What are the most OUTRAGEOUSLY priced sets you've ever seen at RRP?

JudgeChuck · May 2016

AllBrick said:

I think £19.99 tops.

I don't think it's too badly priced, actually. Not for 14 minifigs, plus baby, plus bicycle, plus all the mini-builds and accessories (roundabout, goal, wheelchair, bench, table, baby buggy, fence, hotdog stand, bus stop sign, dog, trees).
Maybe a little overpriced at £34.99, but £19.99 would be a steal...

AllBrick · May 2016

I'm not convinced. Same old red bike, minibuilds I could easily make myself, a baby that's appearing with a CMF, same old tree. #60119 has almost twice as many parts for £10 less and #60117 has almost 100 pieces more (and that same old Alsatian) for just £17.99. Sorry, £34.99 seems extortionate.

Farmer_John · May 2016

I always thought the Republic Swamp Speeder #8091 was way overpriced for what you got. The minifigs are lame, the box felt light as a feather, and it cost $30 for 188 parts. I think TLG finally had to off-load them during a 1/2 price sale just to make them go away.

CCC · May 2016

AllBrick said:

I'm not convinced. Same old red bike, minibuilds I could easily make myself, a baby that's appearing with a CMF, same old tree. #60119 has almost twice as many parts for £10 less and #60117 has almost 100 pieces more (and that same old Alsatian) for just £17.99. Sorry, £34.99 seems extortionate.

You are comparing a minifig heavy pack with two vehicle sets that are minifig light. That is like comparing a small PAB cup with a go on the BAM in store. Of course you get more parts / weight / volume if there are not many minifigs in a set.

AllBrick · May 2016

That shouldn't matter @CCC , it's all the same plastic. The other two sets are, IMO, better value. Just because a set has a bunch of standard townsfolk minifigs in it doesn't mean you cam charge half of £70 for it.

MattsWhat · May 2016

I'm going to say #10253 Big Ben - 4,000 pieces for £170 is an OUTRAGEOUSLY good deal.

CCC · May 2016

AllBrick said:

That shouldn't matter @CCC , it's all the same plastic. The other two sets are, IMO, better value. Just because a set has a bunch of standard townsfolk minifigs in it doesn't mean you cam charge half of £70 for it.

If it is all the same plastic, then would you be willing to pay £20 for a solid block of ABS. Mini figures cost more as they need to have components put together which means an extra step. They are nearly always printed, which means another step, and then more storage. Plus Lego knows that mini figures are sought after, so they can charge more for them.

If they charged the same price for a 2x4 brick and a mini figure, then people would soon stop playing with Lego. It would be incredibly expensive.

cheshirecat · May 2016

Lego Dimensions - Starter Pack, particularly in the UK (but equally applies to most other dimensions sets)

$90 is ridiculous enough, but £100 (at the time of release the equivalent RRP in Canada was £50). What the Megablock were they thinking? Then you get screwed again for £30 for a 20 minute level and a handful of bricks. If it wasn't for LEGO collectors it would of died on its arse.

AllBrick · May 2016

@CCC - I still don't think that price is fair. 14 CMF with more interesting prints, attributes and accessories is the same price.

JudgeChuck · May 2016

AllBrick said:

@CCC - I still don't think that price is fair. 14 CMF with more interesting prints, attributes and accessories is the same price.

14 CMFs don't come with the additional larger, built, items such as the roundabout, goal, wheelchair, bench, table, baby buggy, fence, hotdog stand, bus stop sign, dog, trees, as I mentioned above.

I do agree that it is a little overpriced at £34.99, as I said earlier, but claiming that it's worth only £19.99 is just unrealistic.

ReesesPieces · May 2016

I do think they are a bit over priced when you compare them to the city starter sets. If fact, I think they could have released them as 3 smaller sets like the city starter sets. Just have each set include 3-4 minifigs with the related small builds and charge $10 for each. This would mean it would end up being $30 instead of $40 but I think more people would buy them as an impulse buy.

high5debra · May 2016

I might put in a vote for 8087 TIE Defender. 304 pieces, a TIE Pilot and a Stormtrooper for $50. The ship isn't even all that great. Fortunately I found it for half off, but I don't know if I would have paid much more than that.

AllBrick · May 2016

ReesesPieces said:

I do think they are a bit over priced when you compare them to the city starter sets. If fact, I think they could have released them as 3 smaller sets like the city starter sets. Just have each set include 3-4 minifigs with the related small builds and charge $10 for each. This would mean it would end up being $30 instead of $40 but I think more people would buy them as an impulse buy.

I like this idea, a much easier pill to swallow. Double Decker Couch springs to mind, 5 figs and 2 builds for 11.99.

