BrickLink Designer Program Ongoing Discussion Thread

[Lego Tom]

Color me underwhelmed.

[TeriXeri]

Siege Camp is something quite unique, but 2600 parts is a lot for a collection of seperate "smaller" builds. 

Impressive detail but this is one of those cases where I think too much detail doesn't add "value" 

 

Seaside Market looks a lot more substantial, for 2100 pieces, and I think will be quite popular as it can be useful for Pirate fans as well (plenty of harbours had stone fortifications even well before the medieval era)

 

But this round is so far away, Feb 2025, sets would take like 6+ months to ship after that, so this is mostly a lookout for nearly 2026 stuff, and nothing out of the upcoming 15 sets really feels must-have to me.

 

Wildwest Train is probably the most interesting as something LEGO has not done in a long time, and Western seems to be a very BDP suitable thing as LEGO does not make anything related for it at all.

Falcons and Forestmen getting their own strongholds is a nice option, and a lion harbour too, but perhaps feel less special with Lion Knights Castle still on the market.

Siege Camp is definately the most unique Castle set ouf of this year BDP series 1-4, just again, needs to have really good price to appeal, 2600 pieces is still a lot for something that looks "small" in pure pictures (often reviews with videos can change a lot of perception of "value for volume of stuff" ) .

Edited March 19, 2024 by TeriXeri

[JohnTPT17]

Early reviews for Series 2 are starting to trickle out, if anyone is curious:

Notably, The Brothers Brick reviewed the Logging Railway, and while he loved the train, he had a lot of frustrations with the bridge, and ultimately would not recommend the set: https://www.brothers-brick.com/2024/06/01/bricklink-designer-program-series-2-logging-railway-a-trial-of-timber-review/

Tips&Bricks has a review for the Mushroom House, but it's pretty short, and uses several of the stock images: https://www.tipsandbricks.co.uk/post/2409-set-review-bdp-series-2-mushroom-house

Brick Fanatics has a written review and a video for Ominous Isle: https://www.brickfanatics.com/lego-bricklink-910038-ominous-isle-review

Alex Nunes also has a video for Ominous Isle, with some shots with Barracuda Bay for comparison: 

 

Tiago Catarino has a video up for Brick Cross Station: 

 

And, lastly, Solid Brix Studios has a video for the Ocean House: 

 

Overall, it looks like several of these reviews have issues with stability and/or buildability, even though many of the finished products look rather good. Notably, the designer for Wave 3's Camping Adventure left a comment under Alex Nunes' video nothing that "it seems that Bricklink may be putting more emphasis on stability for future series to make it a bit closer to Lego standards while maintaining the original model's detail," based on design recommendations he received for his set. So hopefully this will be less of an issue for upcoming waves!

As for me, I'm still probably just going to get the Mushroom House from this wave - I don't have the budget, space or interest for the other ones. Good luck to everyone else on the 6th getting what you want!

[RichardGoring]

Fair review from The Brother's Brick. It might be a case of just buying the pieces for the train. The idea of the bridge never really appealed to me, although I have small children and expect everything to be played with.

The rest still look great to me. Let's see if they all make it and/or how quickly they sell out.

[JohnTPT17]

Voting for Wave 5 is now out, and - I feel like this program is becoming very redundant. A lot of caravans, a lot of modular builds, a LOT of castles and peasant buildings, etc. I also think the piece counts on a lot of these are extremely high for how big they look - Like, a piece looks like it would be around 1000-1200 pieces, but it's over 2000, which will just inflate the final price. Like, it's a nice looking truck or vehicle, but it's on a baseplate or has side builds, which inflates the part count/cost. It's very odd, and it's frustrating seeing things I like, only to look into it more and balk at the part count (and, ergo, the eventual price).

Anyways, here are some of my favorites:

• Music Studio: Unique design, and it feels like they didn't inflate the part count very much - this feels like a $100-120 build for it's size.
• The Thieves of Tortuga: Yeah, it's super large and part-heavy, but it's one of my favorite pirate builds this round (though there's one I like more I'll get to later)
• Bounce Castle at the Park: Another one where I ask "where are the 752 pieces in this?", but it's a very unique and cute design.
• City Aquarium: It was a favorite to win last time, and it's back! Hopefully it will get through this time - it's a unique design.
• Mushroom Village: A companion piece to the Mushroom House (by the same designer, JonasKramm), and I LOVE THIS!!! Based on the comments, it already seems to be pretty popular. It's the charm of the Mushroom House turned up even more, with just as many charming details and buildings! (I think my favorite NPU is the wide skirt piece as a wash basin). If you like the Mushroom House, you'll love this... VOTE FOR IT!!!
• Popcorn Wagon: Another case of "wagon on a plate to increase count," but it's still pretty charming.
• Elven Garden: We've had gardens before, but this one goes vertical instead of horizontal, which helps it stand out.
• Pigs & Potions: Very charming and whimsical, even though the build looks very cramped. It's probably one of my favorites of the wave, though.
• Greek Island Resort: I mostly like this one because it's another good example of strong "size for the part count," though the overall design is still very well done. I also like the windmill section.
• Viking Longship and Viking Dragon Ship: The twin 400-500 piece Viking ships are once again up against each other, and both of them are still very meaty, very clean builds. I'd be happy to see either one go through.
• Kraken Attack: There are lots of ships, but this one really stands out to me for the titular Kraken. The ship itself also looks quite nice, if a little bit blocky. It also looks like the ship can be built in an "unwrecked" form, like Barracuda Bay, which I also appreciate.

