General Hidden Side Discussion

mh3490

When did this thread move into the exotic foods section??? Nvm it's a better topic than the Hidden Side 

Bumblepants

Last fall on our vacation to Norway I got the kids reindeer sausage which they liked and then I told them Santa would be late since they ate one of his reindeer. They actually took it pretty well because they realize all my jokes are stupid by now.

Also I guess this derail was my fault and I halfheartedly apologize. I like talking about meats.

eggshen

Bumblepants said:

I like talking about meats.

"What do you want to drink with your meat, Kowalski? 
Meat!
Get him a glass of meat, won't you Stimpy?"

Sorry, that's from an old Ren and Stimpy cartoon. It's what goes through my head whenever the word "meat" is mentioned. Or when someone asks anyone what they want to drink. So, in other words, a lot. 

Back on topic, I agree that this theme has no "wow" factor. If it included like big unique ghosts, that would be much better. I'm not sure how possessed people are going to track with my kids. I don't know if I want to put in their heads any thoughts about getting possessed by ghosts. It's kinda dark for a kids' theme. Maybe that's just me though. I'm totally fine with the inanimate objects becoming ghosts, that's pretty silly. Maybe I'll tell my kids that a spell got cast on the townsfolk and they are under someone's control. 

Gotta think with kid logic here:
Magic, definitely not real, but fun to imagine about.
Ghosts, people say they aren't real, but are they sure? And they can possess people, not just throw stuff at you? Definitely not fun to imagine about.

SumoLego

Could be worse - Haunted Lighthouses, Monster Helicopters and Ghost Mechs.

flord

^ I'm pretty 100% sure you just leaked Wave 2 of Hidden Side.

CCC

eggshen said:

Ghosts, people say they aren't real, but are they sure?

Have you not seen that documentary about those four guys that go round catching ghosts? Some women started doing it recently too.

And to get back to the topic of food, this goes great with a gamey casserole:

The more I think about it, the more I see Hidden Side as an in-house Ghostbusters / They Live cross over, with an app instead of those glasses.

Bitsyww2

Odeinoichus said:

So... Yeah, I think I really love the transformation aspects of the sets, that High School Transform looks great and reminds me of some of the Fun House 'horror' animatronics people cook up for thrills and chills.

That's what I thought when I saw the sets it's got that old school fun house "Gotcha" vibe!

Shib

Interesting that LEGO are doing preorders on this theme... 

https://brickset.com/article/44311/hidden-side-sets-available-to-pre-order

Even more interesting is that the preorders seem to apply to current GWP limits!

I'm working on a Hidden Side display for October so tempted to preorder some... 

SeanTheCollector

I wonder if someone is getting nervous about planned production quotos for this theme and would like the test the waters using preorders?

SumoLego

(It never hurts to create an artificial buzz for a new product line...)

Bumblepants

Really hoping this line is a hit and we get another year or two of sets. I doubt I will ever bother with the app aspect but the sets are really appealing.

Aanchir

SeanTheCollector said:

I wonder if someone is getting nervous about planned production quotos for this theme and would like the test the waters using preorders?

It's also possible that like some of the other sets they've had preorders for in the past year or so (Vader Castle via Amazon.com; Forma via Indiegogo; etc) they're simply trying to experiment with different ways of offering and fulfilling preorders: figuring out the best manner in which to do so, work out as many of the potential issues or drawbacks as possible, and gradually move towards having preorders as a more standard part of their sales model.

The more practice runs they get in on smaller lines like this one, the better prepared they'll be for offering preorders on sets or themes with ridiculously high demand like th UCS Millennium Falcon or some new theme that people are crazy about for one reason or another.

I know a lot of people leave comments on social media begging for LEGO to offer pre-orders, but another incentive for them to push in that direction is the same as one of the reasons they try to keep things from leaking too far in advance: they want to have stuff available for people to purchase as quickly as they can after it's announced so there's less time for the initial hype to die down and people's attention to shift to something else entirely.

I'm really excited for this theme both on account of the unique premise and setting, but also the characters. I am getting some pretty strong lesbian vibes from J.B, and Jack and Parker have some very nifty fashion sense. Not to mention the ADORABLE ghost dog Spencer!

It's interesting to see in the LEGO.com descriptions that a lot of the characters have first and last names, though there are also some typos that have stood out to me (like referring to Chuck as a "friendly passenger" in the train set when he's actually a member of the train crew, and not even listing the name of the actual friendly passenger minifigure, Paul). Hope they fix those by the time the sets actually get released.

Fauch

Bumblepants said:

Really hoping this line is a hit and we get another year or two of sets. I doubt I will ever bother with the app aspect but the sets are really appealing.

is it a big bang theme? it has the gimmick with the app kinda like nexo knights

SumoLego

As I recall, there were pre-orders for Overwatch sets, and some of them were backordered, briefly.

Bumblepants

I just noticed the 'Squids' basketball torso in the highschool set. A great mascot, will have to grab one off BnP

Bumblepants

Official pics for the small juice bar set have leaked. Looks really good for a $10-15 size model. I wonder why it wasn't shown along with all the others though.

