sporadic

Actually, they've talked about it a couple of times in the webinars and a couple of youtube videos. The basic algorithm is to first pick the highest rated set, whatever it is piece count wise. They eliminate from consideration all other sets in that set's theme. Then they look for high rated sets that also somewhat balances the piece count. Eliminate that theme too. Repeat. Note series 4 was an exception in the theme department due to other issues, which is why we got so many castle adjacent sets, but in theory, this is what they say they do. There's a lot of ambiguity with this algorithm and I think they leave themselves a certain amount of flexibility, especially for the later selections.

It would be good if at least the elves had different torso prints. Like maybe the pilot would have leather straps and buckles for safety in the balloon, or one of the workers has suspenders. Something to make each one a little unique. On the whole, I like it, but I don't love it. My tastes in WV sets tends more to the less fantastical, so this one was never going to be a favorite. I want to see more pics and/or get my hands on it before I can really decide on it.

It looks to me like a bin build (ie, build something out of just what you got in the bin). Like the colors and parts were chosen not by what would make a good set, but by what was available. Nothing seems intentional or cohesive. For example, make the front and back fenders the same color (either one) would be a start towards something that looks balanced. What's with the gold tile on the back fender? The front being mostly curves while the back is basically just a box also feels unbalanced. It's just clunky. Small seasonal builds can be pretty hit or miss with Lego sometimes. Sadly, this one is pretty much a miss.

They might even prefer it. It's better than the animals who tear the box open to check and then leave the damaged package if they don't see what they want.

Having multiple town homes or restaurants or hotels is not the same as having multiple town halls or fire stations, though. The former is fine, but the latter is where it might feel weird to some collectors. I don't think it's a big problem. On the subject of re-issue/refreshes, like the WV Toy Shop, I think that if they do it, that shouldn't take the 'slot' of something new.

Not to mention putting things under the water using trans plates. Hidden reefs, giant fish about to swallow boats whole and whatnot. Hard to work in a single brick height, but a really cool effect when done well.

They have gone into the selection process in detail in their webinars, on their forums and in a few youtube videos. The basic idea is that they automatically pick the set with the most votes first whatever the piece count. That set 'locks' whatever theme it belongs to out of selection for the other slots. They then look for high vote sets that balance the piece count in other themes. They aim for around 2500 pieces on average between the 5 sets. So if the first set(s) are large that locks both their themes and the size of later selections. The result is ~2 very large sets and ~3 medium/small sets. They have repeatedly requested more small sets and encouraged builders to target smaller piece counts, but I think that's a hard sell because bigger sets have big wow factor so likely get many more votes. So small sets have to be both excellent and have a piece count compatible with the other selections, which for obvious reasons can't be known before submitting. The method has changed over the series though. I think they refine it as they go. A notable exception is series 4, which because of some things outside of BL's control they ended up with multiple castle related sets in the final selection.

I am really pleased with the selections this time. A nice variety of interesting sets. Not all of them are for me, although I voted for most of them. I can recognize that they're high quality despite that* and for those who like those themes, I think they'll be well received. * In terms of detail and wow factor. We'll have to wait and see about build quality as they get refined.

This post makes me absurdly happy. The TI99/4A was my family's first computer and just seeing the title screen brings back so many memories. I never got into digital electronics until much, much later (like early 2010s), so I never got into the hardware underneath it, but now desperately want to. I am totally jealous.

Part of the purpose of the BDP is to promote digital building, so digital is required, but physically building a prototype is very much encouraged. When you submit, they do a review, looking for illegal or impossible building techniques. The review sometimes includes building the model physically if there are questionable aspects. Instructions from the builder are required to help them do the evaluation. If there are issues, they do try to help builders resolve them so they can submit for the current or a future BDP series. Should a model be chosen by the crowd vote, they revise both the model and the instructions before release to make sure the build experience is a positive one. Unlike Ideas, they try to have a light hand in any model modifications (only fixing egregious issues) so the builders original vision shows through.

I cut my software teeth on a TI99. Learned Basic, then Assembly, then C all before I hit college. Great little 'puter. Less compute than a car key fob today, but I used every bit of what it had for years after it was made 'obsolete' by the IBM PCs and the Amigas and the Macs. These days, my kids are doing Scratch and programming Arduinos and Raspberry Pis in Python. My 'uphill both ways' stories are all about the huge hurdles we had programming back in the 80s ("See, there was this little reservoir in the back that you put water in to drive the steam turbine....") Good times.

This MOC started out as a small park bridge for my Winter Village (render of that too, below). I wanted more outdoor 'furniture' than Lego has so far provided. A small decorative park bridge seemed like a good choice. I wanted something with a graceful curve to it, difficult in Lego (and doubly so since I curved both the walls and deck of the bridge in different directions). That was all I intended to do. Here's a quick render of the (still WIP) MOC: Anyway, when this round of BDP came around, I decided to enter. Not sure why, because I never had before. While I love castles and pirates, I didn't want to do anything in those themes. Too much competition. But I realized that a small stone bridge is complimentary to all those themes. And of course it works in contexts like City and trains (as scenery) as well. So I set out to make a version that was mostly compatible with them. I split it into quadrants half of it could be used as the entrance to a keep or palace, or it could be part of port city. This also allows a builder to add additional spans or widen the bridge as their particular layout needs. I also changed the season, because a snowy setting was a little too stark (and doesn't fit with pirates much at all). Then I populated with some minifigs and a few animals (I love brick built animals!) to set the scene and... well see below. Anyway, here's some pics of the resulting BDP entry. If you like, this is where I make a shameless plug for you to go and vote for it. It's outside of the normal themes that get a lot of buzz, so I can use all the support I can get. ;)

It feels to me like a lot are chasing what worked in previous waves. "Let's do another castle/fort/island with a skull" kind of thinking. It feels so self-referential. I haven't gotten through all the entries yet, though, so not going to give my top picks (other than mine, of course )

True, but that A. was in white and B. I don't have one.

Yeah, that's fair. Sea life other than "land animal with the tail end of a fish" seems rare on real world heraldry. I couldn't find any examples in my (minimal) searching. Even the fish-bodies were hard to find on sites not associated with fantasy and/or things like SCA sites where accuracy only goes so far. Of course, a lot of the shields in Lego already don't fit with RL heraldry in numerous ways, so that doesn't matter too much to me.