This video isn’t even a week old and the set is already retired. The “fear” of missing out is now the *reality* of missing out. Apparently, the Forest Hideout is coming back as a “Gift” With Purchase in August to correlate with the release of the 90th Anniversary Castle, likely at the same price threshold. While this is still not ideal for obvious reasons, hopefully it will allow more of these to end up on the aftermarket to help drive prices down.
For those who will miss out, I will say that I built mine last night and this was the first LEGO brand set I've ever had where the pieces felt cheap and inconsistent in clutch power. It was the first set that made me concerned for LEGO's future quality. If it weren't a "free" set, I'd be upset. If my $400 10305 feels this way, LEGO will lose me. Anybody else's 40567 feel "off"?
@@Revenant7n Indeed - many of my black arch pieces already had scratch marks on them fresh out of the box; I had to be strategic on where I placed them in order to hide these defects. Not what I would expect from a new set! 😢
I think this release is so frustrating for me because, had it been released any more broadly, it would sell like crazy and send a clear message that there's still a market for the classic themes. I personally want Lego to realize their in-house properties are loved and would do very well outside of the small number of what are effectively novelties based on their old heavy-hitters.
Yeah it upsets me how much these guys just ignore everything besides the most heavy hitters I am the last to complain about classic space but having (almost) all of the sets realized in ideas, icons and the lego Movie sets chained to the same sub theme just sucks And everything like aquazone, exo force, aquaraiders and so many more just don't get any love at all
@@n_ex13 Exo-Force is just old enough it deserves a face-lift with a lot of the modern engineering and parts. I'd be all for a direct continuation or even just one last hurrah since the story never properly finished IIRC.
What I don't understand is how they couldn't see it. The blacksmith shop sold really well. The 3 in 1 castle was bought up like crazy, everyone seemed to want 2 or more. The Castle in the Forest was so desired it sold out in seconds and forced Lego to revise the entire Bricklink Designer Program. And then this set, it will pull in money hand over fist with everyone buying $150 worth of random sets to get it. And the 90th anniversary castle will probably sell out day one, despite its price. There is no way Lego can't see it is time to bring back classic castle as a full theme.
Agreed Lego did great things they had their own dinosaur theme before they start doing Jurassic Park their own space themes before they start doing Star Wars. And what about their egyptian adventurers all that great classic stuff that they stop doing in favor of doing license sets.
The fear of missing out certainly extends to beyond GWP. When I was a kid in the 90s, lego sets from years prior were still available on store shelves, sometimes at discount prices. These days, a popular set may only be available for a year or two to make room for the next theme. And if it is discounted it's usually right before its gone from retail. So if money is tight and you skip out on a set that's released in January, you may have to purchase it for Christmas that year before it's ushered into the aftermarket pricing
This 100%. I *distinctly* remember walking into a store as a kid where sets that were released years apart from each other sat by side, both on sale even! No one knew to collect Lego for it's "monetary value" back then, which predictably is what makes older sets so valuable today. I don't even bother looking for Lego on clearance anymore - it's always picked clean by Lego "investors" in my city, it's crazy. And the ridiculous speed in which sets are retired too! I was gobsmacked when I learned Barracuda Bay retired... I enjoyed building it so much that I would probably say it is the best Lego set I have ever had the pleasure of owning. Now if anyone else wants to have that experience, they have to pay out the nose for a set on the aftermarket. I know TLG has to retire them eventually, but is like... 2 years too much to ask?
This is so true. After Christmas, pretty much the only time I would have any money to spend as a kid, I'd go to a big toy store and choose a set, and the ones I didn't get would be there the next year. This is a bubble waiting to burst, they can't continue at this rate and expect people to keep up. Completionist collecting even a single theme would find it almost impossible now, and the aftermarket prices are often ludicrous. At some point people decide to skip a set, then a few, then hold out for larger releases, then realise they prefer to hold onto their money. The way the economy is going won't help either. I hope I'm wrong. But I expect a flurry of aftermarket sets to flood the market soon as recessions bite worldwide and people try to cash in.
Thank you! ❤ I'm just glad that many people (like yourself) are of a similar mind on the whole thing - I really didn't know what I might be stepping into when I made this video as I really hadn't seen Lego FOMO being discussed online. 😅
I completely agree, LEGO is using fear of missing out to manipulate people into spending more than they would normally. I’m real mad about that ridiculous 6 day window, even Nintendo made the slightly less awful decision of releasing the Super Mario 3D All Stars Pack for a good couple months and even that was still awful but 6 days is kind of insulting. For a couple years LEGO seemed to be getting better but now it’s nosediving fast. Great video as always, and on a subject that really does need to be discussed.
Exactly. I used to believe that consumer manipulative tactics like blind bags, "gift with purchase" sets, limited release windows, and intentional short-stock of items to drive up demand were all beneath The Lego Group, but they have definitively since proved me wrong. 😟
@@RRSlugger They went near bankrupt the old way. That was in 2003. People tend to forget. And it is only a few years after they got really back on track.
I understand that a limited run makes people more excited about getting sets but when you're only able to buy these things for a month or two they're basically saying "rich people only" and that's kind of sad. Some people can afford to throw lots of money at LEGO in order to get these gifts amd exclusives and then they can resell the sets they don't want at a profit to us schmucks. I don't think anybody would be mad if LEGO rereleased any of these exclusives. Even if they're exclusively sold on LEGO.com and not other retailers, it seems unfair not to give people a few months to save up and buy one if they want it. If the set isn't available for retail price I'm just going to miss out, I won't buy different sets instead. It seems to me like they'd sell more sets overall if they made them available, but I'm not an economist...
I think another predatory aspect of this release is that they officially revealed the Lion Knight’s Castle set just a few days after this released, but that set won’t be available for purchase until much after the forest hideout set goes away. For people saving up their money to buy an enormous castle set, does it really make sense to splurge $150 just a few weeks before? Why not release it alongside the main castle set, which not only makes sense thematically, but is also easier on the customers wallet? Obvious answer is if lego can get you to spend more, they will, and it certainly worked on me.
I found out about this and the new castle at the same time and that was my thought exactly. It seems like a very obvious way to get customers who wanted one or the other to get both. Maybe they have a similar Space GWP planned to go with the Galaxy Explorer and screwed over Castle fans to do it?
@@Pokemanic33 nah, this isn’t the first time they’ve done something like this. The Harry Potter gift with purchase sets always release a month or two before that year’s big D2C set.
they do it precisely *because* the themes are different. If you’re really into your castle theme, you’ll spend that extra $150 you may not have to get that GWP, *and* buy the castle when it comes out. There is no need to give a castle themed GWP alongside it as fans will already be buying it. Cross-theme promotion is an upsell and sucks
Yeah I also genuinely thought ooh I may get the castle or space anniversary sets and then this will be a bonus but you can't! That's really a shitty move from Lego.
My response to this was simple. They're raising prices in August, so I asked several friends and family members to order a set that's going up by 20%. I'll keep several of these sets for free when I sell those sets.
I actually said 'What?!' at my laptop screen in an empty room when you said '6 days'. That is... well, ridiculous. This and their recent price hike has brought me to an uncomfortable realisation. I don't really feel like buying LEGO anymore. At least, not at the moment. I've had to be strict with my finances lately, and as a result a lot of sets have slipped past me, some even without me knowing about. As a result, I've almost become desensitised to that happening. Not to say I like LEGO any less, but I haven't actually bought a new set for quite a while now. So actually, for me at least, this tactic of using FOMO to increase sales has actually had the opposite effect. It really bugs me when people say you shouldn't be ungrateful or complain about these things. TLG is a very successful and wealthy company after all, so we don't really owe them anything. I know I've done a lot of 'standing up for LEGO' myself in the past (more so in my younger days), but if we have a gripe, we are more than allowed to voice it. Whoops, I'm beginning to vent, sorry. I do still enjoy LEGO, and don't think I'm going into a dark age. I've got your videos to stop that from happening!
Great comment - thank you for venting your feelings here! ❤️ You are not alone in becoming disinterested in buying new Lego sets; going through the comment sections on my videos, I’ve heard from a number of people who are in exactly the same boat. Bad business practices alienate customers and I think we’re seeing that in practice here…
I stopped all my Lego funding for now... The prices have gotten completely out of hand and the sets are getting worse and worse... On the other hand I found my love for tanks and ships so all my Lego funding goes to Cobi now 😅...
They're leaning into the collector / speculator market so hard now. Scalpers are their real customers now, not you. They've decided their product is now more like a cryptocurrency than a toy.
Hey everyone, This was a tough video to make - I'm still not sure I got it *quite* right with my take on the release of this set either. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the matter as well, so please feel free to contribute in the comments section. I've fallen behind with responding to comments on my last video; I will get to them, but I was busy making *this* video, haha! There's still one more planned for release this weekend, but it is in the final stages of production and shouldn't be too much of a crunch to finish it up. Thank you for the continued support everyone! ❤
As a lifelong Lego fan (40years) I couldn’t agree with you more. Lego is seems to be alienating a lot of their fans similar to what Disney’s doing. I’ll always love your Content though, keep it up!
I think you covered this topic incredibly well. Also, I don't assume I speak for everyone but I'm fine with any comment reply delays, especially if it means an extra video!
A fair and seemingly balanced review of the situation and set. No ranting and you opened with information before opinions. I am able to make what feels like an informed purchase if I wish to. Thank you. As for replying to comments, I personally do not expect a reply from anyone. It is nice to get one, but I am well aware that I am a faceless voice, and before that I did not exist. Random conversations can be fun though. Any way, have a nice day.
@@For891 Thank you for the compliment! ❤ To be honest, I actually *have* started to notice some of the quality issues others have brought up before; some of my newer bricks have started to crack (already??) and scratches and scuffs on "new" bricks is starting to become a nuisance. The VAST majority of the Lego I own is from pre-2005 though, so I guess I hadn't noticed these issues before.
Even though I have ZERO nostalgia for the Classic Castle theme, I actually really do like the old yet refreshed look of this set! It's just a travesty that it's essentially stuck behind a hefty $190 paywall, and I fear that any more of these new 're-imagined' 90th anniversary sets will continue to be pricey GWPs with very short periods in order to redeem them 😵💫 If they do go ahead and make either a Rock Raiders, The Lego Movie, Ninjago, or Bionicle 90th anniversary set and it's a GWP..... I'd honestly implode. 😭
I'm frightened this will become a trend too... Honestly, one of my only solaces is that the year is already half over and how many more of these can they stuff into Lego's 90th Anniversary? 😅😅 I doubt that was the intended feeling Lego wanted me to takeaway from this whole experience... dread.
This is a really well timed video to make. I really wanted this set and there was absolutely a fear of missing out. As soon as I heard it was GWP, I shook my head. Lego know they can do this, they have the data and the pricing stats. There's a lot of people saying stuff like "They'd make more if they released it standalone" but it would have no marketing, no way to stand out on a shelf, no fear of missing out driving a purchase and they'd be making less on it. I had to spend $209 AUD on two sets I did kinda want to buy (but didn't want to buy then and there) for a set worth $40. Lego is up way more on my purchase than if I'd bought it standalone. GWP hurts buyers, especially when GWP is region locked or set locked. Get this gift if you buy $49 worth of Ninjago; okay but I don't like Ninjago. Get this gift if you buy during this week; okay but I don't have money right now. This only helps scalpers and inflates the aftermarket. It's nice to get a gift for buying something but that gift should be available to purchase standalone online through Lego's store during the time period. Lego has been trending bigger, and they're saying it needs to be more expensive and the only place I still see decently priced creativity in their line is the Creator 3-in-1 line. I'm going to pick up the Creator Castle to pair with my forestman hideout but honestly, every set now is just too expensive. I can't justify these prices for what will be expensive display pieces, collecting dust.
To quote your comment, "GWP hurts buyers" - that's definitely the point I was trying to make with this long-winded video, but you found a way to sum it up succinctly, thank you! ❤ I am in agreement with your stance here - really spot on assessment of the whole situation. 👍
I had been interested in purchasing the Blacksmith set for a few weeks. I went to pull the trigger on it until a few weeks ago when I saw that this set would be free when I bought the original set I wanted...so I waited. I also got a free car lego set as well, so it was worth it for me. Had I not already planned on buying a set that would have made me eligible for this set, I would not have bought anything just to have this set. It is a pretty cool set though.
@@RRSlugger well i bought just ahead of hide-out getting announced into the cardboard space rocket and some more GWP's, so i had no money left for the big buy needed to get the hide-out. I have like 10 sets i might want that are good for combining with GWP's and i never buy on release date, just waiting for the right combi of set/GWP/money in hand to come along.
I just think these practices are indicative of the direction Lego as a company is going. They want to pander to the desire of their older fans if only to profit from it as much as possible. These kinds of releases feed into scalper markets and there's no way Lego can't know it. I love the Lego system but frankly I rarely buy lego sets from stores anymore because often times it feels like decisions of the company are putting profit over quality whereas in the past this was, at least less the case
@@n_ex13 thats why i feel like buying 2nd hand is the best option. At least then it doesn't support lego's bad design choices. Unfortunately it can be prone to scalping but usually there are sites that have somewhat reasonable rates
Remember when LEGO was going bankrupt in the early 2000’s? This is a way to generate more revenue to sustain and grow a great company. I love having the option to get this great set with the purchase of another set I would’ve already gotten. This being said, no one’s above criticism.
@@horustortoise6110 That's definitely a fair stance to take too! I'm glad you were able to pair this purchase with something else you were going to buy anyways; I was able to line that up when I bought Barracuda Bay to get the Amelia Earhart tribute set. I waited on buying Barracuda Bay in order to get the timing right. Theoretically, I could have done that here as well if I had waited to buy the DeLorean, but that set is *still* on backorder, if I'm correct. I'm very thankfully I rushed out to get that one when I did. 😅 I might offer some push-back on your comment about generating revenue to "sustain" the company though; I didn't just make up that line in the script about Lego being *the most profitable toy company in the world* - as far as I can tell, that's fact. With over a billion dollars in net profit last year, merely "sustaining" the company is no longer part of the playbook. The Lego Group can afford to be a little more fair to their consumers, I think. Just my 2 cents though!
If you look at the receipt, the Forest Hideout is listed at $29.99 CAD (with a gift discount applied). You aren't too far off. I actually had initially planned to get two Pirate Ships for this promo (one I was planning to get already), but they ended up going temporarily out of stock just before the promo started. So instead I got another Medieval Blacksmith to change into a custom MOC. It really does have that FOMO vibe though, and funny how it lines up perfectly with the Double VIP starting *basically right after this promo ends*. Kind of disappointing acts from Lego, I hope they don't do too much else along these lines, but they clearly know what kind of themes people are willing to drop bank for.
I was lucky that there were 2 sets I already wanted to get before this gwp was really revealed (the galaxy explorer because I love classic space, and that lego city space missions set because I love the 2022 city space series) so I was like $15 CAD or so away from getting this GWP after ordering the two. Then for the remainder I ordered a bunch of crossbows, bows, and some black falcon shields off B&P to make up the 15$ish. which is fine because now I have a bunch of extra equipment to put in my lion knights castle armory, aswell as my medieval blacksmith's weapon stock. So it very conveniently snd coincidently worked out for me in the end. Probably the one and only time I'll ever make a GWP related order off Lego though.
I haven't bought a Lego set for myself in over fifteen years and am too young to have any personal nostalgia for the Castle theme, and yet even *I* found myself wanting to get my hands on the Forest Hideout. THAT is the power of the Fear Of Missing Out.
that's also because it's a truly loveely little set that oozes charm and features great construction. Limiting its release like that is an offense to the designer.
If you check the listing for the 40567 on lego's website you can see they list it for $24.99 but not for sale. At least in the USA. I've also seen a few people say it's getting an August re-release as a gwp again. Those two factors might keep the after market price down for a while.
All sets legally need a “price” in certain regions and so Lego has to price sets and they have to do so at a “fair and reasonable market value” I believe for taxes or something. Every gwp has a suggested msrp on the Lego store :)
Just an FYI, in Tiago Catarino's review of this set (former Lego Designer), he mentions that this GWP will return for August 2nd, a day after a bunch of new August releases including the big new 90th anniversary Castle. So there's a buffer for this GWP FOMO, at least for people who know about the August release.
That’s what I’ve been hearing - hopefully that rumour is true! It’s still not a great scenario and many of the problems with this initial release will carry over, but at least it’s something…
@@Lethalape15 For VIP it is preorder n 3rd, otherwise it releases on the 8th. The return of August GWP promo hasn't been confirmed, so still considered rumored.
Because I live in Chile, a country that doesn't have official LEGO stores but a Lego store by a distribution company, I'll probably be able to purchase the set separately, GWPs are sold as sets here but all sets take several months to arrive.
Growing up I missed out on many cool sets and minifigures. There were tonnes of figures from the minifigure series I wish I got my hands on but are now far too expensive to get nowadays. I think this is part of what fuels my ‘fear to lose’ out. Really like that term by the way, though wish it didn’t exist. I doubt that Lego would redo some of the best minifigures of past series. As a castle fan, perhaps Lego should do a mini figure series focussed on this theme, it’ll provide an opportunity to redo past figures.
While I fully agree with your points, I avoided the FOMO by simply just planniing ahead when I heard about the set some weeks ago. There's more than a few sets I want that cross that threshold for me to get the free gift, so I just waited until the time was right to buy one of them. This isn't to say I think this absolves LEGO, in fact I feel buying a damn toy shouldn't require damn pre-planning, but it is what it is.
And I agree with your comment! Planning it out is almost a requirement to make this system work (as a consumer). I'm really glad you were able to line this one up with some "must haves" for you; I wasn't as lucky and had to settle for a number of "nice to haves" as Lego doesn't really have a lot in their portfolio that excites me (at the moment, and I already bought the DeLorean, haha).
I tried this approach one time with the Harry Potter dormitory GWP. When the free gift finally came, the set I plan to by with it went out of stock, and all that is left are unwanted HP sets. It almost feels like it is deliberate. Good thing this Forest Hideout GWP is not limited to a theme, so it is easy to reach the threshold.
I do this all the time. And there are always sets I want so it's never really been an issue. I don't buy anything day of release... I'm just trying to make sure I get everything I really want before they retire!
A friend of mine used to work at my local Lego store. When he was there he would hook me up with the latest GWP even if I bought a CMF. Those days are long gone unfortunately.
Best advice I can give: if it's feasible, order the parts separately. Don't know what to say about any unique prints and figures. Sure, it might not be a ture copy of the set, but it's probably the next best thing.
I had considered recommending this in the script, but I was actually surprised by the number of pieces I did not recognize within this set... 😟 It will probably be a few years before the new pieces become plentiful enough to reliably buy in bulk online.
I learned of the promotion for this 1 day before it was going to be over. Here in Romania, the threshold for stuff bought was 740 RON, which is about the price of a limited edition set, like the DeLorean or the Crocodile Locomotive (something you'd save up for during the year and treat yourself to for Christmas or a birthday). Now, I'm not doing too bad, but with my salary, that's about a fifth of my income, and, more specifically, half of my rent for a Month. I was so upset when saw this, especially considering that the estimated retail was more than reasonable and they would have very likely sold a ton of these. I don't understand how some sets end up as purchasable items and others get stuck behind these insane paywalls. Some examples I can think of in more recent times are the small CREATOR New York Taxi or the Tuk-Tuk, the Mail Plane, that Safari 4x4. I mean, they're not bad sets, but if I was in a store and had to pick only 1 of them, I would have picked the Hideout in a heart-beat.
Last Saturday 6/17, we were at the southside Lego store in Denver. I've been waiting to get this special set ever since rumors about it started coming out. The store was packed, and we were in line to purchase my new Optimus Prime and my two younger boys a 3 in 1 Lego castle. A father and son in front of us made a purchase and got this hideout set for free. The dad hands it to his son and the boy actually said, "I don't want it!" So, the dad tells his son to give it to the one of the kids behind them who were in the other line next to us. He does and that little boy's eyes lit up and he was so happy. I kind of laughed about it because they had no idea what they had and simply gave it away in such a nice gesture. Interesting enough my sales receipt shows a $24.99 charge then a rebate for $24.99 which was this Forest Hideout set.
Some time ago I created a budget for hobbies (about 20€/month and lego counts as a hobby). I set up sort of a wishing list within my budget and just sat and waited for a cool purchase gift to turn up. If I hadn't already planned for a hobby purchase of this magnitude I suppose I wouldn't have bought something just for the free set.
Modular buildings used to be available for four to five years, now they're only around for two or three. I agree that these limited time releases aren't good. This was something I liked about Lego, that you could actually wait to buy something instead of having to jump on it instantly
I'm getting into lego recently and I just purchased my first set in years, the Ecto 1, and I got this with purchase, I didn't think much of it but I was overjoyed to have something cool and classic looking to build alongside my new purchase, but after learning about it's exclusivity and availability it made me kinda disappointed, I know that people are thrilled about this, it looks great that's for sure, but it's such a shame how it can only be obtained through a massive purchase
The official Lego store is pretty much the most expensive source to get Lego in my country, and that makes it even harder for me to justify getting a GWP, since I easily could get the main sets for 20% less elsewhere, which makes the GWP feel even less like a gift.
This set was 100% a punch in the nuts for most every collector out there of Lego. Too bad I missed it for sure, there was no chance I was going to be able to make that significant a purchase to secure one anytime soon.
I made a mad-dash to my Lego store today during my lunch break to pick this up--they still had quite a few of these in stock. Fortunately, there were a few sets I had been planning to get, so most of the things I bought to make it to $150 were things I would eventually get anyway. I will sometimes get on eBay within a few weeks of a GWP, and often get them for $40 or $50--a lot for what they are, but far less than the $150 I would have needed to spend to get it organically.
I too was quite surprised how "low demand" they were in my area. I was at the Lego Store within an hour of them opening, expecting a line up like there was with the DeLorean. Instead, the store was empty; I'm pretty sure I got the first one, hahaha. 😅
The GWPs are definitely there to entice sales with FOMO. Luckily I was able to grab a few sets I’ve been meaning to buy to get it, but if it wasn’t for this set I probably would have waited longer or bought from another retailer where the sets are usually cheaper. I definitely think think your thoughts were fair and balanced on the set though. Also your wish for more remakes this year will probably come true as there’s a galaxy explorer and lion kings castle remake rumor.
While I was born in 2001, I have a strong connection with the classic Castle sets (and old sets in general), thanks to my dad giving me his LEGOs he had as a kid. I remember flipping thru old catalogs he had and just taking in the awesome little scenes they made with the figures. It makes me sad that a new LEGO set that actually looks interesting is locked behind a huge paywall.
Same here. Same birth year, similar story, still had those old catalogs and love vintage Lego. Constantly buying vintage stuff (but I’m more into town) was really hoping we’d get a town 90th anniversary set. I’m not super into castle (although I’ll admit the big castle is amazing) I really wanted the new galaxy explorer so I picked up that and some more pick a brick to compliment my lugbulk hull so I ended up getting this GWP but the whole thing is a scam.
I like the original better, simply because it has more useful pieces. The original tree branches double as half portals to be used in other ways, whereas these modern branches just don't have that same versatility. Same goes for the roof. The original roof was useful in many ways, but now it's replaced with blank tiles and they're definitely more limited. This new version is a nice set, but I'll definitely sell mine while it's hot and overpriced.
I feel like there's a bit of fear of missing out driving up sales by the announcement of the price increase with a window to buy before it goes into effect. I know I've picked up some sets (particularly Speed Champions, as I've previously commented) because of this, and will probably continue to. Plus I got this Forest Hideout set. Tempted to get another. I know it won't be hard to find enough items to hit that threshold a second time.
One of the sets I got to build and then immediately disassemble for parts is the Lego City Fire Brigade/60321. There were quite a few dark teal parts in it I think you'd like.
@@CarsSimplified That shipping container especially!! Haha, I would love to one day create a Rock Raiders standardized shipping transport of some sort. 😊
Thanks for pointing this out. I havent thought of that tactic but being aware is an important step of the purchase decision process. They are a marketing geniuses :)
I completely agree like I am gonna buy sets I have only a moderate interested in just to obtain it The set is one of my favourite of 2022 the limited foliage really adds something, although I still like the spam used in many others sets. And the black trees are beautiful
I got a second copy of the Medieval Blacksmith Shop LEGO Ideas set *_just_* so that I can get a single copy of the 40567 Forest Hideout LEGO Castle set; but I had to use my credit card in order to buy it and get the 40567 Forest Hideout LEGO Castle set "for free" in cost, even though I'm *_already_* in serious credit card debt and thus really shouldn't be using my credit card for non-essential things right now - laughing out loud (not really), here. 😮💨😓😞
I really want this set, but at the same time I really want the new HP wave, seems highly unlikely that it'll still be available by Sunday, but fingers crossed. Also pretty weird that LEGO didn't release this as a GWP for the new large scale Castle set this August.
Hopefully this doesn't turn out to be bad advice, but at least locally at my Lego Store there were plenty of these sets to go around; there's also been a rumour that they are going to bring this set back again as a GWP in August, but I have no source for that rumour - it's just hearsay.
Just found this video today and couldn't agree more. Once the big castle set was showed I really wanted to get my hands on this set. But as I have no Lego stores in my City/State (and like 5 in the country) I was at the mercy of the online page. And I refused to buy sets I didn't want I was unfortunate that any of the sets I wanted went out of stock the first day of this set was being given. Then once those steps where restocked this set was exhausted (2 days before the actual event was supposed to end). So I ended up missing out on this
Well done on the video! You hit the main points of FOMO and realizing that GWPs are not actually gifts but marketing strategies to increase sales. I'm still undecided on this set; I think it looks good but castle isn't a nostalgic series for me. I usually wait to buy the big sets that I know I want for situations like these, but I'm running out of those, and I'm not sure if I should pull the trigger on this GWP. What if there's classic space/adventurers/western GWP around the corner? Maybe I should just wait for that updated Rock Raiders GWP...
Thank you! ❤ Hopefully I've also shown with my actions and this video that even if you *know* you are a consumer being manipulated, you can still be a consumer being manipulated. I'm going through the comment section now - so far I haven't been called a hypocrite for falling for the FOMO then calling Lego out on it, but I'm sure it's in here somewhere. It's definitely a fair point to raise honestly, and I don't have a great defence other than "but I wanted the set". 😟 And I'm right there with you - I just wouldn't be able to resist going for any of those other GWP ideas you mentioned. Luckily, most of them would (hopefully) be cheaper than this one on the aftermarket, so that might just become the best way to grab them.
@@RRSlugger Well, I'm also now a consumer being manipulated that knows he's being manipulated, lol. Except I have one up on you; I waited too long to make up my mind, that the set I bought to get the GWP (the blacksmith) is now back ordered. So, I won't even get it for a couple months! [facepalm] I also got a small set to make sure the GWP ships right now. I don't feel too bad because I was planning on getting these sets eventually anyway. AND I think you have a good point where this specific GWP will likely be a hotter item than pretty much any other one; so, I can just buy any others that I want on the aftermarket. (Well, all that logic at least makes me feel less like a sucker, lol)
Reminds me so much of the Ulysses space probe Vip gift. Came out after the discovery launch, many people (myself included) bought extra stuff to get points for it so they had it with the shuttle and even bought discovery at midnight so that way they wouldn’t miss out (cause everyone knew supplies were short) and then.... a handful of days later the Ulysses spade probe goes on the Vip site and the site goes down for 30 minutes. When it’s back they are all gone. Lego only had a handful and knew more people would want it. They never apologized and said they wouldn’t rerelease. Then out of the blue the other day they rerelease, no one has the points and they sell out instantly again. Lego says they care about the fans and rereleased and the fans failed to get the set, the supplies matched the demand in their mind when it clearly didn’t. It’s not even a well designed set and very inaccurate for scale but fomo led to people spending $100+ on eBay in desperation. It will always leave a bad taste in my mouth but I’m honestly glad I don’t have it.
Very accurate opinion piece. The only more egregious castle "release" would be 910001 Castle in the Forest. I'm lucky enough to have ONE copy of both sets, but am damn near afraid to open 910001 due to it's current value. Wish I'd bought two, but...it didn't occur to me that others were ordering 5 with intent to scalp. Hopefully the release of 10305 satiates the long overdue castle needs. Can we all agree that taking two of LEGO's best (space and castle) and bastardizing them into Nexo Knights effectively meant AFOLs got neither castle or space for several years and now there's an inflated aftermarket and extreme pent up demand?
That was the mother of all botched Lego releases; I’m still shocked there wasn’t a more vocal outcry against the way that went down - most folks on RUclips seemed happy to shrug and say “oh well, I got mine”! There’s no good reason the Bricklink Designer program sets need to be limited releases the way they are. They routinely sell out in a DAY, which makes this Forest Hideout set look like it has a large release window by comparison.
I was able to "qualify" for this set with a pre-order I was interested in, as well as some I-really-don't-need-this-set, sets, to get me over the $209AUD threshold, here in Australia. Yep, we've been played...
Yeah me too, I got the new 3in1 Viking Ship and the Muppet minifigs..Well, I wanted those things anyway, and there is plenty on the wish list for the Double XP week and then comes a crazy August!
I completely agree. The vast majority of fans do not live close enough to a Lego store to simply stop in. For a set they know in advance would have such huge popularity they should have given this one a general retail release.
man, I only found this vid after buying the blacksmith set and qualifying for this set and wanting a review. I am happy I ended up getting this set, but fully agree with your points to the FOMO aspect of a set like this.
It kinda just got me to pull the trigger on a set I already wanted. Definitely would’ve been nice if it was offered for sale, or at least available for a longer period of time.
Congrats on 3K! This one is a pass for me, the Forestmen theme hits just outside my nostalgia strike box, so while I can appreciate the homage there is not as much of a personal connection. I am trying to be more picky about giving LEGO my money when it can go a lot further in the used brick market. It helps to step back and ask myself, "what do I want to collect?" (Hint: "All of the sets" is not a realistic answer!). So if my choice can be made easier with an obstacle to the tune of $200 then I'll be on my merry way to eBay, thank you very much.
Thank you for this video. I am one of those suckers who got lured into this FOMO trap. What I am more annoyed about is that a few days AFTER the GWP started, it has been announced that the GWP will RETURN again in August. In other words, I could have saved me some money by NOT buying some Lego sets I actually didn't need. Oh well, another expensive lesson learned.
I really love this set, i got it with my purchase of the technic sian, and I loved it so much I actually was willing to preorder the galaxy explorer and the Star Wars inquisitors ship, because I knew I was going to purchase both of them, and I figured I should just ore order and get this with them, and I am going to get it, and keep it not to resell but just for fun, it really pains me because I am convinced this would probably be the best lego set available right now if it where retail for $30
I'm lucky in the sense I knew this was coming, and have been after the modular bookshop for a while. I just waited until this GWP was available to buy the bookshop. It sucks for people who don't keep up with leaks or who weren't planning to buy high value sets.
I understand your feelings about this GWP and definitely wouldn't argue with them. For me, since there are some Lego sets that almost never get a discount, the GWP is at least a reward for paying full retail. Yes it's a marketing ploy, but being an informed consumer is the only option. I would definitely prefer it as a regular release. At least in the U.S., I'm glad there were enough available to last the (short) promotion. Hopefully it returns in August. It's small solace, but the FOMO in Lego collecting is still a lot less than some other toys. I had to stop action figure collecting because it was too stressful. "Oh you weren't online for the 15 minutes it was up for preorder? Well good luck hunting stores for a month and here's a link to eBay."
im glad you think this set is great after having to get what you got to get it. i think it looks brilliant hopefully the response to all these older themes will get kicked started off again and not just a one off for the 90th anniversary
Indeed! I honestly was trying to downplay how awesome I felt the set was because I didn’t want to unintentionally instil FOMO in others with my review. 😅
im too young to have experienced castle in its time, but it is still one of my favourite themes. i own one set myself, but it has since been lost. i was so excited when i saw this at first, but as an unemployed teenager no way could i ever get it in time😅 i'd love to see more castle re-dos!!
I've heard talk about the set coming back as a GWP during the august release of the 90th anniversary Castle. So if someone wanted it to accompany the Castle you could wait until then. And in the worst case scenario (rumor being false) just get it on bricklink afterwards, maybe there will even be unboxed cheaper offerings by then.
City kinda carries on their "space" theme, but I wish Lego would do a new like, classic castle/ knights theme, outside of just a couple anniversary sets
The fact the only two new Castle sets that came out in years are one you need to spend almost $150 USD (I think?) To get in like a short window, or one that's $300 USD leaves a bad taste in my mouth in general.
