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Egads! Yeah I have to agree, they look like cheap gak. The detail on the gun hand in Gerwalk mode looks gorpy.

They really do look like cheap vending machine toys.

I wonder what Kevin means by mouth watering? Maybe he has really low standards for hotness? Or maybe he's one of those people who think cheap hot dogs with Dijon mustard qualifies for awesome, exotic food? Maybe he's a full time drooling Pavlovian?

The mini's do have about the level of detail you find on one of those animal shape or Spongebob Cheezit Crackers or character shaped macaroni and cheese noodles.

I was planning on picking up a few Valk or Pod mini's just to have. Eh, not any more.

Looking closely at the big gaps on these models too. Like toothpick thick grooves. How do you sand and fill gaps on mini's so teenie!?

Cripes!




I have a dream title for an online review of the future:

"Palladium serves up a 'mouth watering' $**t sandwich."

Are they not glorious?!

Yeah, they look horrible. :(

The limbs are horrifically bad on the Valkyrie, but the detail on the overall kit seams (/rimshot) like it might not be awful (the white material makes it difficult to be certain). Too much effort to clean up, sure, but less "terrible model" and more "terrible engineering." I'm reminded of the DFG and KD:M KS where they've talked about working with WGF because they weren't happy with how things were laid out initially because "what was designed" and "what can be made" don't often line up. Could this truly be an example of what happens when you send the design to China and the engineers saying "it will work like this" and PB going "Ok"? It seems like it to me, but obviously the world may never know.

The wings do look chunky, but quickly skimming some Robotech images on Google it could actually be that the source material has them as planks; I didn't remember them being that way and being more a straight lift of the F-14 (which tapers more at the wingtip), but evidently that could be remaining true to the original design.

Jeez the F and G mode look hokie.

Anyone actually try to watch the video demo?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gw45DTMOII

It's PAINFUL to watch. 3 hours in and they're still not done with the first turn.

That's the idea, palladium fans have no lives.

Spent about the same as resolving a turn from their rpg. ta-boom-tish

Good lord that was terrible, I was actually interested in watching if for the rules but only made if through about 40 minutes before I got tired of random talking and crotch shots of the players. I checked back later at about an hour and half and it looked like they were still just setting up. No way I'm going to try and watch that again. Not a good way to present the system, even battletech at it's slowest plays much, much faster.

Stanman they didn't know the rules. Although I could have done without the crotch shoots as well. I could have also done without the spare tire shoots too.

Overall it was interesting to watch. At least they answered some of our questions.

Well I remember taking just as long to learn the basics of Battletech and that was with two players. So while it did take a long time, they also started the video an hour before they planned to start the game. Also once you understand the basics and how the game flows it goes much faster. All of them were trying to figure out as they went, including Tom. I even learned something. I hope to run one with a local person if I can get him an NDA so that we can play a few games out and then show haw fast the game can flow. I believe that its faster than even Alpha Strike.


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And I promise, no crotch shots

Anyone have Palladium's email address? I have the sudden urge to spam them for months on end requesting a refund.

No, but I think they have a fax number available.

Bob the Accountant wrote:
Anyone have Palladium's email address? I have the sudden urge to spam them for months on end requesting a refund.

The 1980's doesn't have email yet.


You'll have to make due with regular old phone calls, preferably from something the size of a briefcase and emits cancer causing radiation. Fortunately you can wear a members only jacket and look cool while doing so.

 paulson games wrote:

Bob the Accountant wrote:
Anyone have Palladium's email address? I have the sudden urge to spam them for months on end requesting a refund.

The 1980's doesn't have email yet.


You'll have to make due with regular old phone calls, preferably from something the size of a briefcase and emits cancer causing radiation. Fortunately you can wear a members only jacket and look cool while doing so.

There may be a small chance that you could contact PB via email. Back then the CIA used to use email to pass along information. Any chance PB is a front for the CIA? If so there's a small chance of contacting them.

So did anyone watch the apparently 6 hour long demo? If so, any highlights you'd care to share?

Can anyone work out what is going on with the forward side edges of those wings? Instead of a small radius curve like the animation (or an F-14) we have what look like wingtip mounted landing lights?

