LEGO Star Wars pricing
Posted by CapnRex101,
LEGO pricing remains consistently controversial, particularly concerning LEGO Star Wars because certain subjects return repeatedly which permits direct comparison between products.
I believe the standard of LEGO Star Wars designs has improved throughout the last two decades, exploiting the growing selection of elements to achieve greater accuracy and detail. However, such improvements have naturally entailed increased prices, approximately reflecting the rising quantity of pieces within each set.
Rumours indicate that the 2021 range will interrupt this continued growth, reducing the size and accordant price of certain popular vehicles. This decision has dismayed some LEGO Star Wars fans because designs seem likely to regress, although I believe benefits might emerge.
The Price of Improvement
LEGO Star Wars frequently returns to particular vehicles and locations which are exceptionally popular, almost invariably introducing improvements when compared with the previous design. This pattern has proven remarkably successful throughout the last 21 years, although making these improvements usually requires more elements and therefore increasing prices.
Of course, inflation also plays an important role in these rising prices. Something which cost $29.99 during 1999, for example, may now be expected to cost approximately $46.85 based upon information from the US Inflation Calculator. This has evidently influenced LEGO prices, although I think the relationship between the number of pieces and cost appears stronger.
This chart documents the growing size and price of each minifigure-scale depiction of the T-65 and T-70 X-wing Starfighters. The orange line traces the number of elements in each set while the red line follows their price. As you can see, their respective growth has remained relatively consistent since 1999, with the only notable exception being 4502 X-wing Starfighter that was packaged with Yoda's hut so contains more pieces than might otherwise have been expected.
Arguments could certainly be presented concerning whether such growth is justified. After all, 7140 X-wing Starfighter from 1999 offers comparable play value to 75273 Poe Dameron's X-wing Fighter but cost one third of its counterpart from 2020. The level of detail has evidently improved but one may reasonably question whether those improvements are worthwhile as prices continue to increase.
Upper Bound Pricing
I believe such questions have become particularly important during recent years. While price increases have generally been gradual, they have potentially reached an upper bound which begins to restrict accessibility to certain products. The ambition, size and price of LEGO sets targeting adults may continue to grow but I think an intangible limit exists to what the broader market can sustain, regardless of growth in the number of elements.
That limit has clearly changed over time. Products costing $99.99 once represented the most expensive sets within LEGO's retail portfolio. However, they have subsequently become fairly common and four such models have been released during 2020, excluding Ultimate Collector Series and Master Builder Series sets which traditionally target older fans.
75212 Kessel Run Millennium Falcon became available during 2018 and is actually the most expensive retail set ever produced for LEGO Star Wars, costing $169.99. This chart displays 75212 Kessel Run Millennium Falcon alongside other models of the Millennium Falcon at the same scale, again encapsulating the growth in both size and price which has become evident during the last two decades.
Nevertheless, these increases will not necessarily remain sustainable and LEGO's apparent decision to reduce the part count and associated prices of their 2021 selection suggests that their internal assessments have reached that conclusion. Resetting prices should allow more people to purchase LEGO renditions of the most notable Star Wars vehicles, perhaps without compromising their play potential.
Pricing Unlocks Potential
Rare examples do exist where prices have been reduced in the past, the most memorable of which is probably 75058 MTT which succeeded the superb 7662 Trade Federation MTT. That regression was overwhelmingly unpopular and I can envisage similar disappointment when the 2021 range is officially announced, even though I consider the change justified.
Nevertheless, benefits might result from this decision. Beside the obvious reduction in prices and broadened accessibility to certain subjects from Star Wars, I think new possibilities could emerge. Jens Kronvold Frederiksen's admission that an updated TIE Bomber is currently unlikely based upon its required size and price elicited disappointment among many LEGO fans.
75211 Imperial TIE Fighter cost $69.99 when it was released during 2018 and an accurately scaled TIE Bomber would almost certainly cost more, perhaps approaching $99.99. There is potential for such a model to succeed in my opinion, although I understand why LEGO might feel reluctant to produce such an expensive set if there is insufficient interest among children.
Should the price of the TIE Fighter be reduced, it seems substantially more likely that LEGO would be willing to release an accompanying TIE Bomber. The same consideration might be applied to other subjects which would previously have been prohibitively expensive, perhaps expanding the potential LEGO Star Wars selection in the future.
What is your opinion of the rumoured reduction in size and price across the LEGO Star Wars range during 2021? Let us know in the comments.
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59 comments on this article
A lot of the star wars play sets have gotten in my opinion too large. a smaller tie fighter is actually more accurate to the source material . Also for kids the increase in normal sets costing larger amounts prevents them from getting the sets. A $40 tie fighter a kid may got for a non special occasion or a $60 X wing. When these sets start getting close to the $100 mark each however, then it becomes much less common to get the sets. and with the ... severe lack of affordably priced Star Wars sets they're losing a large market.