It's like the algorithm read my mind! Just brought the DeLorean yesterday along with the GWP. I had missed out on the DeLorean when it was first available as I'm a TFOL and just don't really jump at spending money. But then after seeing the GWP recently, I was suddenly checking the Lego Website, even considering buying several meh sets just to get this GWP from a range I don't have much attachment to. Thankfully the DeLorean came back in stock and I could buy it in good conscience as its a set I genuinely want. Still, it's funny how a very limited GWP pushed me over the edge to make my first ever purchase on the Lego Site and a large one at that. As a Bionicle fan and someone who likes a large range of themes I hope there will be more 90th sets this size but hopefully they'll be more reasonably available. After all, as a New Zealander I'm still mad I couldn't get a Kakapo in the like, 24 hours the Bricklink polls were open.
I’m so pleased you were able to get the DeLorean! That’s a set I’m so glad I rushed out to get the day it came out - almost got robbed as I left the mall with it! It was crazy…. 😅 Oh, and don’t get me started on how much I dislike the way Lego chooses to run the Bricklink Designer program. Truly awful.
@@RRSlugger Crazy! Yeah although I may have spoken too soon...now I'm wanting to preorder the new Galaxy Explorer but will not be able to for a while! Btw it's good to see a channel focusing on an underrated theme and an era of Lego that doesn't get as much attention so I've subscribed :)
Completely agree with you regarding the £190 spend to get it as a GWP! I could have got it but refused to shell out that amount of money just to get it, it was a very unfair move of Lego to price it at that level, imo. I hope a few more had the same attitude as me because if Lego think they can get away with that sort of pricing, they'll do it more and when you consider the recent 25% price increase of sets, it's too much, far too greedy!
Let's not forget, too, that Lego owns BL. A $600 sale of a 1980s set makes Lego money, as does the inflated prices issued by scalpers of this GWP. Lego profits from scalpers and is still making money on sets older than God.
I agree completely with this set in particular over other gift with purchases. A lot of them are cool but not everyone is gonna want them. So it's not too bad but this is a set that a lot of people are gonna want. I was just lucky enough that I also wanted the Medieval Blacksmith which was the price point to get it
I think they may be bringing back the promo sometime in august, but it is a bit of a shame to just not mass release this set, it would definitely sell out immediately. But this was a midnight purchase for me, I didn’t want to risk missing out (I guess that’s the whole point of the video 😂😅)
@@RRSlugger I know they did it at least with the Charles Dickens GWP. I know there's other ones too in more recent times just totally blanking on them right now lol. If they do decide to bring it back though, Ill definitely be picking up another one.
I managed to pick this one up but I agree with the disappointment in Lego's continual reliance on artificial scarcity in their marketing. It makes it harder to appreciate new themes or even sets on a set-by-set basis when the possibility of an incomplete collection is valued more than the design of each item in said collection. Had this set been released in retail, I would gladly have picked up a couple and praised Lego's decision to make a vintage product affordable for new fans. When the company as a whole seems to be leaning more and more towards expensive media tie-ins and sets retire faster than they did even a half a decade ago, it becomes harder to justify purchasing from Lego. I remember finding space police sets still on shelves in late 2012, three years after some of them went out of circulation. I cannot picture a kid nowadays having a similar experience. There is a trend toward this in circles beyond Lego, the way some people plan months in advance to buy tickets to Disney parks for instance, but that does not make it less upsetting to see. The recent discussion around Lego as a tool of investment has not helped things either, your video on The Chief from Rock Raiders being an excellent example of how the snowballing 'value' of a toy can price fans out of the market.
Well, FOMO was a big reason I sprung for that Rock Raiders HQ. I'd missed out on it once during its time, I wasn't going to miss it again after seeing the first sealed copy for sale locally in over a decade if not two! When the Jane Goodall GWP came out in March, I determined I wasn't going to get it as a GWP, and thankfully it was *surprisingly* affordable at 20 bucks (just under 20 CAD). I saved another 20 bucks versus the GWP route, not to mention getting a whopping 40% off the sets I actually ordered together with it versus only 10% off at the LEGO store for the GWP. I do appreciate when foliage pieces are used sparingly as well. Unfortunately I did miss out on them at the PAB wall because someone took them all within a *day* after the PAB wall resumed operations this week, but at least I have a handful from the Christmas Wreath that I can use. I got the Fall Scene polybag and now have a few of those mushroom prints, but I didn't get it primarily for those prints, I got it for some of the dark red and dark green toothed plates to use in MOCs.
Yeah, I used the Jane Goodall tribute as an example in the video because I felt it was contemporary enough to be relevant and displayed how cheap *most* GWP sets are on the aftermarket, even years later. The Forest Hideout (being both Castle and 90th Anniversary) is definitely a fringe case though, hence the video, haha. 😅
I learned to chill down. Most of the promo sets make it to amazon or other resell sites and after some time their prices plumet down. Its ALWAYS like this. In poland prices of this promo already fell down to around 33$ in resell sites Also there aparently will be a second promo wave of this set when castle premieres
That’s fair! I also think it’s fair to say “there’s got to be a better way” though, and that’s kind of the reason I made this video. I don’t think we should *have to* buy these sets on the aftermarket for inflated prices as the only means of buying them on their own.
Great video! For me its a win-win because I was gonna get Optimus prime anyway. But it would be nice if Lego can start making classic theme again such as pirates, adventures, castles, western etc. And not just big sets but smaller sets also so everyone could enjoy it.
Found one today for $200, I knew this set existed but I never knew why it was so expensive, thank you for the clarification. FOMO has gotten the better of it after a year!
Great content. You got a new subscriber. One point of clarification: this isn't FEAR of missing out. If you don't purchase $150 USD worth of LEGO in the next six days, you WILL miss out. At least miss out at getting this set for a "reasonable" price.
Thank you - I'm glad you found the channel through this video! ❤ And by the way, *GREAT* point about the distinction between the "chance" and the "reality" of missing out. 100% 👍
I love castle and have collected the big sets like Black Knights’ Castle to newer sets like the 2012-ish wave of castle sets, and I’ve got enough of the old forest men sets to love the forest men, and this remake was one of the few original sets I never got my hands on. Predictably, I did go on a shopping spree. I still wonder if I made the right choice…
it’s rly unfortunate how many gwps i’ve had to miss. i don’t usually have $200 for lego and my favorite sets are usually in the 200-300 piece range so it just feels like i’m losing every time they announce a cool gwp
bought it at midnight. anxiety calmed. but yea, literally bought another 3in1 castle and a $50 dollar pick a brick order. surprised it worked honestly lol. if they would have allowed pre orders for the new lion king's castle they could have solved any complaint i had :D what's crazy is how simple the piece use in this set is. imagine if they released a forest men battle pack next month how pissed a bunch of people would be.
Tiago Catarino on his RUclips channel this set and according to him it will be released again in August as a gift with purchase. I want one but the same time I think I need to save my money to be able to buy the castle that's coming out and the spaceship. And if the prices are going up I'll probably only be able to get one of those. PS great review liked your video.
I waited to get the blacksmith for this. There’s a preorder list for the blacksmith, but I already got the forest hideout. I love the gwp, but I really had to think hard about whether to spend that much money or not. I’m still mulling over whether to resell the blacksmith when it arrives
i always plan my purchases with GWP in mind. im planning to get the lego friends opera house and something else to reach $190 so this is pretty good timing. but i would definitely not recommend anyone spend money just for the free gift. it's never worth it. i recommend checking out lego leaks to find out their future release windows for free gifts and plan ahead.
Indeed! Last year I meticulously planned out when I would buy Barracuda Bay just so I could get the Amelia Earhart tribute with it. In the end, I was pretty "meh" about the GWP and ended up adoring Barracuda Bay, haha. 😅
Yeah...this is really aggravating especially with the new castle coming out. I absolutely will be getting that one and this would have been a great addition to it. Hopefully they re-release it when August rolls around.
Wholeheartedly agree. My FOMO has been making this set absolute torture, even though I can't afford it right now. I feel better about waiting, even though I might not get it now.
I am envious of your willpower in this regard! In the long run, I think it will be cheaper (and wiser) to wait, especially if Bricklinking it becomes a viable option. One point against this set that I didn't mention in the script was the instruction booklet; it was awful. Lego seems to be going with a new style that seems really "cheap". I had to use a paperweight to hold it open and move it for each step which really had a negative impact on the build experience. 😟
I’m not a huge LEGO fanatic, so correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t 6 days shorter than usual for these promotional sets? I feel they usually run for a few weeks at least.
Thank you very much for this video. I just got back into Lego and missed most of the cool sets like Barracuda Bay or the mentioned Forest Hideout. I bought the Forest Hideout in the after market for around 45€ and I am still quiete happy with it. Now that the Lionknights castle is such a success (I am building it currently right in front of me) and they have announced a remake of the 2013 medieval market, I think they see how much people want to have these classic sets back with a new touch and the usage of new parts. But I hope that they also see that no one can be expected to buy 10 300€ sets in a year. Some smaller builds could be perfect tontest the market and give people the option to improve their own (for example) medieval castle landscape.
I got lucky seeing a post about this GWP. My wife wanted the Van Gogh, which qualified. I had decided to invest in extra copies of Blacksmith even before the price hike from USD $150 to $180. Buying one Blacksmith as a separate order got me a second copy of Forest Hideout. I was lucky to have the budget and the rare instance of my wife wanting a set. I'd buy 2 or 3 more if I could, because I'm building a large castle setup. But not for $50. I bought tons of bricks for MOCS instead! I let my daughter build most of the first Hideout when we got them. I recently converted a TreeHouse to Forest main base camp, and unboxed the second Hideout. I took the hinges off the first model, freezing it open. Then I worked on building the second one in reverse. I ended up butting the "castle" blue roof back-to-back and same for the tree sectio. I put more plate one step down for a big base to eventually MILS plate, and hinged the whole thing on the far end so it opens. Then went crazy w/ flowers, bushes & plants. It's awesome. Took the shields off and replaced them with vines coming out of a leaf piece so I could put shields on minifigs. Agree with your take that Lego should sell these sets. Why not make more money now that the GWP was a success anyway?
i got mine when the delorean came back in stock but still the set should be available normally i have seen other gift sets in the past be available to purchase seperately
I was lucky enough to get my hands on this set, it arrived Monday, my blacksmith house hasn’t arrived yet but I had this to build first. It’s a very nice set.
It’s a brilliant marketing ploy. Even I bought the new train set to get this set. I would have bought the train set from another store for a much lower price otherwise.
I didn't realize how popular this thing was. I had gone to the Lego Store, picked up the most recent modular building, and they threw this in with it. I was like "oh, cool", and still have it sitting, unopened, in my closet
This video isn’t even a week old and the set is already retired. The “fear” of missing out is now the *reality* of missing out.
Apparently, the Forest Hideout is coming back as a “Gift” With Purchase in August to correlate with the release of the 90th Anniversary Castle, likely at the same price threshold. While this is still not ideal for obvious reasons, hopefully it will allow more of these to end up on the aftermarket to help drive prices down.
