PlaymoFriends
General => Brainstorming For Playmobil => Topic started by: cachalote on June 25, 2015, 13:20:09
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in a lot of topics it's easy to see that there are a lot of different ideas on what playmobil should do and don't do.
if you see the way playmobil sets also have very different design "approaches" with a lot of themes, a lot of different "looks" indide each them, a lot of contradictory trends, etc..
the death of horst brandstatter is - must be - an enormous turning point for the company.
they (geobra) will have some problems making a design "path" to travel from now on.
this is also true in a "pre-conceptual" phase, as it is clear to see when people complain about the lack of female figures, the lack of other-not-light-pink-skin figures, the presence of religious sets, licensing or not, etc..
this can be difficult to sort-out but the bottom-line is that new figures must be released.
lego had similar problems but understood this and saw that - contrary to what is common thuoght - people actually like to put their money where their mouths are.
or, in this case, their time and effort.
maybe a lot of you already know this but to me it's obvious geobra mus have an internet site like this:
:love: https://ideas.lego.com/howitworks :love:
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people actually like to put their money where their mouths are.
That is the problem. What if people actually wanted to give them MORE money!? The HORROR. <GASP>. ::)
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That is a great looking and sounding feature they provide their clients.
Geobra wants our ideas also, they just take all the credit, and allow us to buy 2 sets each, if we behave ;)
I too wonder how geobras newer sets and themes gets influenced with a room full of lawyers and bean counters dictating.
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And thanks for the link cachalote - I didn't know it - very interesting stuff. Of course, Lego not only LIKES money, they know how to get it!
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in another thread i share the idea for a duo-pack - http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=14816.0
no licensing needed: something that i feel playmobil should keep as part of its "core" identity.
just go for the classic books to get inspiration.
it's cheaper.
all you have to do is to know if some of them are going to be a hollywood release.
it's easier than trying to come-up with "stuff" that looks like something from a movie long gone in kids memories - http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/index.php?topic=14795.0
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mary shelleys' frankenstein was released in 1818.
what about special 200th anniversary duo-pack with dr. victor and his beast?
again, having bigger figures than lego makes playmobil better.
again no licensing (i think).
and being able to sell on book-shops together with all the anniversary editions that will com creates a new selling place (and also a new market) besides toyshops.
grow-up. :)
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So I read this morning that , Lego is apparently investing in an "environmentally friendly" brick for the future... translate = biodegradable. Why would you want a biodegradable plastic toy? Do you not intend to keep it? Pass it down/on to another generation? I could understand biodegradable Happy Meal toys, but LEGO sets? This is one thing I hope Playmobil leaves alone... I don't need Playmos that disintegrate in the sunlight. :lol:
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That would be an absolute nightmare, yes :o
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Couldn't agree more, cachalote. PM should go historical, literary, local, traditional, specific and cultural. No licensing, no ogres, no pseudo-L*go.
This is my dream, which will not be realized.
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Indeed, no licenses required. That only kills the creativity of children since everything is already defined then. Sure they can make up their own stuff too, but they would not have to hence no creativity is a requirement anymore when using licences.
These days Lego seems to name practicly every character, even the ones not using a license.
To me that remains the beautifull part of playmobil though. Give ten kids an assortment of cowboy playmobil including cowboys, bandits, indians, and a fort with soldiers and they may all play very differently with it.
Sure the bandits will likely be used as bandits due to evil eyebrows, but each kid may pick a different one to be their leader. And they may also pick a different favorite cowboy to be the heroic gunslinger saving the day. And the same clickies would likely be given different names by all of them too.
Some might play the indians as bad guys, others might prefer the indians. Maybe the soldiers are bad, or maybe the soldiers are the heroes who fight bandits.
Either way there's many possibilities.
Thats why its a shame that they limit the medieval theme so much. At least this time they did add dwarves, a troll and a dragon that could belong to either faction, but furthermore it seems to be a clear good and evil faction again. And somehow the bad guys always have the smaller castle.
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I know right! Imagine how awesome a historical-styled medieval theme would be, like they used to do it. French knights in their finery, German Landsknechts with those huge swords, English archers...
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Exactly, it could be so beautifull with the possibilities they have today.
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apparently, other people are also interested in this subjectt:
http://playmobilvslego.tumblr.com/archive
the study is made in france but there are a lot of things that have no borders.
and there are a lot of things being said that we have also being saying.
enjoy.
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here's what these guys say.
facts
1/3 of the buys comes from parents
1/3 of the buys comes from grandparents
1,6% from children
conclusions
targeting adults is a basic move.
lego
already targests parents directly, including an independent on-line section.
playmobil
is doing something else (god knows what);
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playmobil
is doing something else (god knows what);
I don't think even the gods have a clue ::)
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facts
parents are bored of video games
parents try to have their children playing with the same games thay had when they wer kids (second generation effect)
conclusions
adults should like and recognize toys easily
playmobil could understand this and market for parents as well as for children.
it has a very good 2"lever": it exists for 2 generations.
maybe each set should be tested so that it could please both the child and the parent.
this could mean that the importance of a "noveltie" look is not that big and the "vintage" look could also be targeted.
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I always felt that Playmobil was a lot better at listening to what their customers and fans wanted. I actually collect both toylines and used to be very upset about the fact that LEGO did not seem to listen. It took them a very long time to get their pick-a-brick shop online and it still doesn't seem to offer nearly as much as the DS.
I only wish there was a site like BrickLink for Playmobil parts.