Bumblepants

To answer my own question, apparently it's a GWP judging by the set number. I will almost certainly do whatever the requirements are to get ahold of this one.

mustang69

I'm very torn, I like this GWP (assuming it is one) but the only set I was planning on getting was the high school. Considering the price of the school, I was going to wait until double VIP points to get it but I doubt both promotions will coincide.

klinton

mustang69 said:

I'm very torn, I like this GWP (assuming it is one) but the only set I was planning on getting was the high school. Considering the price of the school, I was going to wait until double VIP points to get it but I doubt both promotions will coincide.

Honestly, double VIP points on 150$ is only about 15$, right? An exclusive promotional set that will only be available during a short window is far  more valuable, no? I don't think there's anything to be torn over. :D 

CaptainRogers

klinton said:

mustang69 said:

I'm very torn, I like this GWP (assuming it is one) but the only set I was planning on getting was the high school. Considering the price of the school, I was going to wait until double VIP points to get it but I doubt both promotions will coincide.

Honestly, double VIP points on 150$ is only about 15$, right? An exclusive promotional set that will only be available during a short window is far  more valuable, no? I don't think there's anything to be torn over. :D 

Not only that, but one would normally get half of those points any other day when buying from the Lego shop. So the upside of buying during double VIP points is $7.50 more, while this GWP is easily in the $15 range - and you'd still get VIP points for the purchase.

mustang69

klinton said:

mustang69 said:

I'm very torn, I like this GWP (assuming it is one) but the only set I was planning on getting was the high school. Considering the price of the school, I was going to wait until double VIP points to get it but I doubt both promotions will coincide.

Honestly, double VIP points on 150$ is only about 15$, right? An exclusive promotional set that will only be available during a short window is far  more valuable, no? I don't think there's anything to be torn over. :D 

Very good point, now just to get it past the boss.

Baby_Yoda

Perhaps the set is a VIP point purchase.

Aanchir

There are some really nifty Bionicle and Rock Raiders references in the bus set!

https://twitter.com/MrLegolover55/status/1154067018821169152

https://twitter.com/ProfBrickkeeper/status/1154102481120583686

The_Rancor

Ah, Legends of Mata Nui - I have great memories of making really important point and click discoveries only for my computer to crash under the graphics workload (or someone making a phone call). Going to be interesting to see other references around this line.

Lyichir

The_Rancor said:

Ah, Legends of Mata Nui - I have great memories of making really important point and click discoveries only for my computer to crash under the graphics workload (or someone making a phone call). Going to be interesting to see other references around this line.

You're thinking of the Mata Nui Online Game (which itself is great). Legends of Mata Nui was a planned PC game for 2001 that ended up cancelled before release. Recently some fans have obtained the unfinished, slightly buggy code for the game and have been working to try to mod it to what a finished state might have looked like, so needless to say it's very neat for the Bionicle community to get a shout-out like this!

The_Rancor

^ Yes I that’s right, I had always thought it had some kind of fancy subtitle but maybe it was just the Bionicle online game

Basty

Just came across this in a small toy shop

The_Rancor

^ Good spot! I actually walked past a small independent toy shop today and it had all the Hidden Side branding already - multiple cool-looking boards and posters plus a small shelf card to download the app, but no actual sets due to the embargo - doh!

I hadn't really paid much attention to the prices before because I didn't intend to preorder from TLG but they seem pretty decent and varied starting with the £20 lab and then the boat and graveyard for £27 each. Bus even seems pretty good value at £55. There's something I really like about the stylistic, comic-strip style box art that's so rare for TLG.

windjammer

I've got quite a few Hidden Side sets on my list, this new theme looks great.

The boxes though!  Oh my, you can't tell what the set is!!!

560Heliport

^ I agree. I wouldn't guess there were bricks in those boxes. The LEGO logo is on the wrong side, and it just doesn't look like LEGO to me. If it weren't for Brickset, I wouldn't even know what they are!

The_Rancor

I have to agree on the logo placement - Lego should be in he top left corner as usual and then the Hidden Side logo could've been over that right side band where the app interactivity focus is. At least then non-clued up consumers would know it's Lego. But maybe that's the point for Lego's marketeers?

Lyichir

windjammer said:

I've got quite a few Hidden Side sets on my list, this new theme looks great.

The boxes though!  Oh my, you can't tell what the set is!!!

Eh... I sort of disagree. The set subjects are still plenty discernable in the artwork, and a heck of a lot more dynamic and eye-catching. And more "traditional" product shots are still featured prominently on the backs of the boxes. I've been a fan of this sort of Lego artwork for a while and am excited to see it being featured more prominently.

Shib

Just noticed the little Blacktron reference on this fig

stefxan

I like the figures and some of the parts but dont get the clue with the smartphone...

tamamahm

I saw these on the shelves at Target yesterday. I have to say the box design is awful. It seems like a marketing 101 fail.  One has zero idea what is in the box.

Having said that, there are 3 I would like to end up with eventually. 

Shib

tamamahm said:

 have to say the box design is awful. It seems like a marketing 101 fail.  One has zero idea what is in the box.