For those who will miss out, I will say that I built mine last night and this was the first LEGO brand set I've ever had where the pieces felt cheap and inconsistent in clutch power. It was the first set that made me concerned for LEGO's future quality. If it weren't a "free" set, I'd be upset. If my $400 10305 feels this way, LEGO will lose me.
Anybody else's 40567 feel "off"?
@@Revenant7n Indeed - many of my black arch pieces already had scratch marks on them fresh out of the box; I had to be strategic on where I placed them in order to hide these defects. Not what I would expect from a new set! 😢
Probably as a GWP with the castle haha. Though that set is well worth it in my opinion.
I hope that's true
@@Revenant7n I felt that with the Earhart plane, but enjoyed it.
I think this release is so frustrating for me because, had it been released any more broadly, it would sell like crazy and send a clear message that there's still a market for the classic themes. I personally want Lego to realize their in-house properties are loved and would do very well outside of the small number of what are effectively novelties based on their old heavy-hitters.
Agree 100% if they released something with classic castle or Adventurer's aesthetic I would scoop some of that up instantly.
Yeah it upsets me how much these guys just ignore everything besides the most heavy hitters
I am the last to complain about classic space but having (almost) all of the sets realized in ideas, icons and the lego Movie sets chained to the same sub theme just sucks
And everything like aquazone, exo force, aquaraiders and so many more just don't get any love at all
@@n_ex13 Exo-Force is just old enough it deserves a face-lift with a lot of the modern engineering and parts. I'd be all for a direct continuation or even just one last hurrah since the story never properly finished IIRC.
What I don't understand is how they couldn't see it. The blacksmith shop sold really well. The 3 in 1 castle was bought up like crazy, everyone seemed to want 2 or more. The Castle in the Forest was so desired it sold out in seconds and forced Lego to revise the entire Bricklink Designer Program. And then this set, it will pull in money hand over fist with everyone buying $150 worth of random sets to get it. And the 90th anniversary castle will probably sell out day one, despite its price. There is no way Lego can't see it is time to bring back classic castle as a full theme.
Agreed Lego did great things they had their own dinosaur theme before they start doing Jurassic Park their own space themes before they start doing Star Wars. And what about their egyptian adventurers all that great classic stuff that they stop doing in favor of doing license sets.
The fear of missing out certainly extends to beyond GWP. When I was a kid in the 90s, lego sets from years prior were still available on store shelves, sometimes at discount prices. These days, a popular set may only be available for a year or two to make room for the next theme. And if it is discounted it's usually right before its gone from retail. So if money is tight and you skip out on a set that's released in January, you may have to purchase it for Christmas that year before it's ushered into the aftermarket pricing
This 100%. I *distinctly* remember walking into a store as a kid where sets that were released years apart from each other sat by side, both on sale even! No one knew to collect Lego for it's "monetary value" back then, which predictably is what makes older sets so valuable today.
I don't even bother looking for Lego on clearance anymore - it's always picked clean by Lego "investors" in my city, it's crazy.
And the ridiculous speed in which sets are retired too! I was gobsmacked when I learned Barracuda Bay retired... I enjoyed building it so much that I would probably say it is the best Lego set I have ever had the pleasure of owning. Now if anyone else wants to have that experience, they have to pay out the nose for a set on the aftermarket. I know TLG has to retire them eventually, but is like... 2 years too much to ask?
Not to mention the fact that scammers run the stock out in days of any set that is even remotely exclusive.
Forget a year, at my local stores I’m lucky if the sets last a wave.
This is so true. After Christmas, pretty much the only time I would have any money to spend as a kid, I'd go to a big toy store and choose a set, and the ones I didn't get would be there the next year. This is a bubble waiting to burst, they can't continue at this rate and expect people to keep up. Completionist collecting even a single theme would find it almost impossible now, and the aftermarket prices are often ludicrous. At some point people decide to skip a set, then a few, then hold out for larger releases, then realise they prefer to hold onto their money. The way the economy is going won't help either. I hope I'm wrong. But I expect a flurry of aftermarket sets to flood the market soon as recessions bite worldwide and people try to cash in.
@@CraftsmanOfAwsomenes My walmart sometimes doesn't even order some waves..
Lego FOMO has been a huge problem as of late, glad to hear someone talking about it
I don't think I've spent more money on Lego in any other year
Thank you! ❤
I'm just glad that many people (like yourself) are of a similar mind on the whole thing - I really didn't know what I might be stepping into when I made this video as I really hadn't seen Lego FOMO being discussed online. 😅
I completely agree, LEGO is using fear of missing out to manipulate people into spending more than they would normally. I’m real mad about that ridiculous 6 day window, even Nintendo made the slightly less awful decision of releasing the Super Mario 3D All Stars Pack for a good couple months and even that was still awful but 6 days is kind of insulting. For a couple years LEGO seemed to be getting better but now it’s nosediving fast. Great video as always, and on a subject that really does need to be discussed.
Exactly. I used to believe that consumer manipulative tactics like blind bags, "gift with purchase" sets, limited release windows, and intentional short-stock of items to drive up demand were all beneath The Lego Group, but they have definitively since proved me wrong. 😟
@@RRSlugger They went near bankrupt the old way. That was in 2003. People tend to forget. And it is only a few years after they got really back on track.
I understand that a limited run makes people more excited about getting sets but when you're only able to buy these things for a month or two they're basically saying "rich people only" and that's kind of sad.
Some people can afford to throw lots of money at LEGO in order to get these gifts amd exclusives and then they can resell the sets they don't want at a profit to us schmucks.
I don't think anybody would be mad if LEGO rereleased any of these exclusives. Even if they're exclusively sold on LEGO.com and not other retailers, it seems unfair not to give people a few months to save up and buy one if they want it.
If the set isn't available for retail price I'm just going to miss out, I won't buy different sets instead. It seems to me like they'd sell more sets overall if they made them available, but I'm not an economist...
I think another predatory aspect of this release is that they officially revealed the Lion Knight’s Castle set just a few days after this released, but that set won’t be available for purchase until much after the forest hideout set goes away. For people saving up their money to buy an enormous castle set, does it really make sense to splurge $150 just a few weeks before? Why not release it alongside the main castle set, which not only makes sense thematically, but is also easier on the customers wallet? Obvious answer is if lego can get you to spend more, they will, and it certainly worked on me.
I found out about this and the new castle at the same time and that was my thought exactly. It seems like a very obvious way to get customers who wanted one or the other to get both. Maybe they have a similar Space GWP planned to go with the Galaxy Explorer and screwed over Castle fans to do it?
@@Pokemanic33 nah, this isn’t the first time they’ve done something like this. The Harry Potter gift with purchase sets always release a month or two before that year’s big D2C set.
they do it precisely *because* the themes are different. If you’re really into your castle theme, you’ll spend that extra $150 you may not have to get that GWP, *and* buy the castle when it comes out. There is no need to give a castle themed GWP alongside it as fans will already be buying it. Cross-theme promotion is an upsell and sucks
Yeah I also genuinely thought ooh I may get the castle or space anniversary sets and then this will be a bonus but you can't! That's really a shitty move from Lego.
My response to this was simple. They're raising prices in August, so I asked several friends and family members to order a set that's going up by 20%. I'll keep several of these sets for free when I sell those sets.
I actually said 'What?!' at my laptop screen in an empty room when you said '6 days'. That is... well, ridiculous. This and their recent price hike has brought me to an uncomfortable realisation.
I don't really feel like buying LEGO anymore. At least, not at the moment. I've had to be strict with my finances lately, and as a result a lot of sets have slipped past me, some even without me knowing about. As a result, I've almost become desensitised to that happening. Not to say I like LEGO any less, but I haven't actually bought a new set for quite a while now. So actually, for me at least, this tactic of using FOMO to increase sales has actually had the opposite effect.
It really bugs me when people say you shouldn't be ungrateful or complain about these things. TLG is a very successful and wealthy company after all, so we don't really owe them anything. I know I've done a lot of 'standing up for LEGO' myself in the past (more so in my younger days), but if we have a gripe, we are more than allowed to voice it.
Whoops, I'm beginning to vent, sorry. I do still enjoy LEGO, and don't think I'm going into a dark age. I've got your videos to stop that from happening!
Great comment - thank you for venting your feelings here! ❤️
You are not alone in becoming disinterested in buying new Lego sets; going through the comment sections on my videos, I’ve heard from a number of people who are in exactly the same boat. Bad business practices alienate customers and I think we’re seeing that in practice here…
I stopped all my Lego funding for now... The prices have gotten completely out of hand and the sets are getting worse and worse...
On the other hand I found my love for tanks and ships so all my Lego funding goes to Cobi now 😅...
They're leaning into the collector / speculator market so hard now. Scalpers are their real customers now, not you. They've decided their product is now more like a cryptocurrency than a toy.
Hey everyone,
This was a tough video to make - I'm still not sure I got it *quite* right with my take on the release of this set either. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the matter as well, so please feel free to contribute in the comments section.
I've fallen behind with responding to comments on my last video; I will get to them, but I was busy making *this* video, haha! There's still one more planned for release this weekend, but it is in the final stages of production and shouldn't be too much of a crunch to finish it up.
Thank you for the continued support everyone! ❤
As a lifelong Lego fan (40years) I couldn’t agree with you more. Lego is seems to be alienating a lot of their fans similar to what Disney’s doing. I’ll always love your Content though, keep it up!
I think you covered this topic incredibly well. Also, I don't assume I speak for everyone but I'm fine with any comment reply delays, especially if it means an extra video!
A fair and seemingly balanced review of the situation and set. No ranting and you opened with information before opinions. I am able to make what feels like an informed purchase if I wish to. Thank you.
As for replying to comments, I personally do not expect a reply from anyone. It is nice to get one, but I am well aware that I am a faceless voice, and before that I did not exist. Random conversations can be fun though.
Any way, have a nice day.
@@For891 Thank you for the compliment! ❤
To be honest, I actually *have* started to notice some of the quality issues others have brought up before; some of my newer bricks have started to crack (already??) and scratches and scuffs on "new" bricks is starting to become a nuisance.
The VAST majority of the Lego I own is from pre-2005 though, so I guess I hadn't noticed these issues before.
@@CarsSimplified Hahaha, thank you! I was hoping the friends of the channel would be fine with that trade-off. 😉
Even though I have ZERO nostalgia for the Classic Castle theme, I actually really do like the old yet refreshed look of this set! It's just a travesty that it's essentially stuck behind a hefty $190 paywall, and I fear that any more of these new 're-imagined' 90th anniversary sets will continue to be pricey GWPs with very short periods in order to redeem them 😵💫 If they do go ahead and make either a Rock Raiders, The Lego Movie, Ninjago, or Bionicle 90th anniversary set and it's a GWP..... I'd honestly implode. 😭
I'm frightened this will become a trend too... Honestly, one of my only solaces is that the year is already half over and how many more of these can they stuff into Lego's 90th Anniversary? 😅😅
I doubt that was the intended feeling Lego wanted me to takeaway from this whole experience... dread.
Imagine if they did this with bionicle. Produce the first set for that theme in years and lock it behind a GWP.
