Hasbro wants our Questions:

[Napseeker]

I know that hasbro will loose my businees on battlepacks by making them straight repacks.....  Why can't they learn by the batle of yavin hangar pack, that sold so welll, that that's what we want.......

They probably won't do another Scramble on Yavin BP just due to the cost of the tooling for the vehicle, but yeah doing repaints of existing SA sculpts should be something they can do as a way of tossing a bone to collectors.  Even a bunch of repaints for the Hoth and Votc Snowtroopers would sell well... Hasbro is throwing away easy profit here.

[jokabofe]

If they made a 4 pack of VOTC Stormtrooper available, they could ship it with EVERY assortment, and I bet it would sell constantly. There are many things they COULD do, but they just don't. Don't know why.

[Napseeker]

Do people still want the VotC Stormtrooper?  I've traded away almost all of mine and "upgraded" to the excellent Spacetrooper.  It feels like you just get more for your money with the spacetrooper:
- better helmet sculpt (IMO)
- removable helmet (which I happen to like)
- non-clone face(!!!!)
- extra gear including a cool new rifle

I hope they find other ways to reuse this sculpt (like ship it with some kind of Death Star accessory).

[darthdan]

If they made a 4 pack of VOTC Stormtrooper available, they could ship it with EVERY assortment, and I bet it would sell constantly. There are many things they COULD do, but they just don't. Don't know why.

I hear you there jokabofe...... solid snow trooper or stormy packs would be good or 4 rebel hoth/endor/ tantive 5 soldiers with differing head sculpts..........   as an army builder line these would sell great..... but....... hasbro evidently doesn't want my money......

[jokabofe]

Do people still want the VotC Stormtrooper? 

Well, whatever Stormtrooper then. They have the VOTC mold, along with the TAC version (removable helmet), the Spacetrooper, etc. Make a pack of Stormtroopers, as long as they aren't the Commtech version or before, and it will sell. Same goes for other Imperial army builders, even make a mixed army builder pack - Stormtrooper, TIE Pilot, Death Star Gunner, AT-AT Driver, Snowtrooper... whatever.

They could probably even get away with doing some prequel Clonetrooper packs too.

The Rebels I don't think would do so well IMO. But I'm sure they would still sell.

[jokabofe]

OK, Hasbro, you got me. I have to admit that, at first, I was not a fan of the Build-A-Droid idea. Aside from the overly complicated mathematics involved in figuring out how many droids I would get per wave (was it 1, or 2? Maybe 3? Would I have too many parts? Or not enough??) I just didn't like the idea, because I just knew that somehow you would manage to give us 6 more R2's and C-3P0's... but you've proven me wrong. You've given us a really nice assortment of droids, from the R4 series to the R7, sure an R2 here and there, the R5... plus the RA7, and the 'new' HK and L8 droids too... plus some really nice droids yet to come. In fact, your wicked little marketing scheme has worked perfectly, because you've forced me to buy figures that I would normally have no interest in purchasing, just to be sure that I have all the BAD parts - and I'm sure I'm not alone. It's evident that BAD-mania is running wild, brother!

Now... have you considered the possibility of taking some of the already available droid parts, astromech and protocol alike, and making them in a variety of 'generic' colors, and putting them out in a box set with the vintage Jabba the Hutt dungeon playset base? It almost seems like a no-brainer! The tooling is already done for both pieces (provided you still have the molds for the dungeon), and it would satisfy (somewhat) all the droid-hungry fans and loyal paying customers out there. PLUS it would be a neat little homage to the vintage playset, and the vintage line as well. PLUS it would allow the kids (because we all know that's what this is all about, right?? The kids!) to exercise their imaginations while they spend countless hours putting their own custom droids together.

I'm sure that TRU or Target or WalMart could be brought on board for an exclusive version as well... hey, you could even do an exclusive with EACH of those stores, giving each store different BAD parts, and different colors... and then you could even sell extra BAD parts sets online or in those stores too!! The possibilities are endless!!

[darthdan]

yeah the vintage droid factory/jabbas dungeon or something like it with Muli-color BAD parts, I'd buy it.... good thinkin there jokabofe..... It's such a good idea that hasblo will probably never do it........

[jokabofe]

Yeah, Droid Factory was what I meant to say... well, it was the same mold as Jabba's Dungeon.

[darthdan]

Yeah, Droid Factory was what I meant to say... well, it was the same mold as Jabba's Dungeon.

yup same exact mold

[jedibrian77]

Dear Hasbro,

Word is that the new Republic Gunship is going to sell for $70. I was hoping you could shed some light on this price hike since the last last gunship was $50, the one before that $45 and the two before that $30. I see that there are new doors added to close the gunship up completely but how in the world does a new set of doors and a new paint job on the nose justify what is essentially a price doubling. Also, what happens if this ship doesnt sell well because of a huge price jump in a bad economy? Will you then say that this ship is unsuccessful and get rid of it because the price was way to high?