Really gives the wing a blockish look even in a plan view where we can't see the blunt wing edges.

I'm also wondering if the stubby look is coming from incorrectly keeping the various parts' proportions between the modes. Think Jetfire vs a Hasegawa single mode kit. Jetfire (or the transforming Bandai kits) has to find somewhere for the arms to go and has to fit in the legs (which the animators did not) which leads to some compromised proportions.

If that's not it, I'm not sure what the sculptor was looking at.

As for people noting that they look like bubble gum toys - seriously, the Gashapon I picked up in Japan last year for dollars a piece look *much* better.

 Nari224 wrote:
As for people noting that they look like bubble gum toys - seriously, the Gashapon I picked up in Japan last year for dollars a piece look *much* better.

That is how I'm consoling myself regarding this whole project. My only macross minis to date are some old plastics and metals from the battletech days (see my sig trade thread link) and I see this as (unforunately) getting 1980's quality models for less than $2 a piece. I guess I could have hunted down the individual 1/200 kits like Paulson did but I'll end up with largely the same thing after a few years.

For example, ignoring the paint scheme experiments see the various figures in this set:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/83997065@N00/12415350523/

Bob the Accountant wrote:Anyone have Palladium's email address? I have the sudden urge to spam them for months on end requesting a refund.

Bob- Have you joined the Facebook refund group?

Nari224 wrote:For example, ignoring the paint scheme experiments see the various figures in this set:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/83997065@N00/12415350523/

Those do look better than Palladium's Valkyries. Argggh.

 warboss wrote:
So did anyone watch the apparently 6 hour long demo? If so, any highlights you'd care to share?

It went fairly well. They turned on the camera about an hour early and showed them setting up the table and some pages of the book. They also answered a few questions. They also took a while to get going. They also were getting used to the rules as they went so it took 3 or 4 times as long as it would otherwise. They had a lot of fun though and the Zentraedi won in the end.

Sorry to say this guys but were stuck with the lackluster vf-1 mini model. This is from Kevin S.


"You and us both, Ian. If we could have gotten this done sooner we would have. As for the 98% that was in reference to having the rules, art, and 3D modeling done. Had no idea it would take soooo long to go from there to manufacturing. It has been a big learning curve for all of us. I have to disagree Fern, the Valkyries look great. --Kevin Siembieda"

Any rules changes that surprised you? Was there massed zentraedi kungfu spam this time around?

Mike1975 wrote:

 warboss wrote:
So did anyone watch the apparently 6 hour long demo? If so, any highlights you'd care to share?

It went fairly well. They turned on the camera about an hour early and showed them setting up the table and some pages of the book. They also answered a few questions. They also took a while to get going. They also were getting used to the rules as they went so it took 3 or 4 times as long as it would otherwise. They had a lot of fun though and the Zentraedi won in the end.

You say it went well, I say it was a stumbling, bumbling example of a person who was trying to show off a game they had never read the rules before let alone played.

YMMV

vitae_drinker wrote:

Mike1975 wrote:

 warboss wrote:
So did anyone watch the apparently 6 hour long demo? If so, any highlights you'd care to share?

It went fairly well. They turned on the camera about an hour early and showed them setting up the table and some pages of the book. They also answered a few questions. They also took a while to get going. They also were getting used to the rules as they went so it took 3 or 4 times as long as it would otherwise. They had a lot of fun though and the Zentraedi won in the end.

You say it went well, I say it was a stumbling, bumbling example of a person who was trying to show off a game they had never read the rules before let alone played.

YMMV

This is in regards to Red Duke who is supposedly leading 40-50 playtesters?

 warboss wrote:
Any rules changes that surprised you? Was there massed zentraedi kungfu spam this time around?

No Kungfu fighting, and the UEDF got slaughtered because they fly the Veritech into the middle of the Zentraedi. A few small changes, the change to boosting speed make much more sense than it did before if I heard it right. They spent a lot of time teaching themselves the rules. I'm hoping to get an updated copy. I keep asking.


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 warboss wrote:

vitae_drinker wrote:

Mike1975 wrote:

 warboss wrote:
So did anyone watch the apparently 6 hour long demo? If so, any highlights you'd care to share?