@@coraldiamond1922 God, I wish we got actual themes again... I'd kill for a new classic-styled space theme
That Bionicle Fomo comment aged pretty badly since Lego revealed their 90th anniversary Tahu and Takua promo gift set.
This is a really well timed video to make. I really wanted this set and there was absolutely a fear of missing out. As soon as I heard it was GWP, I shook my head. Lego know they can do this, they have the data and the pricing stats. There's a lot of people saying stuff like "They'd make more if they released it standalone" but it would have no marketing, no way to stand out on a shelf, no fear of missing out driving a purchase and they'd be making less on it. I had to spend $209 AUD on two sets I did kinda want to buy (but didn't want to buy then and there) for a set worth $40. Lego is up way more on my purchase than if I'd bought it standalone.
GWP hurts buyers, especially when GWP is region locked or set locked. Get this gift if you buy $49 worth of Ninjago; okay but I don't like Ninjago. Get this gift if you buy during this week; okay but I don't have money right now. This only helps scalpers and inflates the aftermarket. It's nice to get a gift for buying something but that gift should be available to purchase standalone online through Lego's store during the time period.
Lego has been trending bigger, and they're saying it needs to be more expensive and the only place I still see decently priced creativity in their line is the Creator 3-in-1 line. I'm going to pick up the Creator Castle to pair with my forestman hideout but honestly, every set now is just too expensive. I can't justify these prices for what will be expensive display pieces, collecting dust.
Yeah there sales are doing so great they are just able to pull what ever they want and get away with it
Like the price increases is just scam
To quote your comment, "GWP hurts buyers" - that's definitely the point I was trying to make with this long-winded video, but you found a way to sum it up succinctly, thank you! ❤
I am in agreement with your stance here - really spot on assessment of the whole situation. 👍
Hit the nail on the head
I had been interested in purchasing the Blacksmith set for a few weeks. I went to pull the trigger on it until a few weeks ago when I saw that this set would be free when I bought the original set I wanted...so I waited. I also got a free car lego set as well, so it was worth it for me. Had I not already planned on buying a set that would have made me eligible for this set, I would not have bought anything just to have this set. It is a pretty cool set though.
Planning ahead like this definitely seems to be the way to go as a consumer. 👍
@@RRSlugger well i bought just ahead of hide-out getting announced into the cardboard space rocket and some more GWP's, so i had no money left for the big buy needed to get the hide-out.
I have like 10 sets i might want that are good for combining with GWP's and i never buy on release date, just waiting for the right combi of set/GWP/money in hand to come along.
I just think these practices are indicative of the direction Lego as a company is going. They want to pander to the desire of their older fans if only to profit from it as much as possible. These kinds of releases feed into scalper markets and there's no way Lego can't know it. I love the Lego system but frankly I rarely buy lego sets from stores anymore because often times it feels like decisions of the company are putting profit over quality whereas in the past this was, at least less the case
Yeah but that's just capitalism in a nutshell and like besides mega nothing really can compete with lego
@@n_ex13 thats why i feel like buying 2nd hand is the best option. At least then it doesn't support lego's bad design choices. Unfortunately it can be prone to scalping but usually there are sites that have somewhat reasonable rates
Remember when LEGO was going bankrupt in the early 2000’s? This is a way to generate more revenue to sustain and grow a great company. I love having the option to get this great set with the purchase of another set I would’ve already gotten. This being said, no one’s above criticism.
Absolutely - the thing I agree with the most here is "there's no way Lego can't know it". They've got to 100% know what they're doing with all this. 👍
@@horustortoise6110 That's definitely a fair stance to take too! I'm glad you were able to pair this purchase with something else you were going to buy anyways; I was able to line that up when I bought Barracuda Bay to get the Amelia Earhart tribute set. I waited on buying Barracuda Bay in order to get the timing right.
Theoretically, I could have done that here as well if I had waited to buy the DeLorean, but that set is *still* on backorder, if I'm correct. I'm very thankfully I rushed out to get that one when I did. 😅
I might offer some push-back on your comment about generating revenue to "sustain" the company though; I didn't just make up that line in the script about Lego being *the most profitable toy company in the world* - as far as I can tell, that's fact. With over a billion dollars in net profit last year, merely "sustaining" the company is no longer part of the playbook.
The Lego Group can afford to be a little more fair to their consumers, I think. Just my 2 cents though!
If you look at the receipt, the Forest Hideout is listed at $29.99 CAD (with a gift discount applied). You aren't too far off.
I actually had initially planned to get two Pirate Ships for this promo (one I was planning to get already), but they ended up going temporarily out of stock just before the promo started. So instead I got another Medieval Blacksmith to change into a custom MOC. It really does have that FOMO vibe though, and funny how it lines up perfectly with the Double VIP starting *basically right after this promo ends*.
Kind of disappointing acts from Lego, I hope they don't do too much else along these lines, but they clearly know what kind of themes people are willing to drop bank for.
I never thought to look at the receipt! D'oh! I guess I've been subconsciously avoiding it due to how much I spent yesterday... 😅😅😅
I was lucky that there were 2 sets I already wanted to get before this gwp was really revealed (the galaxy explorer because I love classic space, and that lego city space missions set because I love the 2022 city space series) so I was like $15 CAD or so away from getting this GWP after ordering the two.
Then for the remainder I ordered a bunch of crossbows, bows, and some black falcon shields off B&P to make up the 15$ish. which is fine because now I have a bunch of extra equipment to put in my lion knights castle armory, aswell as my medieval blacksmith's weapon stock. So it very conveniently snd coincidently worked out for me in the end.
Probably the one and only time I'll ever make a GWP related order off Lego though.
I haven't bought a Lego set for myself in over fifteen years and am too young to have any personal nostalgia for the Castle theme, and yet even *I* found myself wanting to get my hands on the Forest Hideout. THAT is the power of the Fear Of Missing Out.
that's also because it's a truly loveely little set that oozes charm and features great construction. Limiting its release like that is an offense to the designer.
If you check the listing for the 40567 on lego's website you can see they list it for $24.99 but not for sale. At least in the USA. I've also seen a few people say it's getting an August re-release as a gwp again. Those two factors might keep the after market price down for a while.
It would certainly be interesting to see it reappear again later, though another Gift With Purchase release is obviously not ideal...
@@RRSlugger it is *possible* it lines up with the castle.
All sets legally need a “price” in certain regions and so Lego has to price sets and they have to do so at a “fair and reasonable market value” I believe for taxes or something. Every gwp has a suggested msrp on the Lego store :)
Just an FYI, in Tiago Catarino's review of this set (former Lego Designer), he mentions that this GWP will return for August 2nd, a day after a bunch of new August releases including the big new 90th anniversary Castle. So there's a buffer for this GWP FOMO, at least for people who know about the August release.
That’s what I’ve been hearing - hopefully that rumour is true! It’s still not a great scenario and many of the problems with this initial release will carry over, but at least it’s something…
Doesn’t the castle release on the third?
@@Lethalape15 For VIP it is preorder n 3rd, otherwise it releases on the 8th. The return of August GWP promo hasn't been confirmed, so still considered rumored.
@@RRSlugger Yeah I too hope the rumors are true... I was not able to get it the first time cause I'm saving up for the new castle here August 3. 😅
Because I live in Chile, a country that doesn't have official LEGO stores but a Lego store by a distribution company, I'll probably be able to purchase the set separately, GWPs are sold as sets here but all sets take several months to arrive.
Growing up I missed out on many cool sets and minifigures. There were tonnes of figures from the minifigure series I wish I got my hands on but are now far too expensive to get nowadays. I think this is part of what fuels my ‘fear to lose’ out. Really like that term by the way, though wish it didn’t exist. I doubt that Lego would redo some of the best minifigures of past series. As a castle fan, perhaps Lego should do a mini figure series focussed on this theme, it’ll provide an opportunity to redo past figures.
While I fully agree with your points, I avoided the FOMO by simply just planniing ahead when I heard about the set some weeks ago. There's more than a few sets I want that cross that threshold for me to get the free gift, so I just waited until the time was right to buy one of them. This isn't to say I think this absolves LEGO, in fact I feel buying a damn toy shouldn't require damn pre-planning, but it is what it is.
And I agree with your comment! Planning it out is almost a requirement to make this system work (as a consumer). I'm really glad you were able to line this one up with some "must haves" for you; I wasn't as lucky and had to settle for a number of "nice to haves" as Lego doesn't really have a lot in their portfolio that excites me (at the moment, and I already bought the DeLorean, haha).
That’s what I did. Knew I wanted optimus and waited until there was a big gift with purchase. Never buy if there isn’t some kind of deal going on
@@lburrsshinyhunts2253 Yeah, I literally did that same thing. I waited to order Optimus because I saw that this was coming out.
I tried this approach one time with the Harry Potter dormitory GWP. When the free gift finally came, the set I plan to by with it went out of stock, and all that is left are unwanted HP sets. It almost feels like it is deliberate. Good thing this Forest Hideout GWP is not limited to a theme, so it is easy to reach the threshold.
I do this all the time. And there are always sets I want so it's never really been an issue. I don't buy anything day of release... I'm just trying to make sure I get everything I really want before they retire!
A friend of mine used to work at my local Lego store.
When he was there he would hook me up with the latest GWP even if I bought a CMF.
Those days are long gone unfortunately.
Best advice I can give: if it's feasible, order the parts separately. Don't know what to say about any unique prints and figures. Sure, it might not be a ture copy of the set, but it's probably the next best thing.
You right didn't think of it
The forestmen mfs and shields are new prints, unless you are ok using old ones
I had considered recommending this in the script, but I was actually surprised by the number of pieces I did not recognize within this set... 😟
It will probably be a few years before the new pieces become plentiful enough to reliably buy in bulk online.
@@RRSlugger Guessing new colourways of newer pieces and the minifigures (not to mention the shields) are all unique, huh?
@@NIRDIAN1 To be honest, it was mostly Black pieces within the tree I had never seen before. A lot of curved elements…
I learned of the promotion for this 1 day before it was going to be over. Here in Romania, the threshold for stuff bought was 740 RON, which is about the price of a limited edition set, like the DeLorean or the Crocodile Locomotive (something you'd save up for during the year and treat yourself to for Christmas or a birthday). Now, I'm not doing too bad, but with my salary, that's about a fifth of my income, and, more specifically, half of my rent for a Month.
I was so upset when saw this, especially considering that the estimated retail was more than reasonable and they would have very likely sold a ton of these.
I don't understand how some sets end up as purchasable items and others get stuck behind these insane paywalls. Some examples I can think of in more recent times are the small CREATOR New York Taxi or the Tuk-Tuk, the Mail Plane, that Safari 4x4. I mean, they're not bad sets, but if I was in a store and had to pick only 1 of them, I would have picked the Hideout in a heart-beat.