@JudgeChuck - those mini builds really aren't worth the extra tax IMO. If the dog was a new design, the bike a new / rare colour and the trees were a new design (or Cypress) then I would have more reason to accept the price. Not enough to excite me at the current RRP, and before I knew the price I was excited about this set. OK, 24.99 tops, no more than that though.

madforLEGO · May 2016

I will not buy any non- 'exclusive' sets at retail anymore, not when they eventually show up at some sort of discount (especially lately). I'll bite on most sets when I see them for 25-30% off.

Panda_Hero · May 2016

Ill give you a hint, one word, and costs $20 too much on amazon. Speed champions!

CCC · May 2016

AllBrick said:

ReesesPieces said:

I do think they are a bit over priced when you compare them to the city starter sets. If fact, I think they could have released them as 3 smaller sets like the city starter sets. Just have each set include 3-4 minifigs with the related small builds and charge $10 for each. This would mean it would end up being $30 instead of $40 but I think more people would buy them as an impulse buy.

I like this idea, a much easier pill to swallow. Double Decker Couch springs to mind, 5 figs and 2 builds for 11.99.

@JudgeChuck - those mini builds really aren't worth the extra tax IMO. If the dog was a new design, the bike a new / rare colour and the trees were a new design (or Cypress) then I would have more reason to accept the price. Not enough to excite me at the current RRP, and before I knew the price I was excited about this set. OK, 24.99 tops, no more than that though.

I think it is expensive, but I understand why it is priced like that. I don't think kids are going to care that the dog, bike and trees are not new designs or colours. I'm not sure what you are referring to by tax. There is no licencing and no-one is forced to buy it, so I'm not sure what the tax here is.

There is a downside with three small sets as there are additional costs (for Lego and retailers and hence us) in having each set. Split a bigger set in three and it is likely to cost more not less.

Ayliffe · May 2016

Panda_Hero said:

Ill give you a hint, one word, and costs $20 too much on amazon. Speed champions!

...Speed champions is two words

ethanjwall · May 2016

@Ayliffe: Glad I wasn't the only one who noticed that :P

Bumblepants · May 2016

Ayliffe said:

Panda_Hero said:

Ill give you a hint, one word, and costs $20 too much on amazon. Speed champions!

...Speed champions is two words

Also are exclusive to toys r us in the US so those would be third party sellers who probably don't have the best of business plans.

ChrisJThunder · May 2016

Got to admit, that Gas Station for this year had me disappointed at the price. I don't plan on buying that unless I have a promo code or a gift card or something. Or maybe if I find it on clearance.

Fauch · May 2016

even on clearance that would be overpriced. though maybe not over here.

Bumblepants · June 2016

Wow so #60125 Volcano Heavy Lift Helicopter is $149.99. The City line is getting to a near Star Wars level of consistently overpriced. 1277 parts and some bigger ones but still steep. Plus TRU will probably be listing it at $179 as it appears to be their exclusive.

cheshirecat · June 2016

^ Although for that $150 you do get a volcano - which is almost as high as a helicopter.

Fauch · June 2016

they are pretty much normal price here. well according to brickset, I barely look at them in shops. I dunno why they are so expensive in the US? are you all building huge lego city in your basement?

mustang69 · June 2016

It came out last year but I always felt that #31038 Changing Seasons seemed over priced. I thought it should be more around $39.99 or maybe at the most $44.99. Mostly I was comparing it to #31025 Mountain Hut which was priced at $39.99, had 14 more pieces and only came out a year earlier. I think TLG priced the Changing Seasons the way they did because it included a winter build which is a big draw, IMO.

thedingman5 · June 2016

^ The pricing on #31038 has caused me to hold off. I like to get 2 or 3 of the multi-build houses for a little variety in my LEGO neighborhood, but this price just seemed off. Disappointingly, as well, I've not yet seen great discounts or clearance on this set. Patience!!!

SithLord196 · June 2016

Bit of a stale topic, but I just noticed that the Volcano Heavy Lift Helicopter, #60125 , will be $149.99 in the United States according to the S@H website.

While not absolutely outrageous at 1300 pieces and 8 minifigures, it still seems about $20 higher than it should be to me. I just noticed it while browsing this morning and the price caught me off guard.

Regarding the Changing Seasons set, it does have a light brick with it, which could be part of the price factor.

tfranklin84 · June 2016

KingAlanI said:

Fauch said:

disney princess? they are as overpriced as the new service station

My first thought. Target had #41068 Arendelle Castle Celebration marked down from $60 to $48 and about $48 is reasonable for that piececount.
Walmart had #60095 Deep Sea Exploration Vessel for $90 instead of $120 and even that seems a bit high.