Disagree on this personally - if its in a construction toy section it stands out from the rest because it is so different to what is out there. When you then look closer at the box the model is perfectly clear on the back of the box. 

I get that it's a massive departure from normal LEGO box art but I think it's clever to at least try a different approach. 

stefxan said:

I like the figures and some of the parts but dont get the clue with the smartphone...

I'm not sure I'm understanding you fully but I think you're saying you don't understand the app? 

I had a go on the app yesterday after building the Shrimp boat, its quite clever how it works and involves interacting with the model while playing which is a good approach rather than just scanning the toy into the game and playing completely on the phone. It also has a second game that can be played without any sets - again good thinking by the creators as it works well as an advert for the sets while presenting a completely separate game to the one that uses the sets. 

That said I'm not much of a mobile gamer and don't think I'll play it much beyond having a quick look after completing each set from the theme that I build. Think it's likely to hit the mark with kids though. 

CCC

I tried downloading the app but all our tablets and my phone are too old to run it. I feel like we're missing something we've paid for if we cannot use the app with the sets, so I doubt we'll buy the sets. I imagine other families will be in the same situation so it would not surprise me to see them on clearance and I think I'll wait until then as I do like the sets.

Baby_Yoda

^ My 2018 smartphone can't run it!

tamamahm said:

I saw these on the shelves at Target yesterday. I have to say the box design is awful. It seems like a marketing 101 fail.  One has zero idea what is in the box.

Bought the lab yesterday. I'll admit, I had several people that were with me at the time ask what was in the box, since they couldn't work it out themselves. But in the store, the Hidden Side sets really drew attention to themselves. Kind of like an explosion of colour amongst the same old evergreen themes.

starwars4ever

tamamahm said:

I saw these on the shelves at Target yesterday. I have to say the box design is awful. It seems like a marketing 101 fail.  One has zero idea what is in the box.

Having said that, there are 3 I would like to end up with eventually. 

Hidden Side’s biggest competition is the other “popular” themes on the LEGO isle. Like many others have said, I personally think it helps them stand out in a good way.

Baby_Yoda

The issue with new themes is that between City, Ninjago, Friends, Creator and Star Wars, they can't distinguish themselves by subject matter alone. Even regular Space is effectively dead since City and Star Wars cover most things that could come under it. New, non-licenced themes need something really unusual to attract consumers, so there's no similar sets to compete with.

gelkster

@catwrangler- Fatal Frame

JMaster

I built the School Bus the other day and was pleasantly surprised by the BIONICLE reference... it's nice to see them call back old lines like that!

stlux

The German drugstore chain Müller has an action where you get a sticker for each Lego purchase; collect 5 stickers and you get a Hidden Side themed back-to-school kit.



No pictures that I could find of the back-to-school kit yet; apparently available from Aug 26.
No theme nor minimum purchase limitation, so theoretically you could buy 5x 1 polybag to get all the stickers?

Charmiefcb

I bought the bus today. Only because I love the design of it. I had no interest in the app but now that I have one, and will probably get the high school. I'm interested to see how it works and how the app is integrated into the set.

MrShinyAndNew

I bought the graveyard and high school last week. They are decent sets but I wish they had more brick-built ghosts. Possessed figs are great and overall the minifigure design in these sets is amazing. 

Regarding the app I think it's cool, but it only works if the set is built, which means you can't use these sets for parts AND play the game at the same time. Your Hidden Side set collection will need to grow in an assembled state if you want to play the levels. I expect most people will only get a few sets in the theme but it certainly doesn't scale well and makes the parts less reusable until you give up on the theme.

It's also a shame that the app will eventually stop working and this removes the ghosts from the set (as they're only in the phone). But while it works it's pretty cool. I will probably pick up a few more from the theme.

Djblythe05

I’m continuing to hold out for the GWP to come out before I get them all. Have been enjoying the app for the ghosts at the minute and look forward to seeing how it interacts with the sets first hand. 

andhe

Wondering if you could just 'scan' an image with the app rather than needing to scan the physical set? Eg hold the app up to an online review.

benbacardi

andhe said:

Wondering if you could just 'scan' an image with the app rather than needing to scan the physical set? Eg hold the app up to an online review.

I just tried it with this picture of the bus from the Brickset review: https://www.flickr.com/photos/brickset/48487462856/in/photostream/lightbox/

It works in so far as it recognises the set and puts it in the virtual 3D world, but the first thing it asks you to do is spin the colour wheel on the physical bus to make it yellow, which obviously I can't do... so you fall down pretty quickly ;-)

Lordmoral

These sets for the most part look great, I am.aiming for: the school bus, the shrimp shack (might need to modify some ghosts elements out) and the shipwreck for my City. The two marine sets mix well with the Old Fishing Store and the bus is a must for me. Such a shame that school is not in the same way I am planning to make one for my City.

KungFuKenny

Pretty positive video review of the augmented reality/tech side done by Tom’s Hardware...makes me more interested in the play aspect than I was initially...

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/lego-hidden-side-augmented-reality-sets,6271.html