Last year, the Four Horsemen revolutionized the toy industry with their FANtastic Exclusive project. Okay, maybe that's over-stating the situation a bit, but it really was something new. Fans voting on their figure every step of the way? It had never been done before.
The end result was Xetheus: Champion of Mynothecea. And it was good. And then came The Mynothecean Six, store-exclusive repaints. And they were also good.
But die-hard fans were concerned about the shipping costs. Paying freight to seven different companies? That's a lot of dough. To counteract that, as a treat for their board members, the Horsemen offered 150 complete sets through their online shop, Store Horsemen. Some fans got a set, some fans didn't, and that was that.
Now, fast forward a year. It's time for the new FANtastic Exclusive. This year it's Ramathorr: Captain of the Anitherian Guard, a big elephant warrior. And again, there are exclusive repaints, though this time they're different animals, as well. And once again, the Four Horsemen are offering a complete set of the Anitherian Nine, but the fans are up in arms.
The number of sets is smaller this year (100 vs 150), and the preorder is being run a little differently. Last year, it was open to the entire board on a first-come, first-served basis. After the orders were taken, there were enough sets left over that it was opened up to everyone. All the board members who wanted a set got a set.
This year, however, the Horsemen changed things up. The pre-order ran all weekend, and everyone's order was "accepted." Once all the orders were in, the Horsemen began figuring out who would and wouldn't get a set, based on length of time as a board member and number of posts.
This royally pissed off the board members. And understandably so - you really want to get shut out of a cool toy because somebody is a bigger spammer than you are? But all weekend long, every post on the FANtastic Forum has been about why this process is fair/unfair, how it could have been different, and how they think it "should" have been done.
You know what, guys? Stuff it. You're mad because you're not guaranteed to get a set of figures. You can talk all you want about it being "unfair" or "wrong" or whatever else, but what it boils down to is that you want the set and you're mad you might not get it. Hell, I'm worried myself, and I was, like, the 16th person to join the board.
I'll admit, I'm personally in favor of whatever system will ensure I get my set. And if you're honest with yourself, that's the system you support, too. Not because you're evil, or greedy, or a scalper, but because at the end of the day, you getting a toy you want is more important to you than me getting a toy I want or him getting a toy he wants. After yours is assured, then you start to care about everyone else...
And now, some more OAFEry:
yo - Elephants on Parade
Last year, the Four Horsemen revolutionized the toy industry with their FANtastic Exclusive project. Okay, maybe that's over-stating the situation a bit, but it really was something new. Fans voting on their figure every step of the way? It had never been done before.
The end result was Xetheus: Champion of Mynothecea. And it was good. And then came The Mynothecean Six, store-exclusive repaints. And they were also good.
But die-hard fans were concerned about the shipping costs. Paying freight to seven different companies? That's a lot of dough. To counteract that, as a treat for their board members, the Horsemen offered 150 complete sets through their online shop, Store Horsemen. Some fans got a set, some fans didn't, and that was that.
Now, fast forward a year. It's time for the new FANtastic Exclusive. This year it's Ramathorr: Captain of the Anitherian Guard, a big elephant warrior. And again, there are exclusive repaints, though this time they're different animals, as well. And once again, the Four Horsemen are offering a complete set of the Anitherian Nine, but the fans are up in arms.
The number of sets is smaller this year (100 vs 150), and the preorder is being run a little differently. Last year, it was open to the entire board on a first-come, first-served basis. After the orders were taken, there were enough sets left over that it was opened up to everyone. All the board members who wanted a set got a set.
This year, however, the Horsemen changed things up. The pre-order ran all weekend, and everyone's order was "accepted." Once all the orders were in, the Horsemen began figuring out who would and wouldn't get a set, based on length of time as a board member and number of posts.
This royally pissed off the board members. And understandably so - you really want to get shut out of a cool toy because somebody is a bigger spammer than you are? But all weekend long, every post on the FANtastic Forum has been about why this process is fair/unfair, how it could have been different, and how they think it "should" have been done.
You know what, guys? Stuff it. You're mad because you're not guaranteed to get a set of figures. You can talk all you want about it being "unfair" or "wrong" or whatever else, but what it boils down to is that you want the set and you're mad you might not get it. Hell, I'm worried myself, and I was, like, the 16th person to join the board.
I'll admit, I'm personally in favor of whatever system will ensure I get my set. And if you're honest with yourself, that's the system you support, too. Not because you're evil, or greedy, or a scalper, but because at the end of the day, you getting a toy you want is more important to you than me getting a toy I want or him getting a toy he wants. After yours is assured, then you start to care about everyone else...
And now, some more OAFEry: