Interview With Toy Designer Emiliano Santalucia

Discussion in 'Transformers News and Rumors' started by SilverOptimus, Nov 6, 2019.

  1. SilverOptimus

    SilverOptimus Movie News Monster Moderator News Staff

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  2. Windsweeper II

    Windsweeper II Banned

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    The third year of Cyberverse already? 
    I hope they do something new and more creative next year then. 
     
  3. Maximus Danz

    Maximus Danz Trying to achieve something

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    Hmmmm..... The Idea of Cyberverse ending soon I find a bit hard to believe, I don\'t know why I feel this way, the line just feels like it still has some energy left. If it is true, I hope they build off Cyberverse.



    Also, Holy SHiT! 3 years?!?!?! Where has my life gone!
     
  4. T-Hybrid

    T-Hybrid Gnodab Kidult (He/Him)

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    We are sooooo close to an epiphany on what drives the "GEEWUN!" mentality.
     
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  5. Blam320

    Blam320 Assembly Inventor

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    It's frankly insulting that these guys claim it's too hard to keep children's attention nowadays, especially with how strong Rescue Bots is. Could it be that they actually need to invest time and effort to make quality content targeted at children 8 and up? Something that will actually capture their imagination and engage with them, as opposed to treating them like they lack imagination entirely?
     
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  6. bellpeppers

    bellpeppers A Meat Popsicle

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    It's not as if we're alien oddities.
     
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  7. T-Hybrid

    T-Hybrid Gnodab Kidult (He/Him)

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    ...Except they're not wrong. There's a TON of competition for kids attention, especially young kids. In an age where you can stream whatever your want when you want, how do you ensure they don't jump to the next thing?
     
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  8. Blam320

    Blam320 Assembly Inventor

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    Like I literally just said, you create something that engages with them and doesn't treat them like somehow lack an attention span.
     
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  9. FAKER II

    FAKER II Cheap Repaint

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    People have nostalgia for what they grew up with. That’s not some giant epiphany.
     
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  10. T-Hybrid

    T-Hybrid Gnodab Kidult (He/Him)

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    I'm talking more about the "stuff Mom threw away..."

    There's something to the mentality that we couldn't have this when we were kids but now we can because our parents aren't here to stop it.
     
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  11. Smasher

    Smasher HUNKY BEATS

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    Possibly off topic, but was there not a better picture of the guy to put on the front page?
    He's looking at me like he just found out I slept with his wife or something.
     
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  12. Blam320

    Blam320 Assembly Inventor

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    Let me rephrase things. I'm inferring that Hasbro is currently working based on the assumption that children in today's environment either don't or are somehow incapable of focusing on a story for any decent length of time. It's why Cyberverse is so "dumbed down" compared to other shows, and why episodes are only 11 minutes instead of 22. They treat most children as if they don't have an attention span or capacity for imagination to speak of, foregoing complex stories and characters in favor of something that's over and done as quickly as possible, making the most of this hypothetically short attention span before the child switches to something else. I would also argue that's why Cyberverse toys are so focused on intrusive gimmicks that compromise the toy's overall play-value.

    If this was true, Rescue Bots wouldn't be nearly as popular as it is; each episode is 22 minutes long, and while the toys are definitely dumbed-down it's a deliberate move for that age group. Rescue Bots competes directly with the likes of Paw Patrol; it has 22-minute episodes and it does very well for itself. I argue that Hasbro is working based on a flawed model, and if they bothered to put time and effort into creating quality shows for their normal target audience - akin to, say, Beast Wars, Animated, and Prime - and put forth similar effort into the toys they would see a better turnaround in that demographic.
     
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  13. Hanzkaz

    Hanzkaz Well-Known Member

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    Actually, for me, it's 'toys that I always wanted but didn't actually exist back then'.

    Basically, as a fan of the Transformers stories and characters, I was a bit disappointed growing up in an era where they were represented by 'bricks', (even more) tiny Dinobots, undersized combiners - and it took me ages to accept that Ironhide's face really was a sticker.

    Classics/Generations was a dream come true for me. I'll happily get (decent) updates of the Unicron Trilogy (especially the Armada toyline - preferably without the gimmicks, and Energon Optimus ) and Beast Wars characters, as well.
     
