Hero Factory 2012

[Mesonak]

My friend Kristian did a redesign of that foot :-)

Front, with that one sentence you made my day :D

If I can just get my hands on Toxic Reapa, that one pair will be all I ever need. I have several pairs from BIONICLE sets of old, and nearly all of their joints have cracked. But so far, not a single broken HF socket.

Thanks very much for sharing this information; any chance the transparent head piece the heroes use will get a similar redesign?

-Mesonak

[Kalhiki]

Yay! New Shadow Matoran feet. Still hoping it's not a Jetbug situation, though. I'm happy, but I don't want to get my hopes up.

Then again, since Reapa's a small set, if earlier shipments have the old feet, I could buy another one once they make the transition to the new feet. Then I'd get all those lovely parts to MoC with.

Kalhiki

Edited October 22, 2011 by Kalhiki

[Aethersprite]

My friend Kristian did a redesign of that foot :-)

Thanks Front! That one comment of yours turned a "I'll consider buying" into a "bought on sight" for Toxic Reapa.

Yay! New Shadow Matoran feet. Still hoping it's not a Jetbug situation, though. I'm happy, but I don't want to get my hopes up.

Then again, since Reapa's a small set, if earlier shipments have the old feet, I could buy another one once they make the transition to the new feet. Then I'd get all those lovely parts to MoC with.

Kalhiki

Same here. I got Jetbug with the old sockets.

Anyway, after staring at the HD pics on my phone in my free time, I finally noticed the shield piece on Rocka and Breez is actually 2 pieces attached to a Y joint, when I previously thought that it was just one piece. Cool.

EDIT: Woah! I just noticed Breez has white forearms. Now the white thigh armour pieces don't look so out of place anymore!

Edited October 23, 2011 by Lockon Stratos

[Aanchir]

Yay! New Shadow Matoran feet. Still hoping it's not a Jetbug situation, though. I'm happy, but I don't want to get my hopes up.

Then again, since Reapa's a small set, if earlier shipments have the old feet, I could buy another one once they make the transition to the new feet. Then I'd get all those lovely parts to MoC with.

Kalhiki

Or, if we're very, very lucky, the new feet would show up through Pick-A-Brick (either online for greater accessibility or in LEGO stores for better prices).

This definitely improves my hope for a new Glatorian head piece-- if not immediately, then at least somewhere down the line.

[Studs Not On Top]

Here’s my official report on HF 2012:

This series looks really awesome. It’s cool that several villains are breaking out of Hero Factory itself (I can see Black Phantom rampaging through the Assembly Tower now). I like how many themes are introduced at once, similar to the first HF wave. Now the heroes are given specific upgrades for their solo missions. I don’t like the size differences in the heroes—the larger sets look really good but awkward compared to the 2.0 design. I wonder if there will be a movie for this wave.

Rocka: So cool. I didn’t know what to think of him at first, but he’s really grown on me. I love the color choices and that they included trans-lime. He looks mechanical, and I’m very pleased with that (it adds more detail to a normally smooth style). He’s got back armor! The weapon is awesome; I love the ammo running from his back to the launcher. The hero core really suits him. I’m also glad they designed a honeycomb shield that comes from his right arm. Rocka might be my first choice.

Breez: Also cool. I like the new armor but wish she didn’t have it—she looks too muscular now. Again, I like the shield and back armor. The new launchers are a big improvement over their wimpy predecessor. Her red and white parts look nice with the green; I also like the two-toned sword. It’s either Breez or Rocka—I have Nex so I feel compelled to get his love interest. :)

Furno: Nice colors, I like the silver arm. I think his engines are executed well and a nice twist to the standard builds. I wish he came with another weapon, but I guess his price-per-parts ratio couldn’t allow it. A nice set, my brother will be happy with him.

Evo: A neat little set. Really buffed up compared to this year’s heroes. I like the yellow-with-gunmetal color scheme. If you look closely you’ll see he has recolored upper arm and leg bones. The helmet looks cool. Evo is my bro’s favorite character and his first choice.

Surge: It looks like there’s too much going on here. The colors are horrible and I wish his arms were blue. IMO the blue blade clashes with his body. I still don’t know why he has that silver armor. The only reason I’d get him is to redesign him as a self-MOC.

Black Phantom: This guy is cool. Nice colors, great build, a big improvement over Fire Lord. I don’t mind the titan build—if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. The weapon is wicked. The launcher’s pretty creepy. I think he’s worthy of the price tag; if I have enough money I’ll pick him up.

Splitface: There’s not much about Splitface that makes him unique. I really like the concept and the color placement. He looks like the brute of the group. I just wish he had something different.

Toxic Reapa: I love this little guy! Reapa’s got an original torso build that looks great. I’ve always liked black and lime together. His face and weapons are very cool. He’ll definitely be my first villain.

Jawblade: This set is so crazy I like it. A shark with arms? Why not. The spikes and blades make him look pretty dangerous. The Furno swords are a good recolor. I love the non-human build and can’t wait to see how he’s put together.

Thornraxx: I like this guy. His name doesn’t even bother me. A unique build is always welcome. Great design and color scheme. A cool looking set overall. He’ll be my bro’s first villain.

Nice lineup for next year; hope these are out by December!