Overall, my Top 5 would be Mushroom Village, Mushroom Village, Mushroom Village, Mushroom Village, Mushroom Village, and, if I could choose a sixth, Mushroom Village.

Okay, actually, my Top Five would me Mushroom Village, Kraken Attack, Pigs & Potions, Music Studio, and either of the Viking ships, with an honorable mention to the Popcorn Wagon and Bounce Castle at the Park. Hopefully that Mushroom Village makes it through, and I'm interested to see what else makes it!

[sporadic]

25 minutes ago, JohnTPT17 said:

Voting for Wave 5 is now out, and - I feel like this program is becoming very redundant. A lot of caravans, a lot of modular builds, a LOT of castles and peasant buildings, etc.

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 )

[RichardGoring]

Definitely agree that there is a lot of very intense piece usage there, and each wave makes me appreciate the elegance and efficiency of official LEGO designs. There are really lovely ones though, but a lot of repetition. I love the old woman who lives in a shoe and the mushroom village as interesting fairytale sets. I hope one of the more interesting castles gets through, something that looks a little different from what has gone before.

Oh, and I hope the adventure in Transylvania makes it, because despite the piece count, it looks awesome!

Edited June 3, 2024 by RichardGoring

[Retrocity]

Maybe I was just super busy with work and outside activities during the last voting round and didn't take much time to dig into some of the submissions, but I feel there are stronger submissions this time around.

Of course some themes have a lot of solid submissions, but which ones really stand out as something unique.  I'd also echo that it feels like I pull up some submissions to look at and the piece count is way higher than expected.  I would honestly love to see a round where the piece count is restricted to encourage smaller builds.

I liked the small viking ships from the last round, and it would be cool to see one of the ships from round 5 make it through.  I thought the Retro Ant Colony was a lot of fun and also a nice small build.  The Old West Mine with the dinosaur skeleton built into the outside of the mine is cool.

The Portal of Shadows build was really unique, though a larger set.  Love the necromancer and summoning portal just stands out.  Transylvania too, is quite the set and I absolutely can see it getting made.

I'd be really interested in one of the Pirate port towns as it would go well with the existing Pirate sets. 

Edited June 4, 2024 by Retrocity

[Yoggington]

I would agree there are stronger entries here - far more in there that I would buy (and mod) and far less chaff. I'm giving out a lot more 'love it' and 'like it' votes than in previous programs.

That said, the Bricklink interface has worsened. Every other time I set the filters, it returns me things I didn't ask for. I just hope my disappearing votes aren't reflected in the back end.

[JohnTPT17]

It looks like the set number for Ominous Isle is going to be 910038 - which lines up with last wave. That means that, if the site crashes again, the direct links for the sets will probably be:

• Logging Railway: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910035
• The Ocean House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910036
• Mushroom House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910037
• Brick Cross Train Station: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910034
• Ominous Isle: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910038

It's no guarantee, but those could potentially be helpful once we get to tomorrow. Good luck, everyone!

Edited June 5, 2024 by JohnTPT17
Corrected the set numbers, thanks to mark1991t!

[zinnn]

Are there any reviews out there of the Mushroom House set?

[The Reader]

7 minutes ago, zinnn said:

Are there any reviews out there of the Mushroom House set?

Have a look here - from the designer himself (albeit in German):

https://www.stonewars.de/news/lego-bdp-pilzhaus-910037/

[mark1991t]

8 minutes ago, JohnTPT17 said:

It looks like the set number for Ominous Isle is going to be 910038 - which lines up with last wave. That means that, if the site crashes again, the direct links for the sets will probably be:

• Logging Railway: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910034
  The Ocean House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910035
• Mushroom House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910036
• Brick Cross Train Station: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910037
• Ominous Isle: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910038

It's no guarantee, but those could potentially be helpful once we get to tomorrow. Good luck, everyone!

According tot LEGO's buildingsinstructionspage, you are not correct.

Logging Railway: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910035
The Ocean House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910036
Mushroom House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910037
Brick Cross Train Station: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910034

Ominous Isle: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910038

[JohnTPT17]

2 minutes ago, mark1991t said:

According tot LEGO's buildingsinstructionspage, you are not correct.

Logging Railway: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910035
The Ocean House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910036
Mushroom House: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910037
Brick Cross Train Station: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910034

Ominous Isle: https://www.lego.com/cart?product=910038

Good catch - I didn't think to look there! I just assumed that they would be in the listed order on Bricklink. I'll get that updated!