And I too am against licensed and often short lived themes. LEGO tried to sell Prince of Persia and The Lone Ranger themed sets and no one wanted to buy them. Especially since them paying for the licenses made those sets way too expensive.
I myself am not interested in the newer sets. I prefer steck houses, the old trains and the pink sets. I wish they would re-release more of those. I'd even buy a 4052 if it didn't come with a motor.
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One of the best sets they released was 3660. It was a color set that featured a wagon and a bunch of civilian type klickies.
Similar in content to this picture.
(http://i.imgur.com/4KujxKM.jpg)
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I wish they did a new version of that...
(well, me and everyone else :P)
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They seem to have re-used the number for a newer set. I didn't know they did that.
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They seem to have re-used the number for a newer set. I didn't know they did that.
They have been doing that for years and years....
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Well at least the Merry men feast is comeing to DS. Already in Germany and next year elsewhere too.
Now I just hope to get my hands on the other forestmen sets as well. The hollow tree, the hunters and the dancing bear set. The lonely monk too.
There was also this nice set, a knight with an ox wagon, a female servant or wife, and quite some stuff with it. At the time as a kid I didnt want it because I had two similar fat knights already. It was a very nice set that mixed knights with civilian stuff though.
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Well at least the Merry men feast is comeing to DS. Already in Germany and next year elsewhere too.
The tree alone is almost 20€, if anyone thought about buying the pieces seperately.
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Oh the trees are nice and I'll be glad to have them but wouldnt have bought them seperatly online for such prices.
Its the clickies that I am truly after. Sherrif maybe not as much as the others, but I think I will be able to fit him into one of the factions.
The beer mugs with foam are also very welcome, dont have that yet. Neither the wooden hammer. And any trees to help me build a descent forest are always welcome.
Lego had even less in the way of medieval civilians though. But they did have some beautifull castles up to the early ninetees. To me Lego died in the late ninetees and never recovered. Pretty much when the minifigures stopped smiling, baseplates ceased to be made with sets and licenses everywhere jacking up the prices.
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There was also this nice set, a knight with an ox wagon, a female servant or wife, and quite some stuff with it. At the time as a kid I didnt want it because I had two similar fat knights already. It was a very nice set that mixed knights with civilian stuff though.
The Ox Cart Knight. Another great set from the 90s. Really nice shield design too and unusual in that it came with bandages for the knight.
I think the current hay cart is very good, but I'd've preferred the soldiers to be different.
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Oh the trees are nice and I'll be glad to have them but wouldnt have bought them seperatly online for such prices.
Its the clickies that I am truly after. Sherrif maybe not as much as the others, but I think I will be able to fit him into one of the factions.
The beer mugs with foam are also very welcome, dont have that yet. Neither the wooden hammer. And any trees to help me build a descent forest are always welcome.
Lego had even less in the way of medieval civilians though. But they did have some beautifull castles up to the early ninetees. To me Lego died in the late ninetees and never recovered. Pretty much when the minifigures stopped smiling, baseplates ceased to be made with sets and licenses everywhere jacking up the prices.
(http://www.thetoysavenue.com/gallery/lego-castle-medieval-market-village-10193/lego_castle_medieval_market_village_1.jpg)
huh? the penultimate lego castle line contained many civilian elements.
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Oh my, that looks gorgeous!
Can't beat Playmobil though ;D
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well yes, agreed. it's imposible to beat the robin hood sets. no one can ever do that, not even playmobil unfortunately.
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well yes, agreed. it's imposible to beat the robin hood sets. no one can ever do that, not even playmobil unfortunately.
Which is why it's great that they've re-released the merry men's feast.
http://www.playmobil.de/raeubergelage/6464.html?cgid=Ritter&showSpareParts=false
Just have to wait awhile until it's available elsewhere.
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Which is why it's great that they've re-released the merry men's feast.
I ended up buying two of those sets. My wallet hates me. :-\
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That's pretty much the only medieval civilian set Lego ever made though, aside from a handfull in the eighties.
And to be fair, this big one looks strongly inspired by playmobil in its style.
Are those weird things next to the guy with the stick chickens or ducks?
The lack of detail possible with Lego is really showing there.
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there were others recently, like the raid on the miller's house or whatever it was ... can't find it though. regarding the detail, eh, that's one way of looking at it. the other is ...IMAGINATION! :P
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(http://theplasticbrick.com/images/view/large/16512.jpg)
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That one seems to be another that'd benefit from actually REMOVING the soldiers... like the hay cart...
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there were others recently, like the raid on the miller's house or whatever it was ... can't find it though. regarding the detail, eh, that's one way of looking at it. the other is ...IMAGINATION! :P
Hey, it's Zola's Attaque du Moulin! The soldiers are the wrong era though.
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I think they did a better job at the buildings with that earlier set, that barn and mill dont look too great. I'm positive that the possibilities of Lego should allow for something better than that. Also, why no baseplate? really needs a green baseplate there with some trees to dress it up.
I liked that about the old sets but somehow they completely removed that in time.
They couldnt have made their best castle ever without it.
(http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac337/Rhalius/Lego013.jpg) (http://s913.photobucket.com/user/Rhalius/media/Lego013.jpg.html)
I'm still planning to try and recreate it with Playmobil some day.
But these days, with their castles its nothing but dumb gimmicks, fake siege weapons and ugly castle designs.
Maybe its nostalgia, but if it where just that my opinion on playmobil would not have been much higher than Lego these days. Playmobil simply is much more that same toy that it was during my childhood. Aside from odd gender stereotypes these days in some themes. But with lego.. pretty much everything I loved about it as a kid is completely gone.
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haters gonna hate, as they say :P