I too think the change is justified. It could easily be my nostalgia talking, but I absolutely LOVE the older LEGO Star Wars sets from the 2000s. They seemed to focus more on being a fun model than being perfectly accurate, and LEGO has definitely gone the other way since then. Also, I agree with @Glacier_Phoenix that the sets nowadays are too large, anyway (*cough* AT-RT *cough*). All in all I think this is a great change.
I am firmly of the belief that the main line of retail Star Wars sets are for kids, and should thus be reasonably affordable. I remember the pain of not being able to get any sets above £40 because my parents deemed it too expensive. All of my sets from pre-2015, before I had my own money, are below £40, with a mere handful of exceptions that came as birthday or Christmas presents. I considered 6212 x-wing a "big" set and was lucky to have it, even though it was only £45. The 2018 one (75218) was £90! It's not even any bigger! It's partly that the Star Wars licensed stuff is particularly overpriced (the Hogwarts sets are £90 too and much better value), but it's mostly the higher standard for detail and quality that causes them to densely pack sets full of pieces that don't equate to a 'large volume of stuff' as Jang would say.
Anyway, on the subject of the smaller-scale, lower-priced sets, I'm pretty tired of AFOLs complaining about sets that come out that are clearly designed for kids and that I would definitely cherish if they came out when I was a kid. For example, there's no need to complain about the smaller-scale x-wing that's supposedly coming out next year. Did you guys not get the one from 2 years ago? Or the 2012 one? Same for the upcoming TIE Fighter; They did a good one a couple of years ago. Lego doesn't have to make every single set good enough for you to buy. They are for kids. AFOLs get enough UCS and D2C sets as it is.
I just see most licensed sets get smaller while their price grows. You cannot even judge by part counts anymore either, considering how many small parts are used to try to make LEGO sets look more like Kenner sets.. The first LEGO SW sets had a charm to them. They were Star Wars, but they were LEGO as well. Now it seems like LEGO wants to make 'Kenner play sets' more than LEGO play sets.. Also miss the 'yellow' LEGO SW figures as well. LEGO is its own universe and has its quirks (like with scale). I'm sure LEGO makes a lot of money off of these, but I think this push to make them more like other toy line playsets is also a small part to why people clamor for classic space.
So, are these LEGO toys that happen to be Star Wars (old style) or Star Wars toys that happen to be LEGO (modern expensive)? While I appreciate good detailed design as much as the next AFOL, if I really wanted realistic Star Wars toys I'd still be buying Kenner/Hasbro toys instead of LEGO...
If it leads to new vehicles that haven't been done for a while if at all and the quality stays good, then I'm okay with it. The last few X-Wings have been too much alike to warrant doing another with just a re-colour for example, I feel they have topped out on the design and could do with taking a break. Again I understand the need to have the iconic X-Wing available for children growing into that level of Lego play, but they could just keep the same one on the market longer rather then churning out "new" versions every other year. That way they can use that time and build slot for something different, especially with the live action TV or something from the Clone Wars animated show. I know that's finished and I never watched it anyway, but a new Star Wars ship that's something other than the same 6 or so that keep getting spat out would be welcome, even if I don't know the context of it within the Star Wars universe!
The Star Wars prices today are simply unjustifiable, and a decrease in price should not affect the sets because they're clearly overpriced for their standard right now. A dropped price should be a correction, not a sacrifice.
@TheMikeAwakens said:
"I too think the change is justified. It could easily be my nostalgia talking, but I absolutely LOVE the older LEGO Star Wars sets from the 2000s. They seemed to focus more on being a fun model than being perfectly accurate, and LEGO has definitely gone the other way since then. Also, I agree with @Glacier_Phoenix that the sets nowadays are too large, anyway (*cough* AT-RT *cough*). All in all I think this is a great change."
I think I agree with you. I'm an AFOL but I can't justify £100 for stuff that I used to pay £40 for when I was a TFOL. If they do indeed make smaller X-Wings and Ties again I'd be v happy
I think this is great. Bigger isn't always better. 7657 AT-ST from 2007 looks better, IMO, than either 75153 or 75254- the front of the head should be sloped, not vertical. And the Slave 1 that came with 75222 Betrayal at Cloud City is another great example of what can be done with fewer pieces.
I'm so pleased that I've never seen a Star Wars film. I don't think my bank balance could handle that on top all the other themes it gets bled dry with!
I am continually losing interest in collecting and building Lego sets. Most 18+ sets do not appeal to me and if Lego now choses to more and more simplify playsets, well, then that's it for me.
The 3 mid-range SW sets for 2021 that I have seen are certainly a smaller scale and look reasonably fine. But not being a huge SW collector I am perhaps not the best critic. Unfortunately the prices arent great.
I would gladly pay $99 for a TIE Bomber.
Personally not bothered. After exiting my dark age in 2015 I started buying lots of SW sets. But in the last 2 years the majority have become less and less appealing or interesting and somewhat repetitive. I’ve even started selling some small sets and going forward I’ll probably only buy UCS.
@mkrey said:
"I would gladly pay $99 for a TIE Bomber.
"
Honestly, even a $89.99 for a well made ship would work.