It went fairly well. They turned on the camera about an hour early and showed them setting up the table and some pages of the book. They also answered a few questions. They also took a while to get going. They also were getting used to the rules as they went so it took 3 or 4 times as long as it would otherwise. They had a lot of fun though and the Zentraedi won in the end.

You say it went well, I say it was a stumbling, bumbling example of a person who was trying to show off a game they had never read the rules before let alone played.

YMMV

This is in regards to Red Duke who is supposedly leading 40-50 playtesters?

Leading and Organizing are not the same thing. Just ask Obama. From what I understand Tom had set up numerous playtest groups to play with the rules but it's probably been over a year since he's played and I'm not sure how much the rules had changed from those early iterations. So not really a big surprise. They were all more or less learning or relearning as things went.

Mike1975 wrote:
[qr 521733 6839718 null]

Leading and Organizing are not the same thing. Just ask Obama. From what I understand Tom had set up numerous playtest groups to play with the rules but it's probably been over a year since he's played and I'm not sure how much the rules had changed from those early iterations. So not really a big surprise. They were all more or less learning or relearning as things went.

That is odd. You would think the highest profile playtester would have a bit more familiarity with the rules he is championing in the comments. At the bare minimum, I'd at least expect him to brush up on them the days before live streamed demo. Unfortunately, he seems to have picked up some bad habits from his superiors at Palladium. I'll try and see what from the demo I can watch as I tried it in various youtube apps and the video wouldn't play correctly.

Hopefully Miriya made the rest of Quadrano squadron proud at least during the game!

 Cypher-xv wrote:
Sorry to say this guys but were stuck with the lackluster vf-1 mini model. This is from Kevin S.


"You and us both, Ian. If we could have gotten this done sooner we would have. As for the 98% that was in reference to having the rules, art, and 3D modeling done. Had no idea it would take soooo long to go from there to manufacturing. It has been a big learning curve for all of us. I have to disagree Fern, the Valkyries look great. --Kevin Siembieda"

Maybe we should go UP the ladder. Perhaps Harmony Gold didn't notice the plank wings, etc. Shrug.

from ND's facebook:

KK - put them on a clean surface so you guys can see the seams and lines etc. They are not touched up much, I pretty much just daubed glue on 'em and stuck em together without much ceremony (which I will have to get used to when the 60+ pods I ordered get here)

note- the hips are two pieces, we are confident that most seams on armor will be treated this way - and anything in the test-shot phases that do not pass muster will get tightened up.

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Quel-Gulnau sprue - part of the Glaug command kit - and as always, tools of the trade. Please note, the base is a test-shot in a different plastic color, and the final will be in black plastic.

This is from ND's FB page.


Harley WarWolf
Morning Ninjas... On some of the Robotech minis it looks like some of the parts were misaligned. Small seams will be fixable but misaligned parts will not. Can we get a guarantee that the final product will not have any of these alignment issues. Thank you in advance.
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Ninja Division We are dealing with a host of final minor tweaks on the remaining models - I wish we were showing plastics for the first photography, and not prototypes - which, by definition, are rough copies to try and finalize and adjust the models to be as perfect and fitting as able.
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Harley WarWolf How can we be certain of how the minis will ultimately fit until the factory does a test run, if these are adjusted from 3d printed prototypes. I'm ignorant on this process but I thought the factories did a test run on the figures then adjustments made. So I guess my question really is if you receive some test sprues from The factory using the same process that will be used when their mass produced and they show such imperfections will they get fixed before going into production?
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Ninja Division they do - its a weird medium - as the 3D printing is a true to volume process - there is warping and shrinkage to account for once they become sprues and cut into molds - at that stage they necessarily have to go back and tinker and hammer on things -
The big trick we learned, and the reason why we had so many parts split up, was there is some pinching and deformation when plastic is too chunky and fat on a sprue, has to be run at different pressures to fill appropriately, and our mecha are cursed with really really small bits, and some chunky fat bits - which puts more stress on the mold if not taken into consideration properly.
But we are taking all the precautions we know how to see that they are being made correctly.
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These pics actually raise my hopes up. They look good compared to the rest of what we have seen.