I think I have to disagree slightly on the 60095 deep sea exploration vessel set. I know the piece count is not very impressive, but there's a lot of stuff in that set, a whole above and below water scene, in fact! There is a very large single piece hull for the large vessel, several large hull pieces for the "ship wrecked" ship, several of the "big ugly rock pieces", a whole slew of undersea animals, a couple 16x16 baseplates, and lots of minifigurs with scuba gear, etc. Having it in person, I feel $100 would have been a nice price for that set, so $89 at walmart and Amazon feels like a pretty good deal, in LEGO terms. Compare $89 for that compared to the new $90 gas station, and it's astonishing! Even at full retail of $120 there's no comparison, though I was glad to pay under $100.

SumoLego · June 2016

It's been awhile since the last gas station release, so perhaps they are anticipating increased demand. #60132

Nonetheless, that should be the 2016 winner of worst RRP. (The CMFs should always occupy the second spot.)

A.Brickovsky · June 2016

Definitely Gas Station. And almost all of SW line.

However, most of standard sets are likely to be discounted sooner or later. In Poland for example, buying non-exclusive set at RRP is ridiculous. You can always find them 10-20% cheaper somewhere, usually even a few days after release. CMF as well. D2C prices are more worrying as finding some of them below RRP is next to impossible. And 5% discount in VIP points is hardly comforting.

So I say Batcave, Hoth and The Village.

A.Brickovsky · June 2016

^ Oh, and Porsche of course. How could I forget.

monkyby87 · June 2016

I didn't realize the Gas Station was priced as such...I just can't see any reason it would be so expensive. Surely not that blue scrubber on the front?!

I suppose it is highly requested due to the lack of a recent release as others have pointed out, but still, that's just way too much for what are fairly standard pieces.

josekalel · June 2016

For now, the CMF seem a bit overpriced, especially when Target ups the price one dollar...but definitely the gas station and some of the SW line.

Is it a common and agreed belief that about 10-11 cents per piece is a fair retail price value?

Ma1234 · June 2016

I think a lot of the City sets these days are a good 15-25% overpriced, but then I notice they are routinely at 20-35% off. Even the official LEGO shops have started having routine sales on many sets. Does anybody actually pay $120 for #60095 when you can regularly find it below $90?

binaryeye · June 2016

Ma1234 said:

I think a lot of the City sets these days are a good 15-25% overpriced, but then I notice they are routinely at 20-35% off.

Perhaps the latter is the reason for the former? :)

Istokg · July 2016

Wow.... just looked at the Gas Station. Were 3 vehicles really necessary? They could have dropped the price down by $10-$15 with only the car included... and a few other changes could have decreased the price by at least another $5.

Is this set even intended for children? Or just AFOLs? Because I cannot see a lot of parents paying that kind of price for a Town set.

Aanchir · July 2016

Istokg said:

Wow.... just looked at the Gas Station. Were 3 vehicles really necessary? They could have dropped the price down by $10-$15 with only the car included... and a few other changes could have decreased the price by at least another $5.

Is this set even intended for children? Or just AFOLs? Because I cannot see a lot of parents paying that kind of price for a Town set.

Parents spend oodles of money on their kids, and City is routinely one of the most popular themes among kids. I'm surprised people are still surprised by this.

Sometimes it's hard to understand why certain City sets (like this one, or the Spaceport from last year) are priced so high compared to other themes. But I DEFINITELY understand why the LEGO Group doesn't foresee this pricing structure causing them any problems.

MaffyD · July 2016

^ Maybe they are testing the waters. Making one set in a wave conspicuously more expensive than the piece count would indicate and finding out if it suffers against the others. If sales are poor, then it revises it's strategy, if sales are slid, then it has data suggesting the prices can go up across the board. I imagine it will be cyclical, when they see what gets onto Amazon at -25% or more...

ryjay · July 2016

Many/most of the junior sets. $32 for a 146 piece jr police station?

Ma1234 · July 2016

Bumblepants said:

Wow so #60125 Volcano Heavy Lift Helicopter is $149.99. The City line is getting to a near Star Wars level of consistently overpriced. 1277 parts and some bigger ones but still steep. Plus TRU will probably be listing it at $179 as it appears to be their exclusive.

TRU has significantly stopped marking sets up, exclusives included. Most sets are now sold at retail.

nexander · July 2016

You cant really compare price per piece on juniors to normal sets. The pieces are generally bigger, printed and often have decent minifigs on licenced sets. Add in the plastic cases/boxes many come in and they are not too bad value wise. Add that they get them young (mine got them at 2 years), they stay in circulation for longer

ryjay · July 2016

Ahhh, but I did compare them...I looked at them on the shelf, saw the price, and I said "no way at those prices for an entry level set."