[Metalshadow]

Thanks very much for sharing this information; any chance the transparent head piece the heroes use will get a similar redesign?

I am curious about this as well.

[Play With Fire]

My friend Kristian did a redesign of that foot :-)

My life will be complete once the Glatorian heads get remolded too ;D

Great news about the foot piece though. I might just get Toxic Reapa so I can use his feet on my revamped Waspix.

[Metalshadow]

I am glad to hear about the feet too. However, I really, really wish they would remold the clear Glatorian head as well. That would push my purchasing interest on all the new sets from a "maybe" to a "definitely".

Edited October 23, 2011 by Metalshadow

[The Mugbearer]

I has noticed only now that these handcuffs has no solid structure and made of chainlinks, like Maxilos's.

[Rocketbilly]

Yep. Unfortunately, Lyi and I got the one with the old joints.

Me too! and I only got mine, say, just over a month ago.

Regarding the Glatorian heads: if they are produced with new joints, wouldn't this be the first time such a joint would be produced in a transparent colour? I know that transparent elements are made of a different plastic, so maybe that will be something that we need to take into consideration when discussing this possible change?

[Metalshadow]

Me too! and I only got mine, say, just over a month ago.

My Jetbugs all had the old joints as well.

Regarding the Glatorian heads: if they are produced with new joints, wouldn't this be the first time such a joint would be produced in a transparent colour?

I believe so, yes.

I know that transparent elements are made of a different plastic, so maybe that will be something that we need to take into consideration when discussing this possible change?

Perhaps, though I personally can't see why it would be that big of a barrier in the design process.

[ZORK64]

Just out of curiosity, how often do the joints of the Glatoran heads actually break? Because all of my heads are still intact.

[Rocketbilly]

Just out of curiosity, how often do the joints of the Glatoran heads actually break? Because all of my heads are still intact.

I've not had one break yet, either but I'm always absurdly careful with those kinds of joints, so maybe I'm not the best person to answer from personal experience; however I've read reports from around the web that they do indeed break often enough to be a problem.

[vexorian]

Just out of curiosity, how often do the joints of the Glatoran heads actually break? Because all of my heads are still intact.

I've only broken one of them yet and it is not nearly as bad as the other pieces.

I would like the piece to be updated because it lacks visual compatibility with HF 2.0.

[dviddy]

I have four broken Glatorian heads, and three broken Av-toran heads.

[Mesonak]

I have four broken Glatorian heads, and three broken Av-toran heads.

Glad I'm not alone; I count 7 and 4 respectively.

Not rough with them either, just normal use.

-Mesonak

[Rocketbilly]

Glad I'm not alone; I count 7 and 4 respectively.

Not rough with them either, just normal use.

-Mesonak

is there any colour that seems to be the most breakable? just wondering.

[Mesonak]

The commonly used trans-red eye-piece seems to break more than most, but those are also available in the greatest quantity, so meh.

-Mesonak

[Bfahome]

I've had three Glat hands (and one Glat head) break, if only because I've been deathly afraid of taking them off of anyone else.

[vexorian]

Hands a whole different matter, I remember getting two Bulks 1.0 so that I could have two silver glat hands, they broke absurdly quick. Overall getting two Bulks 1.0 was the worst waste of money ever, because most of its joints broke and the pieces that are not joints are not very useful.

Overall most of my glatorian hands are broken, I wish HF hands were available in bulk.

Edited October 23, 2011 by vexorian

[dviddy]

The commonly used trans-red eye-piece seems to break more than most, but those are also available in the greatest quantity, so meh.

-Mesonak

Pretty much, though two of my three blue Glat heads are both dead. Which makes me a sad panda.

[Mesonak]

Pretty much, though two of my three blue Glat heads are both dead. Which makes me a sad panda.

Same with me; those came in so few sets, too. Going to have to order some more off of Bricklink at some point.

-Mesonak

[The Crazy One]

I have about twelve Glatorian Heads, and two Av-Torans but none have broken. And it's not like I don't use them either. Guess I'm lucky.

[Phantoka Kopaka Nuva]

I have 2 blue Glat heads and one of them is nearly broken. Plus 2 green Avtoran heads, which are both broken. Talk about being unlucky.

[Aanchir]

Hands a whole different matter, I remember getting two Bulks 1.0 so that I could have two silver glat hands, they broke absurdly quick. Overall getting two Bulks 1.0 was the worst waste of money ever, because most of its joints broke and the pieces that are not joints are not very useful.

Overall most of my glatorian hands are broken, I wish HF hands were available in bulk.

Well, the online Pick-A-Brick offers all colors of Hero Factory hands at 0.33 USD apiece, which is cheaper than any of their prices listed on Bricklink. And unlike Bricklink, PAB orders aren't limited in quantity (at least, never in my experience).

The discussion here seems to be sort of getting off topic; I wonder if it would be good to have an "Official Broken Joints Topic" for discussing which joints from which sets people have broken.

My most recent broken joint disappointment comes not from a Hero Factory set (thankfully, I've been lucky with getting the new-style joints in all of mine but Jetbug), but from a Ninjago set-- yesterday one of my skeleton legs broke, which is extremely sad because those have very nicely-designed and well-reinforced clips, and I expected better of them. This was just by way of regular attachment and removal.