I honestly don't know what to think of it, most of my sets from the last few years are from the larger scale, so for me I personally enjoy the big X-Wing and TIE Fighters. Playing Star Wars Squadrons recently and getting a sense for the size of those ships via viewing them up close in the customization mode, really makes me think that the current scale is correct. The same thing happens in real life whenever I visit an air museum and am surprised at how much bigger the planes (particularly modern stuff like the F15 and F16) look up close.
But Lego Star Wars has already made strides in using smaller scaled sets to better capture the subject matter. Look at the recent Republic Fighter Tank and compare it to the one from a decade prior, the old one was bigger just for the sake of being big, the new one by being smaller is actually much closer in scale to the ground attack vehicle in the video games it came from. I think the AT-RT would also certainly benefit from being scaled down, the last few ones look kind of silly due to their size. Not to mention smaller sets are more affordable, which is a win win.
I dunno, I guess I can always just MOC TIE fighter's to the larger scale of the past sets to add an Interceptor, Defender, Reaper and Bomber to my collection and let Lego's official sets focus on the new smaller scale which is better for new fans and kids. That is the wonder of this medium, its flexible and with the parts anything is possible.
@Glacier_Phoenix said:
"A lot of the star wars play sets have gotten in my opinion too large. a smaller tie fighter is actually more accurate to the source material . Also for kids the increase in normal sets costing larger amounts prevents them from getting the sets. A $40 tie fighter a kid may got for a non special occasion or a $60 X wing. When these sets start getting close to the $100 mark each however, then it becomes much less common to get the sets. and with the ... severe lack of affordably priced Star Wars sets they're losing a large market. "
I definitely agree. The same goes not just for kids, but for me. I got 75172 when it was $20 off, and would have loved to get an X-Wing or TIE Fighter, too. But I never saw 75211 or 75218 go on sale, and $70 or $80 was well above what I was comfortable spending on one, especially when I could get a more accurate Bandai model for much less. The 4+ versions were not too appealing.
So I’m also excited! A midway point between a pricey, hyper-accurate X-Wing or TIE and the 4+ version is promising.
Perhaps this could result in the return of classic Battle Packs, with accurately scaled AT-RTs and BARC Speeders. I'd personally love to see a Trandoshan battle pack with a Pteropter hover pod.
rumored X-wing (red 5 and Dodonna) and Tie fighter coming in 2021. Rumor price is 50 bucks so we might see those changes then
EDIT: as the Master Builder / UCS sets increase, the younger kid aged sets must also increase. there is no middle ground for star wars now
I’m hardly going to stop buying the sets generally, but my biggest problem with the Star Wars theme is the constant repetition of the same ships and constant ignoring of the Prequels, Rogue One and Solo. I’m considering doing a bit of a study at some point on just how many times and how often TLG regurgitates the same vehicles - I acknowledge X-Wings etc are recognisable for kids but maybe just use slightly less slots for them or produce one set for longer? Kids watch the Prequels and Clone Wars too - I know because my young second cousins are Star Wars mad.
Reduction in scale is fine by me as it brings prices down and, as a minifig collector, that makes my job easier at RRP or on the secondary market, as long as the quality of design is still there. I just want a better variety of vehicles and locations across the range.
I still love the large scale sets - but I’ll only buy them if the subject matter is interesting and they offer a considerable improvement on something previous. For example I didn’t buy the Episode IX Millennium Falcon or the 20th Anniversary Slave I because they didn’t offer anything good enough to me personally in comparison to previous models of the same vehicles.
Just yesterday I put together set 928 Galaxy Explorer from the early '80s.
I haven't assembled it in at least 20 years (lack of parts). It seemed so large back in the day but compared to modern sets it would barely be medium sized.
In my opinion, too many modern sets are larger and more detailed than they actually need to be.
@guachi:
To a kid, it's huge. It also _was_ large...for its time. As the overall size of LEGO sets has increased, and the kids who grew up with them have grown into adults, perceptions have funny ways of changing when you're not paying attention.
I agree with a lot this article is saying. I've really enjoyed the quality, detail, rigidity and overall 'heft' of my SW sets the last few years, but it really does come at a cost.
There's also the question of whether I need ALL of my collection to be at such a high fidelity anyway. I skipped over the previous UCS Sandcrawlers, but happily purchased the new smaller one ASAP, because it was plenty good enough for me. On the flip side, I absolutely love the older, detailed MTT and can't imagine trading it for the smaller version.
I do have to refute Jens Kronvold Frederiksen's claims about a TIE Bomber though; saying there's no room in the market for it based on an assumed cost is kind of silly when over the last 10 years they've sold us Shuttle Tydirium, Krennic's shuttle, Kylo Ren's Shuttle twice, Imperial Landing Craft as well as the TIE Striker. The shuttles in particular - while I love them, they've just bad guy space taxis if we're being honest. Hell, do the TIE Bomber and TIE Interceptor as a 2-pack, via DTC, just so me and others can shut up about it.