    Last edited: Nov 6, 2019
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  14. Max Tower

    Max Tower Well-Known Member

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    Cyberverse is something i'm not really qualified to talk about - but there is some concerns that those writting it are not "Story first", But I won't elaborate here - as well yeah it's a Transformers Board and 'yeah' the list of forbidden topics is like the epic of gilgamesh in length.

    But lets just say someone a bit further away in tone from the writing teams of She Ra might be appreciated ; though knowing Hasbro lately I don't expect miracles.

    As for the growing older younger issue - there is an easy way around this and that is making something "good" that can pick up older people (even adults) Beast Wars, Transformers Prime - even Armada to some extent managed that (and some of the others I suppose).

    My personal preference / suggestion is to make a decent Videogame based on the abandoned Universe Designs and make a show based on the core Characters that is a direct off-shoot / sequel to Transformers Prime (with or without continuity to nu-RID) as then with a decent game and decent (no kiddy) mainline toys generations toys backing it they can get that broader coverage then they can still make 1-step changers and the like for the little 'ens.

    I think they are stepping all over themselves as it is - they are starting to annoy some collectors with their 1984 over and over again thing now.
    There is things they make and don't even push at all like Botbots and Rescue Bots and the Upper end of Rescue Bots is being lost as the try to push the kids into RID/Cyberverse like offerings.

    But surely Rescue Bots does prove if you make something with a cartoon that has characters in it people enjoy then you can farm it for years and not have to automatically kill it off in 3 years or less.

    Oh and their 3 year cycle thing is going to depress me if that means they are planning to auto-kill Botbots - i'm to invested in those little pleasures to see them kicked to the curb like that.
     
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  15. GizmoTron

    GizmoTron Roobaticon Commander

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    Rescue Bots and Paw Patrol are for preschoolers, though, that's not the demographic that apparently is causing trouble. The guy is only stating the truth from the creator's perspective about the toy market: most kids nowadays are dropping toys much much younger. You used to have them until they were 12, now unless you're LEGO you're lucky to see them past 10. And with so much other noise out there vying for the remaining kids' attention it is hard to build a completely new and engaging franchise with the same ole' tired Transformers story (while simultaneously having to keep trying to sell to the aged collector what they want which is updated figures of the same ole' tired Transformers story).

    Besides, brand refresh is not new, it's a tried and true marketing trick. I mean I agree Beast Wars, Animated, and Prime were all fun and (mostly) well written, but even they only lasted three years/seasons before the new thing came along, too.
     
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  16. Blam320

    Blam320 Assembly Inventor

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    Animated was killed for reasons beyond "kids these days," Beast Wars and Prime each got a sequel series. Not really a valid comparison.
     
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  17. Dinobot Snarl

    Dinobot Snarl Well-Known Member

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    Some of you guys are suggesting that kids can be as interested in toys as we were back in the 80s and 90s.  Things are very different now than they were back when we were younger.  Game systems now require subscriptions, fortnite is sucking all the money from all the kids at $20 per skin think about that for a sec, there\'s also the problem with peer pressure.

    My stepson, the ten-year-old in my house, he won\'t even look at transformers because I guess some kid told him it\'s for kids; then think about Apple and iPods the kids are pressuring each other into getting these products it takes the money away from toys.  You can see the pressure when you go to the toy aisle I remember a day when transformers took up a whole aisle and GI Joe took up another aisle now we\'ve get maybe two columns in a aisle.  

    Some of us has to come to the realization that the most loyal fans have been here all along and those are the ones that are spending the money it\'s not kids these days, and I think Hasbro\'s preparing themselves for the day that they may not even be on store shelves that they may have to sell directly from the website kind of like He-Man, they already went through this with Gijoe. 

    So basically don\'t get frustrated if they focus on G1 because it sells; because right now not a lot is selling compared to what they used to sell.

     
     
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  18. Hanzkaz

    Hanzkaz Well-Known Member

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    At least know about the 'three-year thing now'. Gives us a better idea how long some toylines are likely to last before the next one kicks in.
     
    Last edited: Nov 7, 2019
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  19. bellpeppers

    bellpeppers A Meat Popsicle

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    No... it's more like "this is the figure I wanted but didn't exist when I was a kid".
     
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  20. Terradives

    Terradives Well-Known Member

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    I’m dumb founded by this guy’s words. If you make quality shows that will drive sales.
     
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