Is new pricing keeping you away?

[steamwhistle]

Definitely a factor.

Before the price hike, I might see something which looks like it could be fun, and I'd buy it. I'd fiddle with it for a bit, and then let the offspring have at it.

Now they are too much for such casual fun.

[Collectingtoys]

Costs $10 in gasoline just to drive out to a Toys R Us or Walmart to be met with disappointment and even higher prices.

[wervenom]

Is new pricing keeping you away?

Yes

[RNSrobot]

Originally Posted by Sun Swipe Prime

Yep, I'm punching out for a lot of the new stuff now. It's not just about the price hikes. It's about bang for your buck. Compare a leader class from a while back to one now, and it's not even close. Back in the day I could literally beat someone to death with a ROTF leader prime. Today, it'd be like trying to hit someone with a ball of tinfoil.

I remember when I first started collecting again just after the first movie. There was a 30% off sale, and I got nine deluxe figures for around $100. I'd be lucky to get three now.

Charging more for less, I'm not playing that game.

Or even Literally Right now. Compare ss leader grimlock and slag to blitzwing or shockwave. Wtf

[Echotransformer]

Originally Posted by imfallenangel

Still the same approach since the last price hikes... I just plan to get those that seriously appeals to me.

The good thing about the present, is that with so much selection from the older stuff that's decently prices, IF you didn't miss the ones that exploded in scalper's pricing heaven.

I have managed to increase my collection so much in the last several years that I'm actually feeling content with all of the figures and characters that I have, and it would take miracles for me to rebuy any characters now... Blitzwing being a great example of how Hasbro can completely miss the mark and leave me happy with the TR version.

I had only a few figures on pre-order since the last increase, and now just one left (SS BB movie Arcee). Out of everything that's been announced, I look forward to see what's coming, but odds are very low that I'll end up getting more than maybe 1 or 2 other figures for the rest of the year as even some that may look decent, they are made too cheaply (transparent plastic painted over, too many quality issues, too many gaps, etc.) for the price/value.

Because of Hasbro going towards the cartoonish look and cutting corners like crazy while increasing prices, I hit the 3rd party market fairly hard lately and even then, never spent that much more IF even at all more than similar size/class figures but that are much better quality than Hasbro has done.

So yes, the pricing is absolutely killing my interest, but even more is the quality issues, the cheap feel that many figures have, the value that isn't there for the price... which includes the gaps and the lack of decent accessories. (heck, I just purchased 4 more kits to fix/finish 4 more figures so that they can be my "definitive" versions)

But also in the end, they just aren't giving much of anything that actually interest me or feels worth getting to add to my collection.

Funny thing is that I just bought a few more older figures on eBay in the last week, including today, for some that I missed out on many years ago, and even that's running out.

Originally Posted by Sun Swipe Prime

Yep, I'm punching out for a lot of the new stuff now. It's not just about the price hikes. It's about bang for your buck. Compare a leader class from a while back to one now, and it's not even close. Back in the day I could literally beat someone to death with a ROTF leader prime. Today, it'd be like trying to hit someone with a ball of tinfoil.

I remember when I first started collecting again just after the first movie. There was a 30% off sale, and I got nine deluxe figures for around $100. I'd be lucky to get three now.

Charging more for less, I'm not playing that game.

Yep, this is pretty much where I'm at...way more selective, both higher prices and less value (2-way pinch)...definitely taking a lot of steam out of the hobby.

[Napseeker]

Each time there's been a noticeable price jump, I usually just cut down what I buy by about 1/4 or 1/5 (to maintain my strict monthly budget).



I didn't mind the Seige/ERise price jump at the time because it came with a perceivable increase in the quality and likeness of the TFs.


However, yeah the subsequent price increases since then are now really putting a halt to any impulse buys, and for sure any higher-end TF (VOY or Leader or Titan) that isn't 95% perfect to my idealized version of that character.



A good example is Blitzwing at $80+ is making me think hard: he has a great robot mode, but his two other modes are trash IMO, so I may just wait until the price drops more steeply to maybe $55 or $60. If I miss out on him, oh well... just give it a few years and Hasbro will either release a better version of him, or re-release the same toy again in some "archive" line.


To sum: if Hasbro doesn't nail the character almost perfectly at these prices, it's a pass.

[Lioconvoy81]

Not really.

I only collect figures that I?m absolutely positive are going to be the definitive version of a character on my shelf for all time. That?s a pretty high bar obviously, but it?s my only bar. Doesn?t matter to be if a deluxe is $35 if it?s good enough to meet that criterion.

[Solauren]

Going by the Parameters I set myself when I started building my collection, I am nearly done anyway. I want one of each charaacter from original G1 (US, Japan, Comics) to and including what was on Beasties/Beast Wars (and maybe Beast Machines), and as close to G1 as feasible. So, the price isn't keeping me away.

[VicRav]

I am feeling a bit more picky because of the pricing. The combination of inconsistent stock availability for some figures and the increasing in prices is really sucking my desire to collect at times. I have various unpaid preorders with Gamestop and if some of those preorders don't get stocked I don't know if I could be bothered to hunt for them elsewhere - something I have done in the past.

[savagephil]

It is for me, I would collect the obscure character like Silvestreak but now, no dice, will focus on completing characters needed in the g1 series and bw. Legacy line wave one just the kickback, skids, dragstrip, bulkhead and iguanas for me.

Only things I will be chasing are the rest of the studio series leader dinobots, updated bombshell, shrapnel, minibots from season 1-4, rest of the predacons, maximals from bw, selects tentakill, overbite, if they release the headmaster Jr's, apart, already got a fangry. maybe updated versions of say bludgeon, thunderwing, needlenose, a monstructor, dezaraus and proper liokaiser and I'm done collecting, will have best representations of characters.

I know eventually they will all be released again with better engineering etc, where the wfc line will look like prime wars trilogy, but don't care. It will be suited perfectly for me.

Who knows what the prices of them will be down the road.

I guess best bet for a lot of people is pick in choose who u want and need. Unless u can afford it, then by all means

That blitzwing is a huge disappointment, but it will save me 90 bucks, the Titans return one is better, if I had the takara legends one who would ever need it. Only way I would by that is if on clearance, for 25 30 bucks like those siege magnus were on.

Hasbro is a playing with fire, with these increases and seems the quality is lackin, so far with legacy, we will see Tuesday if they step up their game. Studio series 86 line is where so far it has almost been perfect