[mark1991t]

Series 3 is already there too

 

[enowicki]

Below is one of my entries to the BDP. I like to think it is unique, I call it: Outta this World Treehouse 

I kept the part count low (1,499) to make it affordable but with this design I wanted to do something different from the classic space designs. I have other entries but this is my favorite because I didn't plan it out, I just built it (digitally in Studio). I used colors I don't typically use or combine and I also included glow in the dark parts because my 5 year old really likes those and I think they work in the design!

https://www.bricklink.com/v3/designer-program/series-5/1549/Outta-This-World-Treehouse

[RichardGoring]

15 minutes ago, enowicki said:

Below is one of my entries to the BDP. I like to think it is unique, I call it: Outta this World Treehouse 

I kept the part count low (1,499) to make it affordable but with this design I wanted to do something different from the classic space designs. I have other entries but this is my favorite because I didn't plan it out, I just built it (digitally in Studio). I used colors I don't typically use or combine and I also included glow in the dark parts because my 5 year old really likes those and I think they work in the design!

https://www.bricklink.com/v3/designer-program/series-5/1549/Outta-This-World-Treehouse

That's on my Love It! list! It's such a wonderful design. Hope you make it!

[enowicki]

44 minutes ago, RichardGoring said:

That's on my Love It! list! It's such a wonderful design. Hope you make it!

Thank you for your Support! There are a lot of great entries 

[Yoggington]

On 6/3/2024 at 9:46 PM, JohnTPT17 said:

• The Thieves of Tortuga: Yeah, it's super large and part-heavy, but it's one of my favorite pirate builds this round (though there's one I like more I'll get to later)
• Kraken Attack: There are lots of ships, but this one really stands out to me for the titular Kraken. The ship itself also looks quite nice, if a little bit blocky. It also looks like the ship can be built in an "unwrecked" form, like Barracuda Bay, which I also appreciate.

I found myself giving a lot more 'loves' than last time, thirteen in total. Apart from these two you mention, I also went for the JonasKramm Viking ship - I have actually built that MOC before, so it felt due.

My other highlights;

• "Medieval": Adventure in Transylvania - unironically the best castle. I've a lot of 'likes' in the medieval category proper, but no loves.
• City/Modular: Opera House is the best for me, closely followed by the rather neat Art Factory and colourful Ice Cream Parlour
• Pirates: Neither Coconut Cape or Anchor Cove are perfect, but they are both pretty spiffing and sets I would buy as-is.
• No category: I'm a big fan of the Fisherman's House (on stilts), it's just the right balance of whimsical. Also the Adobe House is beautiful - I'm sure I've seen an earlier attempt on these forums before. The Canal Lock building is the rare set that intrigues me - I'd like to build it to see how it all fits together.
• Smaller set: Last but not least, the Beaver Refuge is doing a lot with just 400 parts. I could see that very easily being the smaller set to get alongside one large one. It would work lovely with the A-Frame cabin.

 

[RichardGoring]

26 minutes ago, Yoggington said:

• Smaller set: Last but not least, the Beaver Refuge is doing a lot with just 400 parts. I could see that very easily being the smaller set to get alongside one large one. It would work lovely with the A-Frame cabin.

 

Nice choices, but worth noting that the Beaver refuge is 398 unique parts, but 1943 total parts, so would likely be somewhere between $150-$200.

[Yoggington]

32 minutes ago, RichardGoring said:

Nice choices, but worth noting that the Beaver refuge is 398 unique parts, but 1943 total parts, so would likely be somewhere between $150-$200.

Oh hah, it seemed crazy - I see now.

[Legopard]

18 hours ago, zinnn said:

Are there any reviews out there of the Mushroom House set?

Yes! There are now three reviews of the Mushroom House:

• Jay's Brick Blog: https://jaysbrickblog.com/reviews/review-lego-bricklink-designer-program-mushroom-house-series-2/
• BrickNerd:https://bricknerd.com/home/the-road-to-the-mushroom-house-a-chat-with-jonas-kramm-6-3-24
• Tips&Bricks: https://www.tipsandbricks.co.uk/post/2409-set-review-bdp-series-2-mushroom-house

[RichardGoring]

4 hours ago, Legopard said:

Yes! There are now three reviews of the Mushroom House:

• Jay's Brick Blog: https://jaysbrickblog.com/reviews/review-lego-bricklink-designer-program-mushroom-house-series-2/
• BrickNerd:https://bricknerd.com/home/the-road-to-the-mushroom-house-a-chat-with-jonas-kramm-6-3-24
• Tips&Bricks: https://www.tipsandbricks.co.uk/post/2409-set-review-bdp-series-2-mushroom-house

I hope it sells out for you. But I hope it takes at least a few hours to do so, so I can get one for myself! 

[mark1991t]

Direct links are live at the moment. Already ordered mine

 

[Scoobaru303]

Is there a way of checking how many have been sold, more accurately than the slider thing ?