I would say that the new smaller sets gives me hope that a Bomber and Interceptor will get made in the near future, but - if they're weird and chibbi like the set leaks suggest, no thanks. Smaller and less detailed doesn't need to equal "completely out of proportion".
I'd echo the same sentiments that a price decrease to increase accessibility to the younger audience is a welcoming decision. Sure it'll make AFOLs irritated but they'll always complain about something anyway. I'm glad LEGO is starting to go back to its core audience and philosophy of "play" and not just "display".
I’ve fine with lowering prices, retaining size and retaining detail.
I’m fine with lowering prices, reducing size and therefore retaining detail.
But judging from the recent leaks, it seems to be more of:
Lowering prices, dramatically slashing part count, reducing size and therefore sacrificing detail and proportion.
On a brighter note, at least the TIEs and X-Wings will now be more scale-accurate to the system-scale (non-UCS) Millennium Falcons and Slave 1s.
@The_Rancor said:
"I’m hardly going to stop buying the sets generally, but my biggest problem with the Star Wars theme is the constant repetition of the same ships and constant ignoring of the Prequels, Rogue One and Solo. I’m considering doing a bit of a study at some point on just how many times and how often TLG regurgitates the same vehicles - I acknowledge X-Wings etc are recognisable for kids but maybe just use slightly less slots for them or produce one set for longer? Kids watch the Prequels and Clone Wars too - I know because my young second cousins are Star Wars mad.
"
Yeah I remember in 2008 with no new movies coming out, Lego jumped all in on The Clone Wars. It was kind of neat, seeing lots of cool one off sets like the V19 Torent or the P38 Magnaguard Starfighter or even the Umbaran walker turret thing... It felt like Lego was using the TV show to the best of their ability to create some variety in the Star Wars line.
Now here we are with The Mandalorian as the biggest hit in Star Wars in a long time and all we have got so far is one AT-ST recolor, a few BrickHeads, a battlepack and the Razorcrest? Its a shame Lego didn't give Mando the same attention they lavished on Clone Wars 12 years ago because we could have got some really unique sets out of that, although I hope Lego rectifies that in future waves. Imagine the Mandalorian coven on Navarro or the cantina there, or some of the bounty hunter ships we saw in the series. That New Republic prison ship could make a nice playset like the Rathtar Escape did, or be a ship model in the same vein as the smaller Star Destroyers are. Even the Outland TIE would break up the monotony of regular TIEs by including that folding wing function which would take some impressive changes to the design to make function.
We also have the Galaxy's Edge stuff that has so far got one set with the newest Resistance Transport. I'd have thought that more stuff from the theme park would be worth exploring, bring in a Star Tours Starspeeder or Hondo's transport solutions. Just some cool small location based sets like Doc Ondar's or Oga's plus a few more vehicles and it brings a new variety that isn't just repeating X-Wings over and over again to the end of time.
Don't get me started on how its high time to re-make the Ghost from Rebels and get another Zeb figure out there... Star Wars is a massive property and its shocking how much of it Lego ignores regularly.
Smaller starfighter vehicles would be VERY welcome. I feel that the TIE Advanced that comes with 75251 Darth Vader's Castle is perfect - it's in good scale with the minifigure, is not deformed like the micro-fighters, is highly swooshable, and on its own would have an extremely reasonable piece count/cost. No features are lacking when compared to the "full size" TIE Advanced sets and it still looks great. Adopting that approach for other ships would be wonderful!
The really interesting thing is that what cost the most for TLC when producing a set, is the box.
With my kid and doing so many of the Lego club meetings at the local shop I got to see what the children, anywhere from 6 to about 13, really like to build and play, seeing what they gravitated to, etc. Just a personal observation.
I know these aren't Star Wars, but think of sets with details, size and part counts of the Ninjago 9445: Fangpyre Truck Ambush, 9443: Rattlecopter, 9455: Fangpyre Mech, etc. Those sets were KILLER with the kids. Enough detail to look cool, parts count so it's not too long a build for them, a group of good guy figs vs. bad guy figs (which was another big part of it), and the main vehicle they loved to play and swoosh about. It fits in their hands to maneuver without difficulty or breaking but not looking like a duplo or a kiddie toy to them (very important as many don't want to be with the 'baby' toys).
It should be the models for the designers to emulate with Star Wars.
You CAN do smaller piece counts and still make them cool, detailed and playable.
Especially now with so many newer parts. It can be done to satisfy the kids and parents (the price ;) and detailed for the Afol to add to their vehicle collection.
I know it can be done and still be sturdy for play. Let's see how these go but the designers did such a good job with NinjaGo, just go with that philosophy to the Star Wars ships. They should allow Lego designers to do reinterpretations too of Star Wars vehicles. Not to stay exactly on model if Disney allows them too. Give it more style, more variety if they're redoing X-wings and Tie fighters. Would boost sales too since many collectors would want a variant styled vehicle in their collection.
Leave the perfect exact looking model for the UCS builds.
Can you imagine if Star Wars sets became 6-10" and you could interact with your playmate on a mat like we used to as children with our cars and planes! I think it's a brilliant idea if they provided a large range of fairly affordable toys again. And the increased supply of product would mean second hand/ charity shop becomes more affordable again too, benefitting even more people.
