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Build-a-droid part news: oh joy . . .
3: For the figures that are going to contain pieces for the build-a-droid assortments, how are you going to pack these figures in case ratio wise so that fans and collectors can get everything that they want/need to build the droids? For the astromech droids you said it would be 6 figures to a droid, so that would mean 2 of each figure in a 12 figure case. But, for the protocol droids, you said 8 figures per wave would build 2 driods. But how are you going to pack those 8 figures in a 12 figure case? Basically stores are going to end up with 2 and 1/2 droids per case? Do you think that these “extra” figures are going to get left behind and become peg warmers? Especially when it will be the same 4 in every case?? Do you think this is going to cause problems at retail? Or cause problems with the fans?
Outstanding question and one we are happy to answer. The case will remain a 12 pack, and we will work only with “whole” droids available in every case pack, with either 2 copies of that protocol available in every case or 3 Astros (2 of one Astro and 1 of the second). There will be no cases with only half droids available. We have thought this through *very* carefully, understanding the needs of collectors, and we have a case ratio solution that should satisfy everyone. Here is our approach: First, the Droid Factory line is designed so that collectors only have to buy one of each new (and that includes new tool as well as refreshed/updated) figure to get every part needed to complete every bonus buildable droid. If collectors just bought 1 each of figures 1-52 (approximate number we expect by end of Spring 2009) in the first wave in which they are introduced, they will have all the droids. Second, there is some redundancy built into the lineup in two ways: there will be select “greatest hits” that round out the case packs that will carry duplicates of the droid parts (these are usually kid-targeted figures, or figures where nothing has changed so figure completists can ignore these), as well as typical carryforwards we do from wave to wave to maximize potential for certain characters. Sometimes there will be 2 of each new figure in every case, and some waves will have 1 of each new figure as well as some greatest hits/carryforwards from prior waves. Third, when figures are carried forward from one wave to the next, they will switch to the new droids available rather than carryforward what would be an “old” part when the new droids are intro’d. So that means that when we get to Wave 2, for example, it will only be protocol droid parts in the case pack and no Astro Droid parts, and vice-versa. This is to give a more ample distribution of each new droid as our intent is to NOT make certain droids scarcer overall but to have good availability. This does mean that popular characters that will be continued across waves, such as Vader, will have several droid combinations possible depending upon how many waves he is slotted into. We are cognizant of minimizing these variations and are working to keep these combinations down for the true completist who has to have everything, but carryforwards are inevitable to satisfy our kid market.
Basically, when the figures ship out again, they will have different droid parts, which will likely make it harder to get the whole droid if you don’t get the figure right away. Also, any army builders in the “greatest hits” line will have a bunch of useless droid parts.
Hopefully it won’t be so bad, but it still kind of sucks.
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