[Trooper JerTej]

I got a question for Hasbro " Where are the figures at?!!! The stores are flooded with Transformers and GI Joes and Overpriced little Marvel guys nobody buys!!  Look at the pegs the Star Wars are always empty!! and pegs full and overstuffed with this other stuff. Why don't you stop wasting plastic on that other stuff and start producing more SW figures.

[Trooper JerTej]

I know I'm a pain in the ass. But Hasbro why do alll the other online toy sellers have all the new SW stuff and mass quantities of it on their sites and Hasbro Toy Shop gets everything late and if you do happen to get it you only get a limited quantity of it. You almost are like some outlet or clearance place where you sell your overstock or peg warmers. Your SW stuff is NOT OUT THERE!!! I traveled from Los Angeles to Oakland this weekend and stopped at about 20 to 30 Targets and Walmarts and there was nothing there except the same ole peg poop in every store!!!

[jokabofe]

Hasbro will say that it's the store's fault for not ordering. That's the excuse they always use.

[darthdan]

I know I'm a pain in the ass. But Hasbro why do alll the other online toy sellers have all the new SW stuff and mass quantities of it on their sites and Hasbro Toy Shop gets everything late and if you do happen to get it you only get a limited quantity of it. You almost are like some outlet or clearance place where you sell your overstock or peg warmers. Your SW stuff is NOT OUT THERE!!! I traveled from Los Angeles to Oakland this weekend and stopped at about 20 to 30 Targets and Walmarts and there was nothing there except the same ole peg poop in every store!!!

I hear you jertej no new starwars stuff in the central valley of california either

[Trooper JerTej]

Bro I hit Woodland Hills, Thousands Oaks, Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura, Bakersfield, Tulare, Fresno, Turlock, Modesto, Manteca, Lathrop, Tracy, Livermore I could go on. Nothing but the exact same stuff. Weird huh?
This isn't just a mindless rant Bro this was research!! NADA!!! But pegs full of Gi Joe and Transformers.

[darthdan]

Bro I hit Woodland Hills, Thousands Oaks, Camarillo, Oxnard, Ventura, Bakersfield, Tulare, Fresno, Turlock, Modesto, Manteca, Lathrop, Tracy, Livermore I could go on. Nothing but the exact same stuff. Weird huh?
This isn't just a mindless rant Bro this was research!! NADA!!! But pegs full of Gi Joe and Transformers.

dude I check turlock, modesto ,manteca, and merced all the time.... and lately  I can't find jack schittt as far asw new carded figs goes, So I hear ya.......  all I see is loads of old figs and a few clone wars figs and saga legends..... NO NEW FIGS    Earlier in the year I could find the new stuff 1st but not right now......

[jokabofe]

Now that you have "tested the waters" with larger scale vehicles like the Falcon, AT-TE and the Turbo Tank... can we expect more larger sized, retooled vehicles? Were these pieces good sellers, enough to continue making one or two every year? They seemed to move pretty well in my area. If so... what's at the top of your wish list? And when can we expect to see a new larger AT-AT Walker? That's at the top of MY wishlist

And also (I'm sure you just KNEW this would pop back up) with the success of these larger ticket items, has it changed your stance on playsets at all? I know that the old excuse for no playsets was that you didn't think people would pay the prices that would need to be charged. Well, if we are paying $150 for the Falcon, I don't see why we wouldn't pay the same for a Death Star playset.

Come on, what do you say?!?!

[Trooper JerTej]

Uh? Dave? I don't think they're listening. I don't think there is any inteligent life in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. These suggestions you guys make in this forum and in other forums are great. But they turn down suggestion after suggestion. Dude how awesome was the Star Trek Bridge? From Playmates? Come on. Hasbro can't pull off something like that. Jabbas Throne?  Death Star Bridge? Creature Cantina? Hoth Med Room? ROTJ Briefing Room?  We would pay for this, you can bet your boots.

[darthdan]

man I'd about kill for the  ROTJ briefing room or a small portion of  the echo base control room

[VadersFist]

I'd like to see the jedi council room again with all the seats to make the center piece and oh the figures to go along with it. Now that would be pretty cool.

[darthdan]

I've got that one..... but why not rerelase the jedi council; chambers as an online exclusive complete with all the council members from one of the movies  for those who don't have it

[jokabofe]

Because it would only appeal to a certain number of collectors, and not to everyone, since a lot of people bought those sets the first time. Personally, I wouldn't buy it again. And I'd have to think there are others like me who wouldn't. So then Hasbro would turn around and say "See, playsets don't sell". Then again, they can do that/say that with the Lars Homestead, too.