By the way, it’s all very well saying TLG have 18+ Star Wars set now for AFOLs, but that’s still only 2 every year. Normal release patterns suggest the January/Winter wave of any given year is generally smaller sets for Star Wars, so it makes sense the scaled down versions are coming in that wave. I expect it’ll be a mix though and we’ll see some higher level detailed non-D2C sets still, but perhaps not til Summer 2021. The recent AT-AT this year is fantastic and very detailed, but hardly a pocket money set for kids. I have to admit I’ve been in many (pre-2020) toy aisles when parents refuse to buy Lego Star Wars for their kids due to price even if they want a set, and essentially have to force them into choosing City or Ninjago due to no licensing fee etc. for the same sized set.
Also, if scaling down as a wider measure means we can get an actual Rogue One (ship) set then i’m all for it, but i’m not holding my breath.
That actually sound spretty ok to me. The recent sets have all been amazing and without new parts, it's hard to imagine how they'd improve. And even if they did, you have to draw the line at too many specialized parts otherwise it ceases being Lego.
The recent sets have been excellent, but almost too much so--I'm not spending $100 on an X-Wing for a 7 year old. I'd welcome something more in a kids' price range.
Interesting article.
BTW, based on the database data, are there any significant difference in price, of pieces, PPP, etc., before and after Lucas (or Marvel) joined the Disney family?
@darthsutius:
The Imperial Shuttle has a bit more significance than a taxi. It was more of a limo for Vader and the Emperor. And it was a spy insertion vehicle for Han's Endor crew.
@xboxtravis7992:
So, a funny thing happened during the aughts. When LSW debuted, it was really popular for a year, then sales slowed down for two years. It picked up again for a year, then sales slowed again for two more. Once again it picked up for a year, before another two-year lull. What these fluctuations corresponded to was the release of the prequel movies. When a new movie came out, it bolstered sales. When there wasn't anything new to watch, attention wandered. Clone Wars was a huge boon to them at the time, as it presented an ongoing series that they could hang the theme around, and which would continuously drive interest rather than just every third year.
With the sale to Disney, however, Clone Wars got the boot, the prequels got very little attention, and the focus shifted first to Rebels, and then the brief spurt of movies they shoveled onto the market before alienating their audience. Still, those movies really drove a lot of the focus because Disney expected their licensing partners to support them. The Mandalorian _is_ popular, but it's stuck behind a paywall where Clone Wars and Rebels were at least available on basic cable. A lot of these streaming series get talked up so much that people forget how few viewers they actually have. And streaming services aren't exactly forthcoming with their viewership numbers on original programming.
Like many others, I too have seen the 2021 set leaks for the X-Wing, Tie & Shuttle. While I’ve praised the small vehicles found in The Death Star, Darth Vader’s Castle, Betrayal At Cloud City and The Cantina, I am not interested in these upcoming stunted sets that are aimed at reducing pricing, without reducing playability. Why? Because they reduce the overall quality of the range, destroying the display continuity of system scale sets that we’ve all been collecting. In all honesty, the best (non-UCS/MBS) LEGO Star Wars sets that I’ve “purchased” in the past five years, were the LEGO employee gift, Xmas Wing and Darth Vader’s Castle. I enjoyed both, due to their ‘base’ and ‘vehicle’ concept. While Vader’s castle was within price range, the modern cost of a Yoda’s Hut with X-Wing, had it gone to retail, would have broken the budget for a system set, I am guessing. Based on 2021 system leaks, I am disappointed that the stunted sets also come with reduced numbers of minifigures. The XWing goes from 4 to 2 and the Tie goes from 4 to 3. Is this the way? Not for me. As I view innovative builds, across other themes, I begin to view LEGO Star Wars as one that has simply run its course and should be retired or reduced to a UCS with a variety of sets sprinkled here or there, until the license runs out.
I'm not an avid Lego SW collector. I pick and choose the sets that pleases my needs. I sometimes like the minifigures and buy it just for them, and use the parts in other MOCS and such. I think I have enough of the iconic sets, so I'm good . I do not mind not having the hyper realistic and to the scale UCS MF with meticulously detailed interiror. It would have been grand but it's ok not to have it,
too.
@PurpleDave said:
"The Mandalorian _is_ popular, but it's stuck behind a paywall where Clone Wars and Rebels were at least available on basic cable. A lot of these streaming series get talked up so much that people forget how few viewers they actually have. And streaming services aren't exactly forthcoming with their viewership numbers on original programming."
I hate to break it to you, but the Clone Wars and Rebels were stuck behind a much higher paywall called cable. At that time there was no streaming, so everyone was paying the high price for cable. However, today streaming is easily the way to go. I paid the same price for 3 years of Disney+ as I did for one month of cable service. The only reason to have cable these days is for live sports. The future of Star Wars (and Marvel and Mickey and...) is now on Disney+, especially since movie theaters are closed. Even if you don’t want to pay a monthly subscription fee, there is no reason you couldn’t wait until the season ends and then subscribe for just a month so you could watch all 8 episodes, that would be $8 for 6 hours of Star Wars that the whole family could enjoy, seeing a 2 hour movie will cost you $15 for a single ticket.