Humdrum · July 2016

I ordered the park set on launch day at S@H, but only because I had VIP points to spend.
With the added free fountain set I feel like I got a decent deal overall. However, a potential second purchase would have to come with a decent discount (so not at S@H).

SamJ · July 2016

I nearly purchased the park set this morning for the classic knight minifigure but after looking at the set I really can't justify the £35 price tag. For £5 more I could get the Wall-E set which I think is brilliant value for money.

Zathras · July 2016

I'd like to nominate 75150-1 Vader's Tie advanced vs A-wing as an example of Lego's current ridiculous pricing structure. It's basicly two $19.99 (maybe 24.99) sets in a single box for $90.

Part of my ire draws from the fact that the most current A-wing iteration 75003 was regularly available for $16-17 from multiple retailers.

Aanchir · July 2016

Zathras said:

I'd like to nominate 75150-1 Vader's Tie advanced vs A-wing as an example of Lego's current ridiculous pricing structure. It's basicly two $19.99 (maybe 24.99) sets in a single box for $90.

Part of my ire draws from the fact that the most current A-wing iteration 75003 was regularly available for $16-17 from multiple retailers.

#75003 was also just 177 pieces and weighed .34 kg, which isn't even a third of what #75150 contains by either weight or piece count. Furthermore, the last version of Vader's TIE Fighter (#8017 in 2009) was $30/251 pieces/.55kg, so it's hard to imagine that an even chunkier-looking rendition a good 7 years later would cost as little as $25, let alone $20.

Don't get me wrong — the new set definitely has an unusually hefty price compared to its piece count and weight. For comparison's sake, in 2015, #75103 had a considerably higher weight and piece count as well as more figs for the same price, while #75096 had a considerably lower piece count but weighed even more. And the year before that, the $90 sets #75053 and #75058 both had over 900 pieces (more in line with what you'd expect from a $90 set) and weighed upwards of 1.5kg. Even this year, while the weight of #75158 is not yet known, it's got 932 pieces which seems like a much fairer value for a $90 set.

With all that said, I have a hard time imagining a anything less than $70 RRP as a fair base price for 75150. Markdowns like the ones you mention for the previous A-Wing are a separate matter. There's no telling what sort of markdowns this set will see by the time it retires.

With regard to some other comments I've seen in this thread, CMF prices generally don't bother me. By price-per-piece alone they may not be a great value, but anybody can tell you the reasons why price-per-piece is an imperfect measure of value for money. The collectible minifigures have an obviously disproportionate number of new molds, prints, and recolors relative to their size. An average Series 15 fig, for example, has 7.5 pieces including 1 new mold, 3.75 new decorated elements, and 2.25 new recolors.

Can you imagine any other type of modern System set where around 50% of its parts are uniquely printed, 13% of its parts are new molds, and 30% of its pieces are new recolors? $4 on the primary market for a generic minifigure with no unique elements seems outrageous (for comparison, the classic minifigure packs from the 80s and 90s like #6102, #6103, and #6105 tended to be priced at what today would be around $2 per fig), but for such a unique minifigure I think it's within reason.

Sets that often DO strike me as overpriced at RRP are the $15 extended-line minifigure packs like #853570 Police Accessory Set. Though how egregious the price seems varies based on the uniqueness of their contents. Again, I'm not opposed to paying $3–4 per fig for figs with wholly unique prints like Wooo and Howla from #851342 Ninja Army Building Set or all four figs from #853544 Ninjago Accessory Set. At that price it's effectively like getting a $1 discount on four CMFs (albeit without any unique molds). But none of the figs from 853570 are remotely unique — all four of them appear in #60130, and half of them appear in the $10 #60127 Prison Island Starter Set — so this is basically a starter set with 70% fewer bricks for a 50% higher price!

I hope the new Ninjago Accessory Set is a sign of things to come, and LEGO will shift towards having unique figs in all of these packs. But I had the same hope after the two unique figs in last year's Ninja Army Building Set, and sadly that trend has been slow to spread to other themes. :(

ryjay · July 2016

A few have mentioned #60132 Service Station, and I agree at $89.99 way too much. Now the #31051 Lighthouse is $59.99. Has anyone bought both of these sets, and is there a $30 difference in value for basically the same size set?

LuLego · July 2016

Has anyone said 76037 rhino and sandman villain team up? I realise it's almost always on sale but £45 rrp is crazy. I finally broke today and bought it for £29.99 which seems a fairer price.

What are the most OUTRAGEOUSLY priced sets you've ever seen at RRP?

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