AOE toys off to slow start. 50% of DOTM pre-release levels.

Discussion in 'Transformers News and Rumors' started by signals3, Jun 3, 2014.

  1. gothsaurus

    gothsaurus Evil Overlord of Doom

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    I have to say... looking back, if there was an excellent mold and design, I had no qualms buying it —*and buying it again. Take Inferno, Grapple, Hot Spot, Pyro, Artfire... That was a great toy, and I was overjoyed buying the various characters.

    I wish Hasbro would focus on that as a concept. Plan some great figures —*along with some smart retools. (Like Sunstreaker/Sideswipe, Prowl/Bluestreak, Hoist/Trailbreaker, Wheeljack/Tracks.) Then they can make their money back on a mold without putting out sub-par skimpy figures.

    Seekers. Datsun-bros. Troop builder insecticons/vehicons. Planned upgrades like Megatron to Galvatron, Soundwave to Soundblaster. There are a lot of repaints and retools I don't mind.
     
  2. WishfulThinking

    WishfulThinking The world has moved on...we've always said.

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    It's pretty bad, though, if the line is being projected to pull in less than the TFPrime toys.
     
  3. General Tekno

    General Tekno Lugnut Supremor & Arkivist

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    I'm not sure if the movies are as profitable for Hasbro as you think; merchandising is still where they make the bulk of their cash, I imagine.

    Especially when one considers how much movies cost to make, INCLUDING any actor bonuses and the marketing costs.j

    Also, I'm not surprised this seems to be a smaller sales amount anyway given it doesn't feel like it's getting the same push the last few movie lines did.
     
  4. clonemanager

    clonemanager Hunter

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    Shame on that Leader class Optimus Prime. It looks like back to the 2007 (movie 1 prime) that sucks.
    Also their effort to make kids happy?? those piece of junks those Power Battlers and 1step flip/mash changers... and those 12",16" statues.. non-environmental toys destined to the trash bins no one want for sure. Hasbro ! read my comment and don't ever do those again !!

    Despite of that, I actually bought more deluxe class... all dinobots look good to me..

    Btw, speaking of Marketing , I still recalled the Day movie 1's toy street day release... at least a dozen people gathered up with not just scalper like adults but adults with children... at the opening minute right outside a Target I went to. On Movie 4 this round. F*/Screw them... the retailers (multiple targets) don't even reset their bench yet... HAsbro must have spent less indeed....
     
  5. jestermon

    jestermon Well-Known Member

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    It's simple the stores buyers buy tons of these products
    product ordered by store gets shipped to their warehouse from Hasbro
    product sits in warehouse because stores and distribution centers don't bother to work together to use the multiple inventory control systems skus/item descriptions/planograms that cost millions to implement to evenly distribute and saturate all available markets with ample product
    product sits in warehouse
    product has poor retail and market availability
    product seen as bad seller
    product not ordered any more until the next movie toys get over ordered and the whole thing starts over

    Even if they make tons of money now things internally in a large company aren't based on the actual amount they make, for instance if they thought they would make x in sales by x time to them it's still a failure to reach a projected goal they were supposed to attain if x and x aren't met.

    It's the same with movies if the movie costs x to make the studio projects it needs to make x to fit their projections if the x isn't met in x amount of time it's considered a flop by the studio even if it tripled the amount a movie cost to make if the studio projected it would make 5 times the amount the movie is seen as not meeting it's quota and deemed a bad financial decision by the studio.
     
  6. deutscheben

    deutscheben Active Member

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    I think that initial article mis-stated what the 50% off is. According to this more detailed article on the report from the Globe and Mail, it's not 50% fewer sales than DOTM, it's 50% less shelf space at major retailers. Now, that will probably lead to fewer sales, of course, but let's get the facts straight before making proclamations about what this means for the line.
     
    • News Credit News Credit x 1
  7. Simian

    Simian Biscuits and Gravy....???

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    AOE Sales

    AOE figures = Crap IMHO

    I may purchase the Mountain Dew guy and that is it. This line seems to champion no articulation, much kibble, and quite frankly just poor design for the collector. If you're a child its great! I know that is the demographic. I get it. However, I think at the leader class level they should cater to the more intricate transformations. That's what makes them fun. I like a challenge, and I love the look of an excellently engineered TF!

    This stuff is not even on par with 83' in my opinion.
    As mentioned before classics/universe is a great middle ground.
     
  8. caitlindevi

    caitlindevi Sculpticon

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    the toys have been simplified to much...even kids can see that, and the parents are viewing them as too little for too much, hasbro needs to take heed and act fast to rescue this toy line before the movie hits
     
  9. vektsilver

    vektsilver Transorganic member

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    NO..... NOOOO,........ NO.............

    its because most of the toys suck. Leader prime HORRIBLE Leader Grimlock HORRIBLE dont blame the market blame for your horrible decision to lower detail and gimmicks to play to lowest common denominator and think its going to make money.

    Sure you made transformations easier but now its a shell former and we all hate that.

    Sure you have chrome paint apps finally but you got rid of the voice and light up effects.

    Sure its cheaper to make and easier to produce but the designs are mostly horrible in toy form.

    There ya go thats your issue. I picture myself being lewis black making this obvious rant.