I have to say that this is a very welcome change. Lego Star Wars sets have gotten just way too expensive, especially in 2020. I had to have the Razor Crest so I bought that despite its price tag, but otherwise I’ve restrained myself from buying sets I may have otherwise purchased until they go on sale or I can find them used.
I’ve actually started purchasing lots of sets that are around a decade old as I find they are really just as good as the sets today and if you are patient can typically find them for much less than their original MSRP given they are used (of course there are exceptions such as The Ghost).
So long as the new sets are still sturdy and offer all the playability of the newer sets, I’ll be happy. Adding 50 more bricks each year to the same X-Wing or Y-Wing really isn’t necessary and doesn’t improve the set any.
Should sets become physically smaller as well I won’t mind. I actually pieced together the Slave I from Betrayal at Cloud City because I already had Jengo’s Slave I and just couldn’t bring myself to spend $100 on Boba’s. I love the smaller one as it is still large enough to look great and have all the necessary play features. Not to mention, buying a bigger house is a lot more expensive, so smaller sets that take up less space is a good thing!
On a side note, the comment about the Kessel Run Falcon being the most expensive set ever misses a very important detail, it does have an escape pod which adds to the size, but yes, it is crazy experience.
Some time earlier this year I was filling out a Lego survey with regards to a SW set I had bought. I saved my thoughts from the 'what can we do to improve' section. I think they make my point rather well:
"Not repeating the same ships over and over. If you're going to make a TIE fighter, make an interceptor, or a bomber. If you're going to make an X-wing, make an XJ3, XJ5 or StealthX (Legends) or make a Blue one (Rogue One, Blue Squadron) or Green one (Rebels, Phoenix Squadron). There are so many ships (rebel transport(ESB), mon cala ships(ESB+RotJ), nebulon-B (ESB+RotJ), Separatist vessels(Lucrehulk, Munificent, Providence, Recusant), Ventress's Blade fighter, Naboo Cruisers(chrome heaven), SPHA-T, RX-200 tanks, Geonosian Super Tanks, Republic Y-wings(Blue and Red), Republic cruisers(Venator, Acclamator, Arquitens, Pelta), other EU ships(carrack-class, dreadnaught-class, Eclipse, Lusankya, Bes'uliik))and locations(Coruscant alone has jedi temple, senate, imperial palace, Dexter's Diner; literally every clone wars battle(both space and ground), Order 66, Naboo(literally the most beautiful place in the whole SW universe, let the architecture designers go wild), and pretty much any other planet that's been mentioned). SW fans don't want repetitive stuff - they would rather shell out big bucks for high quality, accurate sets than for overpriced sets with low part counts and boring, inaccurate builds. I know you have to appeal to younger consumers, but AFOLs have money, space and time to take Lego seriously as a hobby - just look at Brickset's recent series of articles on Storage Solutions, there are people with tens if not hundreds of thousands of bricks and they have the money to buy more. Kids will always want LSW, and their parents will buy it for them regardless, but it is AFOLs, who have (in some cases) ridiculous purchasing power and an ability to say no - and you want them to buy everything the day it comes out, don't you?
This more adult style of set - designed to actually capture the moment rather than offer the most play features. More of this might make the Star Wars line great again (it really seems to have dropped off in the past 2-3 years), as fans want accuracy rather than play features. This is why Brickvault have been so successful with their instruction business, particularly for sets that you don't seem to be willing to make (TIE interceptor/bomber). The KoR ship in this new wave is a perfect example of a skippable set - aside from the figures, it is a poor representation of the actual vessel, and customers would likely have shelled out £20 more for a set with a full interior and accurate exterior."
Breathe.
Outside of the US, SW sets are usually so horribly priced that sometimes it ends up ridiculous. This trend keeps getting worse each year. So happy that I didn't start collecting them excluding some very specific minifigures that can be integrated in Castle or Pirates line...
SW is overall overpriced theme but my favorite. Most of my collection are SW sets. What I hate from LEGO is cheap out on minifigures numbers. When compared HP set within the same price range - example Poe Dameron's X-wing 4 figures vs Attack on the Burrow 9 figures for the same price. Lego could add at least 2 more minifigs for SW. Also Sith tie, besides the high price for 80 only 3 minifigures. Which is just unacceptable for me and for sure many fans as well.
I think Lego is making a conscious effort to shift the brand into something that is acceptable to buy at all ages. With the upturn in people buying sets to build during lockdown, I think they’ve seen how valuable the AFOLs are to their profits (hence the 18+ black box branding), but still realise they’ve got to get the kids on board early to get them interested potentially for a lifetime, hence the next phase of releases looking very unappealing to adults. I think you’ll probably mostly agree after the releases this year, there’s plenty of big expensive sets for the AFOLs to buy at the moment and now they’re pivoting to concentrate on getting cheaper simpler versions of good selling sets out to kids at prices that are accessible. I for one as an adult am glad the next wave doesn’t really interest me because I need wallet recovery time for the waves following on after!