[jedibrian77]

It would also be really expensive if the whole set was together so they probably wouldnt sell very many based on the price point

[jokabofe]

That's true too. Last time it was... six sets I think, and each was around $15? So with today's "inflation" to $24, that would mean they would probably charge close to $150 for that many figures and the playet. Yikes.

[Trooper JerTej]

Lars Homested?! Why make that?  The only real s&$t that popped off there wasn't even in the movie. That set was as useless as warts on a rats ass. Who the hell wanted the tatooine senior center!!! And that gives Hasblo an accurate picture that playsets don't sell. What's the next playset their going to give us " To see if playsets sell"?  TPM Sio Bibble's Private office playset?! No, That Homestead was a wash, True it appealed to some but overall it was non issue. Non relevant to the playability or collectability <-- (I just made those words up to prove my point). of the Star Wars Toy line. The collectors are who buys these toys toys not little Jimmy Boogers and Pee Scented Petey. 

[Darth Spice]

THE latest:

1) It is known far and wide amongst collectors that a Hasbro Wal-Mart Star Wars exclusive is going to be inconsistently distributed. For example, in Portland, OR, I saw the 2009 Droid Factory sets ONE time at ONE store, and only 3 of the 5 sets were available.

In some parts of the country, the WM SW exclusives are overabundant and easy to find and in other parts, NONEXISTENT.

Realizing that Hasbro has little to no control over this problem, I will skip to the next question and ask why, exclusive after exclusive, does Wal-Mart continue to get some of the better exclusives?

We know that you get your money up front once the products ship to the retailers, so it's not really *YOUR* problem, but this continues to be a source of frustration for a lot of kids+collectors after we see something previewed at Toy Fair or Comic Con and then NEVER find it in the stores. Is there anything that can be done about such an inconsistent, horrible, careless treatment of your great product line?

Wal-Mart is, by a good margin, the #1 toy retailer so it stands to reason that we would partner with them on many of our great exclusives. Wal-Mart has a lot of data which they use to identify the stores that will be better performing and use that as a base for their exclusive distribution. However, a desire for increased distribution, as relayed to us by the fans via this Q&A and forums, is something that we constantly relay back to Wal-Mart.  They are considering some changes, so that is good news.  As to the Droid Factory, all five sets were shipped in the exact same quantity in a shelf display, so the comments about only 3 of the 5 showing up are troubling.  Is it possible that someone else beat you to them in your area?  In any case, it is something that we would really like to address and will be working with Wal-Mart again on the overall exclusive distribution strategy.

2) I have a question on three figures in particular. A) Sometime late last year in a QNA, someone had asked about an "ultra" artculated stormtrooper. Your reply stated that the first you would make was an Episode III clonetrooper. B) Earlier this year, again in a QNA, someone had suggested a "battle damaged" General Greivous from the Clone Wars Series, with removable legs and a broken mask. Your reply was something to the effect "wait till Comic- Con". C) In Star Wars Insider # 107, a prototype of Darth Maul from "Visionaries" was pictured. I was surprised that nothing was mentioned on that at Comic-Con. So, what is the status on these figures? Are they (still) going to made? And what format may we see these characters in?

Thanks for the follow-up, Troops.  The ultra-articulated Stormtrooper is actually coming as a Sandtrooper, with the new Wal-Mart exclusive Dewback. As for the Grievous, we're still hopeful to see an update like this but he has yet to find his way into the lineup.  Finally, the half-cyborg Darth Maul from Visionaries, with the cool lower torso, was a scratch from our coming pack line.  The good news is that he *will* be coming out next year as a Comic Con exclusive (still in the Comic Pack format but with a special treatment). The second figure has yet to be announced and we'll save that for an update next Spring.

3) Now that  Hasbro has "supposedly" went around to some stores in some areas and removed the "peg warmers" of Yarna, Trinto Duaba, etc. - how long will it be before we can expect those figures to ship in the Legends line?

It is not "supposed" - we *did* have our legions of retail folk pull back a number of slower moving figures including Yarna, Ak-Rev, the Organas, and Cantina aliens in order to remove them from retailer inventory and stimulate shipment of new waves. They are being destroyed and will never ship, in any form, again.  Was the comment about Legends just poking fun, or did you think we actually repacked poor-selling figures onto new cards?

[Trooper JerTej]

Uh Hello? What do you consider the Non-sought for, Non wanted, shows up like a herpe, Repacked over and over again Ewok thron C3P0?

[jokabofe]

did you think we actually repacked poor-selling figures onto new cards?

That's a joke, right?

[Trooper JerTej]

That's what I'm saying, I must wear an a&$hole on my face, Were we poking fun, DUH!!!! 

[Commander Ando]

With their response to question number 1 (Thank you to Spice for including it and all the troopers that supported my question), it sounds like there's been LOTS of b*tching throughout the country if they're already looking at working with WM to fix their crappy distribution issues.