    Only fig I bought was evasion mode ops it was pretty damn good and they skipped on the paint apps horriblly
     
  10. rattrap007

    rattrap007 One meme mutha f’er TFW2005 Supporter

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    can't say I'm surprised. I used to grab all new molds and such, but this line all I bought thus far are TWO figures. The two wave 1 dinobots. The rest of the toys look like overpriced garbage. Only things I really want coming out are non movie ones that actually look decent.
     
  11. Lungbarrow

    Lungbarrow Active Member

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    Well, I'm speaking with my dollars. My kids love the one steps and I love the generations autobots.

    However, to the article's point:

    These are all Hasbro properties, and hasbro has changed their toys since Captain America 1,
    Amazing Spiderman 1, and DOTM: articulation has been dumped across the board. My kids are under the age of 7. But I think most older kids, who get and ask for more toys, like action figures with more articulation than shoulders, hips, and neck. Even as a kid in 1978 I wished I could do more with my Kenner Star Wars figures.

    An article about declining sales can't be taken seriously unless it takes into account that hasbro has changed the complexity and detail level of their toys. And that prices have gone up.
     
  12. barrelks

    barrelks Captain Funtastic

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    As much as I dislike all the items that look like they should be chocolate filled, the gimmicky stuff, and the simplification/scaling down/lack of details on the mainline stuff, I don't think that Transformers will be a drag on Hasbro's toysales this year. Kids love dinosaurs, and while small, the mainline figures aren't quite as bad as they initially looked (at least the Dinos). Still won't drive me to buy any of these until I can find them on sale, but I will be picking up the movie cast for the sake of completion. Collectors may make up a small portion of the market, but we (and parents) often hold the checkbook in the decision making process.

    Have to say that this is the first movie that I haven't gone to Walmart at midnight and Target and TRU at opening the day that the figures are released, but that is from an adult collector's standpoint.
     
  13. whitewolfe313

    whitewolfe313 Well-Known Member

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    First off for Captain america toys. how many different Captain America toys can you have? They are all pretty much the same toy over and over again. The movie rocked though.

    The AOE toys just suck! The Generations toys are much better. I mean the leader prime figure can lay on his back and still looks like half a truck. The Leader Grimlock looks all stretched out and how ribs cover a hollow cavity. The toys are the worst I have seen in a long time.

    I wish they would sell no toys this round. maybe get Hasbr to get their heads out of their asses.

    I would bet money that the generations Roadbuster and Shark guy ( forget name) sell a ton. Be innovative and kids will see it and be interested. Kids don't give a shit about battle punch or on ester transform. They want cool figures that look like articulating robots and alt modes that appear real.
     
  14. Necro Prime

    Necro Prime Necrobot

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    My thoughts

    First off: $15 for a smaller and lightwieght deluxe doesn't fly with some of us. If they were ROTF scaled then we would be talking.

    Second: No big event or reveal. I've certainly haven't seen anything as big as other countries. And it is the 30 year anniversary. I Figured (pun intended) they would have gone bigger.

    And Third: Out here in the Midwest every store only put out 2 cases of deluxes each. (Trust me. I visit them QUITE often) They have been picked over and empty for at least a week. Maybe if they wanna sell move stuff, they should carry it longer than 2 weeks. :redface2: :tumbleweed: 

    And I don't buy that whole "the same characters that they already have" crap as the the only 2 returning characters are Bee and Prime.
     
  15. Jazz 4

    Jazz 4 Well-Known Member

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    look at masterpiece grimlock...FLYING OUT OF STOCK! mostly before it even goes in stock because employees buy them first...
    for 15-18 dolars a fig i cant bring myself to it i just cant....
    this makes me weary for generationa arcee and chromia, hoping they wont be cancelled.
    Hasbro needs to go back to the universe/generations concepts of 2006-2008 where wfc prime and bumblebee were awesome. where i was thrilled to go find drift thrust prime and bb. then soundwave megs darkmount dirge cliff skullgrin warpath thunderwing skyshadow thundercracker and wheeljack....I still consider generations thundercracker the last of a dying breed because after him was when everything went smaller and felt cheaper, and cost wayyyyyyyyy more.
    this 1 step trash didnt exist back in the day and hasbro made it work now your loosing profit because no one wants the stuff
     
  16. Spidertron

    Spidertron Terrorcon

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    I don't think the characters are as appealing this time around. Dark Of The Moon had Soundwave, Sentinel Prime, a zombie-ish Megatron, Shockwave too. No Dino toy though. :-( Age Of Extinction might have Dinobots and I'm sure the Optimus toys will sell well but there is just less to be excited about this time around. And that scene in the trailer with the menacing spacecraft above whatever city that is- that's too much like the later parts of DOTM to be interesting. Fuck you Bay, good riddance.
     
  17. plowking

    plowking I'm with ErechOveraker. Veteran

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    this is what happens when you make toys that suck.

    I've still yet to see any AoE stuff that's geared towards the "Adult Collector"
     
  18. hthrun

    hthrun Show accuracy's overrated

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    Yep, that's why I loved GI Joe and didn't care as much for the super hero and Star Wars figures as a kid...
     
  19. edgs2099

    edgs2099 Optimistically realistic. Moderator

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    I know we gots a lot of armchair Marketing guys here, but god damn. God damn.
     
  20. Spidertron

    Spidertron Terrorcon

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    Actually Killer Life, I think whitewolfe's criticism was quite constructive. AoE toys are a lot of fun? A lot of money for old rope more like. Only Hound looks good so far.