Interesting article, the upper bound pricing is interesting, if Lego pitches the price right at say $80 for 800 pieces (seems optimal from your graph) and sells 1 million units in a country then everyone is happy from the kids to the shareholders. However, if there is upward pressure to increase the number of pieces to 4000 as bigger sets are more detailed and have the wow marketing factor, then if they only sell 50,000 units to those willing to spend $400 they will have revenue of $20m instead of $80m, even though the price per piece is the same. Although these numbers are made up, it does highlight that there are economic limits, especially with multiple sets at this price range available at once. Also these sets are more likely to be eventually discounted to increase sales which will reduce revenue further.
The reduction in detail for the benefit of price is a great thing. As AFOLs we often forget that at the end of the day, LEGO is a kid's toy, and should be sold as such. I think LEGO's decision to more clearly define products marketed at 'adults' with the 18+ label will allow this sort of thing to happen more, where mainline sets are made cheaper for kids but AFOLs can still get their fix with the UCS, MBS and D2C sets.
I wonder if we'll ever get a UCS Death Star.
Stop buying them, price will go down.
@CCC said:
" @sanders2221 said:
"SW is overall overpriced theme but my favorite. Most of my collection are SW sets. What I hate from LEGO is cheap out on minifigures numbers. When compared HP set within the same price range - example Poe Dameron's X-wing 4 figures vs Attack on the Burrow 9 figures for the same price. Lego could add at least 2 more minifigs for SW. Also Sith tie, besides the high price for 80 only 3 minifigures. Which is just unacceptable for me and for sure many fans as well."
Which two figures would they add, and how do they integrate into play with the X-wing?"
They could add 1 random resistance trooper and 1 ground crew for example or different pilot to switch. There are always a lot of possibilities with figures.
@alfred_the_buttler:
Streaming is a flawed format. It’s true that streaming is the fastest growing market, but that’s only because it’s a startup market. People were predicting that even Blu-Ray would be a dead format right now because Netflix is was growing faster than home video. But if you only have one customer, adding a second customer already gives you 100% growth. If you have one million customers, adding one customer is a rounding error, and achieving 100% growth overnight is unrealistic.
So everyone tried to jump on the streaming bandwagon, and Netflix lost a ton of content because everyone wanted to bring their catalog in-house. Disney still has a how-was-that-allowed-to-happen monopoly on content, and they’re still cycling it through their “vault” so you have to watch it when they decide to let you. DC, CBS, NBC, Amazon, Hulu, HBO, Apple, and probably at least half a dozen players have decided to try their hand at running a paywalled streaming service, and it hit the point where it costs more to subscribe to them all than it does to just get a cable subscription. This is not what people were asking for when they requested “a la carte” pricing models. But the more people subscribe to streaming, the more fractured the market will get, and the less desirable streaming subscriptions will become.
Netflix has zero loyalty to their existing customers. Viewership alone is not enough to get a series renewed. A show has to bring in new subscriptions each year to get renewed, and Netflix already has a high subscription base that’s running out of room to grow. For this reason, Netflix has cancelled more shows in the last year than most networks have on the air at any given time.
I don’t know what Disney’s track record is like, but if they want me to care about a series, let me watch it for “free”, or let me just buy a physical copy. Don’t try to rent it to me ad infinitum.
Without dropping the prices on these vehicles and keeping the builds the same (which has a snowball's chance in hell of happening anytime soon), I think scaling them down is a great idea. If these smaller models are any good I see a lot of potential here, and I'll probably pick them up. I have no use for a rainbow colored X-wing or TIE variant that appeared for one scene in a new movie or TV show that costs $79.99 plus tax - the classic vehicles at an affordable scale without a bunch of extra minifigures is exactly what I want out of this line.
I wonder what else they'll make in smaller versions if these are a hit. More OT fighters would be ideal but I'm open to ideas.
@shirhac said:
"I am continually losing interest in collecting and building Lego sets. Most 18+ sets do not appeal to me and if Lego now choses to more and more simplify playsets, well, then that's it for me."
Same here. I think TLG is flooding the market with way too many sets each year. I see it in my kids and their friends too. The interest in LEGO seems to decline year after year. It doesn't help that so many sets nowadays are way overpriced and when it comes to Star Wars in particular, many are just the umpteenth rehash of what has been done too many times already.
I for one by now have every Star Wars vehicle and location that interested me and none of the newer versions offer enough improvements to me to warrant spending even more money on just an update.
Plus, with many alternatives nowadays that offer sets I am much more interested in and that TLG is unwilling to produce anymore, I am more than happy with enlarging my extensive LEGO collection with sets by other manufacturers who offer both better value for money as well as (to me) more interesting subject matters/themes.
If we are talking about the idea of “less is more”, I’d be more interested if they just cut the releases by, I dunno, 28%?