Last Saturday 6/17, we were at the southside Lego store in Denver. I've been waiting to get this special set ever since rumors about it started coming out. The store was packed, and we were in line to purchase my new Optimus Prime and my two younger boys a 3 in 1 Lego castle. A father and son in front of us made a purchase and got this hideout set for free. The dad hands it to his son and the boy actually said, "I don't want it!" So, the dad tells his son to give it to the one of the kids behind them who were in the other line next to us. He does and that little boy's eyes lit up and he was so happy. I kind of laughed about it because they had no idea what they had and simply gave it away in such a nice gesture. Interesting enough my sales receipt shows a $24.99 charge then a rebate for $24.99 which was this Forest Hideout set.
Some time ago I created a budget for hobbies (about 20€/month and lego counts as a hobby). I set up sort of a wishing list within my budget and just sat and waited for a cool purchase gift to turn up. If I hadn't already planned for a hobby purchase of this magnitude I suppose I wouldn't have bought something just for the free set.
That tiny release window is pretty dirty, like they want people to blindly rush and not think.
Yuuuup. And this slug is definitely guilty for falling for it. 😟
Modular buildings used to be available for four to five years, now they're only around for two or three. I agree that these limited time releases aren't good. This was something I liked about Lego, that you could actually wait to buy something instead of having to jump on it instantly
I'm getting into lego recently and I just purchased my first set in years, the Ecto 1, and I got this with purchase, I didn't think much of it but I was overjoyed to have something cool and classic looking to build alongside my new purchase, but after learning about it's exclusivity and availability it made me kinda disappointed, I know that people are thrilled about this, it looks great that's for sure, but it's such a shame how it can only be obtained through a massive purchase
Welcome back into the hobby! ❤
The official Lego store is pretty much the most expensive source to get Lego in my country, and that makes it even harder for me to justify getting a GWP, since I easily could get the main sets for 20% less elsewhere, which makes the GWP feel even less like a gift.
This set was 100% a punch in the nuts for most every collector out there of Lego. Too bad I missed it for sure, there was no chance I was going to be able to make that significant a purchase to secure one anytime soon.
I made a mad-dash to my Lego store today during my lunch break to pick this up--they still had quite a few of these in stock. Fortunately, there were a few sets I had been planning to get, so most of the things I bought to make it to $150 were things I would eventually get anyway.
I will sometimes get on eBay within a few weeks of a GWP, and often get them for $40 or $50--a lot for what they are, but far less than the $150 I would have needed to spend to get it organically.
I too was quite surprised how "low demand" they were in my area. I was at the Lego Store within an hour of them opening, expecting a line up like there was with the DeLorean. Instead, the store was empty; I'm pretty sure I got the first one, hahaha. 😅
The GWPs are definitely there to entice sales with FOMO. Luckily I was able to grab a few sets I’ve been meaning to buy to get it, but if it wasn’t for this set I probably would have waited longer or bought from another retailer where the sets are usually cheaper.
I definitely think think your thoughts were fair and balanced on the set though. Also your wish for more remakes this year will probably come true as there’s a galaxy explorer and lion kings castle remake rumor.
I completely agree! I just bought a bunch of Star Wars sets that I otherwise wouldn’t have bought JUST TO GET THIS SET 😝
While I was born in 2001, I have a strong connection with the classic Castle sets (and old sets in general), thanks to my dad giving me his LEGOs he had as a kid. I remember flipping thru old catalogs he had and just taking in the awesome little scenes they made with the figures. It makes me sad that a new LEGO set that actually looks interesting is locked behind a huge paywall.
It’s such a shame! It’s a great set, but the release strategy they used ruins the whole experience for many…
Same here. Same birth year, similar story, still had those old catalogs and love vintage Lego. Constantly buying vintage stuff (but I’m more into town) was really hoping we’d get a town 90th anniversary set. I’m not super into castle (although I’ll admit the big castle is amazing) I really wanted the new galaxy explorer so I picked up that and some more pick a brick to compliment my lugbulk hull so I ended up getting this GWP but the whole thing is a scam.
I like the original better, simply because it has more useful pieces. The original tree branches double as half portals to be used in other ways, whereas these modern branches just don't have that same versatility. Same goes for the roof. The original roof was useful in many ways, but now it's replaced with blank tiles and they're definitely more limited. This new version is a nice set, but I'll definitely sell mine while it's hot and overpriced.
FOMO got me on this one too. Fantastic video! I agree with everything you said.
FOMO is a powerful foe indeed, friend. 😟
Glad you enjoyed the video though!
I feel like there's a bit of fear of missing out driving up sales by the announcement of the price increase with a window to buy before it goes into effect. I know I've picked up some sets (particularly Speed Champions, as I've previously commented) because of this, and will probably continue to. Plus I got this Forest Hideout set. Tempted to get another. I know it won't be hard to find enough items to hit that threshold a second time.
One of the sets I got to build and then immediately disassemble for parts is the Lego City Fire Brigade/60321. There were quite a few dark teal parts in it I think you'd like.
@@CarsSimplified That shipping container especially!! Haha, I would love to one day create a Rock Raiders standardized shipping transport of some sort. 😊
Thanks for pointing this out. I havent thought of that tactic but being aware is an important step of the purchase decision process. They are a marketing geniuses :)
I completely agree like I am gonna buy sets I have only a moderate interested in just to obtain it
The set is one of my favourite of 2022 the limited foliage really adds something, although I still like the spam used in many others sets. And the black trees are beautiful
I got a second copy of the Medieval Blacksmith Shop LEGO Ideas set *_just_* so that I can get a single copy of the 40567 Forest Hideout LEGO Castle set; but I had to use my credit card in order to buy it and get the 40567 Forest Hideout LEGO Castle set "for free" in cost, even though I'm *_already_* in serious credit card debt and thus really shouldn't be using my credit card for non-essential things right now - laughing out loud (not really), here. 😮💨😓😞
Topic aside, I adore the futuristic mini skyline at 0:13
Thank you! I spent so many hours building it for the Time Cruisers Primer video, I've been aching to use it again, haha.
I really want this set, but at the same time I really want the new HP wave, seems highly unlikely that it'll still be available by Sunday, but fingers crossed. Also pretty weird that LEGO didn't release this as a GWP for the new large scale Castle set this August.
Hopefully this doesn't turn out to be bad advice, but at least locally at my Lego Store there were plenty of these sets to go around; there's also been a rumour that they are going to bring this set back again as a GWP in August, but I have no source for that rumour - it's just hearsay.
Just found this video today and couldn't agree more.
Once the big castle set was showed I really wanted to get my hands on this set.
But as I have no Lego stores in my City/State (and like 5 in the country) I was at the mercy of the online page. And I refused to buy sets I didn't want I was unfortunate that any of the sets I wanted went out of stock the first day of this set was being given. Then once those steps where restocked this set was exhausted (2 days before the actual event was supposed to end).
So I ended up missing out on this
Well done on the video! You hit the main points of FOMO and realizing that GWPs are not actually gifts but marketing strategies to increase sales. I'm still undecided on this set; I think it looks good but castle isn't a nostalgic series for me. I usually wait to buy the big sets that I know I want for situations like these, but I'm running out of those, and I'm not sure if I should pull the trigger on this GWP. What if there's classic space/adventurers/western GWP around the corner? Maybe I should just wait for that updated Rock Raiders GWP...
Thank you! ❤
Hopefully I've also shown with my actions and this video that even if you *know* you are a consumer being manipulated, you can still be a consumer being manipulated. I'm going through the comment section now - so far I haven't been called a hypocrite for falling for the FOMO then calling Lego out on it, but I'm sure it's in here somewhere. It's definitely a fair point to raise honestly, and I don't have a great defence other than "but I wanted the set". 😟
And I'm right there with you - I just wouldn't be able to resist going for any of those other GWP ideas you mentioned. Luckily, most of them would (hopefully) be cheaper than this one on the aftermarket, so that might just become the best way to grab them.
@@RRSlugger Well, I'm also now a consumer being manipulated that knows he's being manipulated, lol. Except I have one up on you; I waited too long to make up my mind, that the set I bought to get the GWP (the blacksmith) is now back ordered. So, I won't even get it for a couple months! [facepalm] I also got a small set to make sure the GWP ships right now. I don't feel too bad because I was planning on getting these sets eventually anyway. AND I think you have a good point where this specific GWP will likely be a hotter item than pretty much any other one; so, I can just buy any others that I want on the aftermarket. (Well, all that logic at least makes me feel less like a sucker, lol)
Reminds me so much of the Ulysses space probe Vip gift. Came out after the discovery launch, many people (myself included) bought extra stuff to get points for it so they had it with the shuttle and even bought discovery at midnight so that way they wouldn’t miss out (cause everyone knew supplies were short) and then.... a handful of days later the Ulysses spade probe goes on the Vip site and the site goes down for 30 minutes. When it’s back they are all gone. Lego only had a handful and knew more people would want it. They never apologized and said they wouldn’t rerelease. Then out of the blue the other day they rerelease, no one has the points and they sell out instantly again. Lego says they care about the fans and rereleased and the fans failed to get the set, the supplies matched the demand in their mind when it clearly didn’t. It’s not even a well designed set and very inaccurate for scale but fomo led to people spending $100+ on eBay in desperation. It will always leave a bad taste in my mouth but I’m honestly glad I don’t have it.
Very accurate opinion piece. The only more egregious castle "release" would be 910001 Castle in the Forest. I'm lucky enough to have ONE copy of both sets, but am damn near afraid to open 910001 due to it's current value. Wish I'd bought two, but...it didn't occur to me that others were ordering 5 with intent to scalp.
Hopefully the release of 10305 satiates the long overdue castle needs. Can we all agree that taking two of LEGO's best (space and castle) and bastardizing them into Nexo Knights effectively meant AFOLs got neither castle or space for several years and now there's an inflated aftermarket and extreme pent up demand?
That was the mother of all botched Lego releases; I’m still shocked there wasn’t a more vocal outcry against the way that went down - most folks on RUclips seemed happy to shrug and say “oh well, I got mine”!
There’s no good reason the Bricklink Designer program sets need to be limited releases the way they are. They routinely sell out in a DAY, which makes this Forest Hideout set look like it has a large release window by comparison.
I was able to "qualify" for this set with a pre-order I was interested in, as well as some I-really-don't-need-this-set, sets, to get me over the $209AUD threshold, here in Australia. Yep, we've been played...
Yeah me too, I got the new 3in1 Viking Ship and the Muppet minifigs..Well, I wanted those things anyway, and there is plenty on the wish list for the Double XP week and then comes a crazy August!
I completely agree. The vast majority of fans do not live close enough to a Lego store to simply stop in. For a set they know in advance would have such huge popularity they should have given this one a general retail release.
man, I only found this vid after buying the blacksmith set and qualifying for this set and wanting a review. I am happy I ended up getting this set, but fully agree with your points to the FOMO aspect of a set like this.
Thank you! I’m glad it worked out for you though! ❤️
It kinda just got me to pull the trigger on a set I already wanted. Definitely would’ve been nice if it was offered for sale, or at least available for a longer period of time.
Congrats on 3K!
