Hey 3rd chug might not be the biggest 3rd party market but it is a market! It's not stupid to specialise in a smaller niche with less competition.

I mean the panda isn't even good at eating bamboo, but it doesn't need to be as it's the only animal doing it!

Fansproject has a niche and thier good at eating bamboo! Er, I mean making awesome chug scale figures.

 

It's not even that small. A lot of 3P companies seem to make at least a few of their release CHUG scale (heck, Fansproject's whole thing back in the day was CHUG designed accessories and figures).

 

Ah the Warbugs, I'd pay hand over fist for those toys. I wonder if in this day and age some sort of direct to order system would work. Effectively a kick-start type thing where a company presents a design and then takes in the orders with payment and that's how many they'll make. Obviously they'd need a certain minimum but it would avoid the curse of overstock we often see with companies.

 

Biggest issue with this theory is how the market currently operates. How often do you see a new figure show up or a new render or even a close to final sample and everyone in the comments is saying, looks awesome, I will wait for review before I buy tho. This is not a preorder market any longer. If people don't preorder then retailers are not preordering and so manufacturers are guessing on how many to produce and with too many players currently in the market for 3p, no one is able to produce numbers they were 3 or 4 years ago.

With every 10 people who claim in a forum that they will buy that if it ever came out, only 2 of them will actually put their money up. This is the internet where anyone can say anything and not be responsible for the repercussions.

 

Sad but true. The initial reveal will always elicit 'wow I'll buy that!' but time passes and excitement cools.

I just really want those Warbugs  

 

I hear you! I would love to get my hands on those guys.

 

I'm curious to hear how the solicitations for Ocular Max's Artfire went, from the production side I mean. They got enough orders in to make the figure so I'm wondering if that might be a sign that it's a viable way to gauge interest / figure out production run size.

I too would have liked to get the Warbug figures, along with the other few F(x) figures that were teased, and the Monstructor repaints of Dinoking. And I mean, maybe we'll still see some of those, or maybe not.

 

This is pure scuttlebutt but I have heard that their CEO is absolutely insane. He will design toys, produce toys, pack toys ready for shipping, and then stick them in a warehouse for years, with no one having any idea they even exist. I have heard he's demanding to work with and prone to mood swings. Several years ago he lost all his employees save two. I don't know what the situation is like now, but I cannot imagine it being any better. They are not willing to adapt with the times. It is a wonder they are still around at all. But, you know, like I said...

He tell me.

 

I believe this is how 4H produces their Mythic Legions figures.

 

I might be late to the party, but did they ever finish up their version of Snarl?

 

I haven't seen any images or preorders (then again, I don't actively follow it).

 

It looked done when I saw it at TFCON Chicago. I'm hoping they release it this summer.

 

The scuttlebutt about the FP man in charge seems a bit mad, even if it does go with their track record. I'll wait for a credible source before I commit to it.

Their Snarl seems *so* good to go that I wonder why we're not seeing a release yet........which does go in line with the previously mentioned scuttlebutt :/

 

I literally just want Snarl to release and then I'm done with this company. I even have 4/6 of the Dinoking shit but I'm thinking about just quitting while I'm ahead and selling the ones I have. I only opened one of them and I wasn't impressed. I don't care for their headmaster stuff either; the official versions look better.

They should have done Snarl before the stupid fembots that no one asked for.

 

The Diaclone versions of the Dinobots have been TFCon exclusives. My hope is that Snarl will be released at the same time as TFCon this summer and that his Diaclone version is there.

 

4 Fans ... X Fans

FansProject for life. See you at TFCon DC

 

Based on the company's behavior, i could see the CEO being . . . eccentric. They just don't behave like a normal entity seeking profit.

 

I still don't get why people are so upset about the dino fembots

They're not bad toys, and considering they have a Snarl mostly done I REALLY doubt they'll just quit now. All that's needed is a little patience, most likely.

And this is EXACTLY why I think they did the fembots. A lot of people planned to drop them completely after Snarl. Makes sense that they'd probably try to throw in a few releases before then.

 

Keith keeps pushing FP to the back of the production line. Maybe they'll get a slot end of 2018  

 

This is untrue and total exaggeration. While the CEO a little different and profit is not always his goal it is no where near what is claimed here. That is internet for you.

Communication has always been the biggest problem, just ask anyone who was with FPC, and lack of communication and mind changes equal a company that is all over the place. Kind of simple as that.