Adding insult to injury, when TLG finally turn their attentions to making an iconic vessel from The Empire Strikes Back that people have been asking for for many years, they make it a ComicCon exclusive and when that was cancelled, they make it a US exclusive. I will not be paying whatever ridiculous scalpers price the Midi scale 40th Anniversary Nebulon B costs on eBay or Bricklink. Also, if the leaked picture of the 2021 £40 X Wing is what is being released, it will not be joining the collection. It just looks horrid!!!!!
The Star Wars and Marvel taxes are keeping me from diving in; fingers crossed the 2021 sets are better.
@CCC said:
" @sanders2221 said:
" @CCC said:
" @sanders2221 said:
"SW is overall overpriced theme but my favorite. Most of my collection are SW sets. What I hate from LEGO is cheap out on minifigures numbers. When compared HP set within the same price range - example Poe Dameron's X-wing 4 figures vs Attack on the Burrow 9 figures for the same price. Lego could add at least 2 more minifigs for SW. Also Sith tie, besides the high price for 80 only 3 minifigures. Which is just unacceptable for me and for sure many fans as well."
Which two figures would they add, and how do they integrate into play with the X-wing?"
They could add 1 random resistance trooper and 1 ground crew for example or different pilot to switch. There are always a lot of possibilities with figures."
Then they need to add something for those figures to do, much like in the original X-wing set 7140, increasing the part count and increasing the cost."
They could add easily more figures without adding additional mini builds. There is always possibility to add some figs that not require additional builds. And this does not change fact that SW sets are lacking the number of minifigs. Another example. First order AT M6 75189 - only 5 figs with 170eur set and with first order build you have more resistance troopers than first order ones. They could add without problem 2 more FO storm troopers to the set. There are lot of examples :)
As a teenager myself, I understand the problem of wanting expensive sets, but being unable to even think of getting them.
However, I do not believe that reducing the size of builds is a good option, or reducing accuracy either, as they become less to scale, and for someone who wants to create scenes out of Lego, a mismatched scale is the most annoying, and usually most impossible, problem to overcome.
I do not have an alternate solution to reduce the price, or if there even is an alternate solution, but I am personally happy with the current prices and sizes.
Having asked for, and received (via a dm), spoilers for the 2021 wave on the Lego discord server, i was disappointed by the odd scale, and reduced detail. What i would love to see is sets that integrate and build on the older ones, making them better, not making them worse.
Also, after reading some comments above, i agree: the Lego SW range needs more minifigures. There are many opportunities and ways for more minifigures to be included.
@GrandEmperorBinks:
6212 X-Wing Fighter was sold for four years. That's an unusually long time when some sets don't even last a full year. It did so on strength of sales, and (reportedly) the fact that TRU wanted an X-Wing in production because it was an iconic vehicle that kids always want. It retailed for $50. The next minifig-scale X-Wing, 9493, cost $60. This was followed by three (75102, 75149, 75218) that bumped the price to $80. Finally, 75273 topped out at $90. The piece count did go up a fair amount in that time, but the level of detail isn't appreciably greater for it. They may have overcompensated for this, but the X-Wing was getting priced out of range of the target market.
I think we are blessed that TLG produce SW sets. It is absolutely normal for a company that they try to make better and better sets everyday. Is it expensive? Yes it is, TLG is about profit. If you do not want to buy a large set then go and buy small one or do not buy at all. You can buy cheap pastic toys every toy shops. But if you want quality toys like LEGO you have to accept that it won't be cheap. Reducing details just beacuse of the price, never a good way. Do not complain buy LEGO SW till you can...
I think it's a good thing that they try to make more affordable SW sets. The last decade or so it sometimes felt like any remotely substantial SW sets is between 60-120 euro at least.
That said, I don't think they should stop making sets at the scale they do now. I don't know if Lego knows this, but there is such as thing as a PRICE RANGE. So far, they filled the lower brackets with microfighters of ships, mini ships, speeders or small locations. Super exciting stuff, because the major ships of each film or series are always near the highest price bracket.
I think Lego should make a subtheme focussed on affordable, but not chibi-fied versions of the iconic vehicles. A mid-sized range that is niether microfighter nor 100 euro display model. In other words, try to go back to the scale they used in the years of 1999-2006. Make it possible for non-AFOLS or spoiled rich kids to get an X-Wing or TIE fighter again, without having it be a once-a-year amount of money.
The classic space subthemes were great at this. Want a particle ionizer? You could. It still cost quite a bit, but it wasn't immediately nearing flagship set status or anything. The flagship sets weren't only bigger, but also had hidden compartments, stuff that you could detach, equipment. You know... playfeatures that aren't shooting functions or opening cockpits.
Compare the 2015 First order TIE fighter with a similarly sized space set. It is just a model of a ship with shooters. Or just look at the 1999 X-Wing and its compartments.
Make Star Wars affordable. But also make it more playable. Go beyond 'it's an X-WING'. That would make them worth more too.
I will buy whatever Lego Star Wars sets I think are good looking as long as there is a UCS tie bomber fans could/will be happy :)