

    Could that be because the brand has become too diverse like Lego did to it's own detriment in the early 2000s?

  5. #65
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    Quote Originally Posted by shockNwave View Post
    So if what you're saying stays true Griff, then that means there's a devolution towards an early 90's direction.
    I wouldn't go that far.

    Remember that in the early 90s nearly half of the Transformers line was Action Masters. The only things you could buy were either Action Masters, Micromasters or early G1 reissues. But as far as new moulds were concerned, all we had were Action Masters and Micromasters. It starved the line of diversity.


    As terrible as these Cyberverse toys are, they're just one part of the 2018 assortment. We still have:
    * Power of the Primes
    * Studio Series
    * Masterpiece (G1, BW & Movieverse)
    * Bumbleformers
    * Movie the Best
    * SF2 x TFs
    * Rescue Bots
    * G1 reissues

    The problem with Action Masters wasn't just that they were crap. It's that they were crap that dominated the toy line. Everywhere you went there were just Action Masters shelfwarming like nobody's business. Cyberverse only compromise a fraction of 2018's lineup. Now of course, this doesn't justify making rubbish toys like Cyberverse. Shelfwarmers hurt the brand. Okay, it's not as devastating a blow as Action Masters, but it sure isn't going to do the brand any favours.

  6. #66
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    Quote Originally Posted by griffin View Post
    ... because Hasbro are almost giving up on catering to the dedicated collectors, by eliminating the fan convention and cutting back on exclusive toys, which are getting harder to acquire (really limited release in very few countries).
    The Generations line is pretty collector-orientated, and Hasbro said they had plans mapped out for the line until 2021. But I suppose if Cyberverse bombs commercially and Hasbro makes a big enough loss, there's a possibility that some of those plans may get scrapped.

    Kind of makes me wonder though - Cyberverse is not off to a good start, and if things get that bad; what will Hasbro do? Will they try to salvage it by producing better Cyberverse toys for later waves, or will they cut their losses and shutdown Cyberverse completely? Hopefully it'll be the former where they start to produce some good Cyberverse toys... (though I'm reluctant to bet on it)

  7. #67
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    Quote Originally Posted by FatalityPitt View Post
    The Generations line is pretty collector-orientated, and Hasbro said they had plans mapped out for the line until 2021. But I suppose if Cyberverse bombs commercially and Hasbro makes a big enough loss, there's a possibility that some of those plans may get scrapped.

    Kind of makes me wonder though - Cyberverse is not off to a good start, and if things get that bad; what will Hasbro do? Will they try to salvage it by producing better Cyberverse toys for later waves, or will they cut their losses and shutdown Cyberverse completely? Hopefully it'll be the former where they start to produce some good Cyberverse toys... (though I'm reluctant to bet on it)
    I hope you're right. The last time I recall Hasbro having to salvage a series was when they had to upgrade TF Prime to TF Prime Beast Hunters and an excellent move that was.
    Yet when I look at Cyberverse it looks way too weak and as they say "First impressions count." Which is why Cyberverse has started as a dead horse and TF Prime started as a potential derby winner and became an actual derby winner.

  8. #68
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    The toy commercial in Singapore (that might end up on TV here) probably doesn't help impress people with this toyline, and some of the screenshots of the kid will be meme-fodder for years to come.


    "Get more WHOA" with Transformers Cyberverse... as in, whoa, don't buy those.

  9. #69
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    Quote Originally Posted by shockNwave View Post
    I hope you're right. The last time I recall Hasbro having to salvage a series was when they had to upgrade TF Prime to TF Prime Beast Hunters and an excellent move that was.
    I don't know if Beast Hunters was a definitive step up from previous TF Prime waves. I initially wrote a rather lengthy "TL;DR" post, but for brevity's sake let's just say that BH has pros and cons when compared to previous TFP lines and on the whole I don't think that it's necessarily much better or worse. From an engineering/design POV of course.

    Quote Originally Posted by FatalityPitt View Post
    The Generations line is pretty collector-orientated
    It's aimed at both kids and adults. I've known kids who collect and play with Generations toys. There have been a few times when I've gone to pick up my daughter from school and have occasionally found kids playing with Generations toys. I remember one time seeing a boy upset because he couldn't find the weapon for his Combiner Wars Blackjack. His dad had no idea what the kid was talking about and just wanted to leave. I looked around and found the weapon dropped under a bush, so I grabbed it and ran after them to hand the weapon back. The kid was so relieved (and yes, I advised him not to bring TF weapons to school anymore).

    I had a student who was disappointed that Generations Trailcutter didn't come with a "gun" (aside from the two guns attached to his shield), so he found a 5mm post gun from another toy and gave it to his Trailcutter. I remember it sitting on his desk in class and I remarked that it wasn't his gun and he told me the story. He once showed me a photo of his collection - it's filled up an entire bookcase (just as mine did when I was in school).

    My friend's kid who's in Year 3 told me that he's been looking for Titans Return Rewind but hasn't been able to find him anywhere. I've since managed to track one for him and when I SMSed the photo to his parents they told me that their kid was super excited because I'd found his grail figure.

    So yeah, there are definitely kids who are collecting and playing with Generations toys.

  10. #70
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    Quote Originally Posted by GoktimusPrime View Post
    It's aimed at both kids and adults. I've known kids who collect and play with Generations toys. There have been a few times when I've gone to pick up my daughter from school and have occasionally found kids playing with Generations toys...

    ... So yeah, there are definitely kids who are collecting and playing with Generations toys.
    That's interesting. There's no regular cartoon or show revolved around the Generations line (unless you count the online animated series by Machinima) and it still sells pretty strongly among younger fans. I surmised that the reason RiD 2015 figures (particularly the Warrior class figures) were relatively expensive was because some of the cost went into commissioning the RiD cartoon, and the purpose (I guess) of the cartoon was to get kids interested in the toys. Basically the cartoons are 25 minute toy commercials.

    But if Generations can sell strongly without a regular show, then that makes me wonder - does Transformers need cartoons to sell the toys? Because if not, then maybe instead of investing money into commissioning the cartoons, they could instead allocate that money into producing more interesting and better quality toys. Or if Generations is their main bread and butter when it comes to Transformers, maybe they could dust off old cartoons from the 1980's and play those instead. Those are the shows more likely to feature characters who appear in the Generations line. Siege: War For Cybertron features Micromasters, so maybe Hasbro can buy the rights of Transformers Victory and Zone from Toei (if they haven't already), remaster those cartoons and show those instead of having a whole new cartoon produced from scratch.

    Just some thoughts that sprang to mind while reading your post.

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