This one is a pass for me, the Forestmen theme hits just outside my nostalgia strike box, so while I can appreciate the homage there is not as much of a personal connection. I am trying to be more picky about giving LEGO my money when it can go a lot further in the used brick market. It helps to step back and ask myself, "what do I want to collect?" (Hint: "All of the sets" is not a realistic answer!). So if my choice can be made easier with an obstacle to the tune of $200 then I'll be on my merry way to eBay, thank you very much.
Thank you! ❤
To be honest, Forestmen hits a little outside my wheelhouse as well, but honestly the FOMO got to me. 😅
LEGO - 1
Slugger - 0
Thank you for this video. I am one of those suckers who got lured into this FOMO trap.
What I am more annoyed about is that a few days AFTER the GWP started, it has been announced that the GWP will RETURN again in August.
In other words, I could have saved me some money by NOT buying some Lego sets I actually didn't need. Oh well, another expensive lesson learned.
Foul play on the part of The Lego Group, for sure. 👍
I really love this set, i got it with my purchase of the technic sian, and I loved it so much I actually was willing to preorder the galaxy explorer and the Star Wars inquisitors ship, because I knew I was going to purchase both of them, and I figured I should just ore order and get this with them, and I am going to get it, and keep it not to resell but just for fun, it really pains me because I am convinced this would probably be the best lego set available right now if it where retail for $30
I'm lucky in the sense I knew this was coming, and have been after the modular bookshop for a while. I just waited until this GWP was available to buy the bookshop. It sucks for people who don't keep up with leaks or who weren't planning to buy high value sets.
Indeed - there’s definitely a niche type of Lego fan that this type of release benefits. 👍
I missed out on this GWP, my husband got it aftermarket for me for Christmas ❤
I understand your feelings about this GWP and definitely wouldn't argue with them. For me, since there are some Lego sets that almost never get a discount, the GWP is at least a reward for paying full retail. Yes it's a marketing ploy, but being an informed consumer is the only option.
I would definitely prefer it as a regular release. At least in the U.S., I'm glad there were enough available to last the (short) promotion. Hopefully it returns in August.
It's small solace, but the FOMO in Lego collecting is still a lot less than some other toys. I had to stop action figure collecting because it was too stressful. "Oh you weren't online for the 15 minutes it was up for preorder? Well good luck hunting stores for a month and here's a link to eBay."
im glad you think this set is great after having to get what you got to get it. i think it looks brilliant hopefully the response to all these older themes will get kicked started off again and not just a one off for the 90th anniversary
Indeed! I honestly was trying to downplay how awesome I felt the set was because I didn’t want to unintentionally instil FOMO in others with my review. 😅
@@RRSlugger 🤣your allowed to be happy. lets hope they re do this with the castle the gwp timing for this was very cleaver
im too young to have experienced castle in its time, but it is still one of my favourite themes. i own one set myself, but it has since been lost. i was so excited when i saw this at first, but as an unemployed teenager no way could i ever get it in time😅 i'd love to see more castle re-dos!!
I've heard talk about the set coming back as a GWP during the august release of the 90th anniversary Castle. So if someone wanted it to accompany the Castle you could wait until then. And in the worst case scenario (rumor being false) just get it on bricklink afterwards, maybe there will even be unboxed cheaper offerings by then.
This video remains incredibly relevant
City kinda carries on their "space" theme, but I wish Lego would do a new like, classic castle/ knights theme, outside of just a couple anniversary sets
Great commentary! I was able to pick one of these up with the Medieval Blacksmith set.
I didn't realize it was only available for 6 DAYS! I was think I had a month to save up :(
Same, I got a new job but won’t get paid until the end of the month, looks like I’m gonna miss out on it :(
When the castle is released in August you'll have another chance to get this, so you have time to save.
@@ShadowsGlory oh really? That’s pretty sweet, maybe I’ll be able to get both by then!
@@Nadiki That's the *rumour* at least - I hope it's true!
The fact the only two new Castle sets that came out in years are one you need to spend almost $150 USD (I think?) To get in like a short window, or one that's $300 USD leaves a bad taste in my mouth in general.
I made my order as soon as possible to get this because I waited too long with the Vintage Car and missed out on that one.
It's interesting how a "missed opportunity" experience like that trains us as consumers, eh? I'm definitely guilty of that too...
@@RRSlugger Well it's not like I wasn't going to get those sets anyway without the GWP.
It's like the algorithm read my mind! Just brought the DeLorean yesterday along with the GWP. I had missed out on the DeLorean when it was first available as I'm a TFOL and just don't really jump at spending money. But then after seeing the GWP recently, I was suddenly checking the Lego Website, even considering buying several meh sets just to get this GWP from a range I don't have much attachment to. Thankfully the DeLorean came back in stock and I could buy it in good conscience as its a set I genuinely want. Still, it's funny how a very limited GWP pushed me over the edge to make my first ever purchase on the Lego Site and a large one at that. As a Bionicle fan and someone who likes a large range of themes I hope there will be more 90th sets this size but hopefully they'll be more reasonably available. After all, as a New Zealander I'm still mad I couldn't get a Kakapo in the like, 24 hours the Bricklink polls were open.
I’m so pleased you were able to get the DeLorean! That’s a set I’m so glad I rushed out to get the day it came out - almost got robbed as I left the mall with it! It was crazy…. 😅
Oh, and don’t get me started on how much I dislike the way Lego chooses to run the Bricklink Designer program. Truly awful.
@@RRSlugger Crazy! Yeah although I may have spoken too soon...now I'm wanting to preorder the new Galaxy Explorer but will not be able to for a while! Btw it's good to see a channel focusing on an underrated theme and an era of Lego that doesn't get as much attention so I've subscribed :)
Completely agree with you regarding the £190 spend to get it as a GWP! I could have got it but refused to shell out that amount of money just to get it, it was a very unfair move of Lego to price it at that level, imo.
I hope a few more had the same attitude as me because if Lego think they can get away with that sort of pricing, they'll do it more and when you consider the recent 25% price increase of sets, it's too much, far too greedy!
Let's not forget, too, that Lego owns BL. A $600 sale of a 1980s set makes Lego money, as does the inflated prices issued by scalpers of this GWP. Lego profits from scalpers and is still making money on sets older than God.
I agree completely with this set in particular over other gift with purchases. A lot of them are cool but not everyone is gonna want them. So it's not too bad but this is a set that a lot of people are gonna want. I was just lucky enough that I also wanted the Medieval Blacksmith which was the price point to get it
That definitely seems to be the intended combo here. 👍
So true! I wasn’t going to let this one get by me. FOMO FOR SURE!
I like your stuff…just subscribed.
Thanks
Thank you! ❤️ Hopefully you check out the back catalogue too, as there is quite a bit of it. 😊
I think they may be bringing back the promo sometime in august, but it is a bit of a shame to just not mass release this set, it would definitely sell out immediately. But this was a midnight purchase for me, I didn’t want to risk missing out (I guess that’s the whole point of the video 😂😅)
I've been hearing that rumour too - super weird. Have they ever rereleased a GWP before?
@@RRSlugger I know they did it at least with the Charles Dickens GWP. I know there's other ones too in more recent times just totally blanking on them right now lol. If they do decide to bring it back though, Ill definitely be picking up another one.
I managed to pick this one up but I agree with the disappointment in Lego's continual reliance on artificial scarcity in their marketing.
It makes it harder to appreciate new themes or even sets on a set-by-set basis when the possibility of an incomplete collection is valued more than the design of each item in said collection. Had this set been released in retail, I would gladly have picked up a couple and praised Lego's decision to make a vintage product affordable for new fans. When the company as a whole seems to be leaning more and more towards expensive media tie-ins and sets retire faster than they did even a half a decade ago, it becomes harder to justify purchasing from Lego. I remember finding space police sets still on shelves in late 2012, three years after some of them went out of circulation. I cannot picture a kid nowadays having a similar experience.
There is a trend toward this in circles beyond Lego, the way some people plan months in advance to buy tickets to Disney parks for instance, but that does not make it less upsetting to see.
The recent discussion around Lego as a tool of investment has not helped things either, your video on The Chief from Rock Raiders being an excellent example of how the snowballing 'value' of a toy can price fans out of the market.
Bought the Optimus Prime and the Leif Adam West Batman Cowl bust last Tuesday and got this for free, didn’t know this was a thing.
Well, FOMO was a big reason I sprung for that Rock Raiders HQ. I'd missed out on it once during its time, I wasn't going to miss it again after seeing the first sealed copy for sale locally in over a decade if not two!
When the Jane Goodall GWP came out in March, I determined I wasn't going to get it as a GWP, and thankfully it was *surprisingly* affordable at 20 bucks (just under 20 CAD). I saved another 20 bucks versus the GWP route, not to mention getting a whopping 40% off the sets I actually ordered together with it versus only 10% off at the LEGO store for the GWP.
I do appreciate when foliage pieces are used sparingly as well. Unfortunately I did miss out on them at the PAB wall because someone took them all within a *day* after the PAB wall resumed operations this week, but at least I have a handful from the Christmas Wreath that I can use.
I got the Fall Scene polybag and now have a few of those mushroom prints, but I didn't get it primarily for those prints, I got it for some of the dark red and dark green toothed plates to use in MOCs.
Yeah, I used the Jane Goodall tribute as an example in the video because I felt it was contemporary enough to be relevant and displayed how cheap *most* GWP sets are on the aftermarket, even years later. The Forest Hideout (being both Castle and 90th Anniversary) is definitely a fringe case though, hence the video, haha. 😅
I learned to chill down. Most of the promo sets make it to amazon or other resell sites and after some time their prices plumet down. Its ALWAYS like this.
In poland prices of this promo already fell down to around 33$ in resell sites
Also there aparently will be a second promo wave of this set when castle premieres
That’s fair! I also think it’s fair to say “there’s got to be a better way” though, and that’s kind of the reason I made this video. I don’t think we should *have to* buy these sets on the aftermarket for inflated prices as the only means of buying them on their own.
Great video! For me its a win-win because I was gonna get Optimus prime anyway. But it would be nice if Lego can start making classic theme again such as pirates, adventures, castles, western etc. And not just big sets but smaller sets also so everyone could enjoy it.
Found one today for $200, I knew this set existed but I never knew why it was so expensive, thank you for the clarification. FOMO has gotten the better of it after a year!
Great content. You got a new subscriber.
One point of clarification: this isn't FEAR of missing out. If you don't purchase $150 USD worth of LEGO in the next six days, you WILL miss out. At least miss out at getting this set for a "reasonable" price.
Thank you - I'm glad you found the channel through this video! ❤
And by the way, *GREAT* point about the distinction between the "chance" and the "reality" of missing out. 100% 👍
I love castle and have collected the big sets like Black Knights’ Castle to newer sets like the 2012-ish wave of castle sets, and I’ve got enough of the old forest men sets to love the forest men, and this remake was one of the few original sets I never got my hands on.
Predictably, I did go on a shopping spree. I still wonder if I made the right choice…
it’s rly unfortunate how many gwps i’ve had to miss. i don’t usually have $200 for lego and my favorite sets are usually in the 200-300 piece range so it just feels like i’m losing every time they announce a cool gwp
bought it at midnight. anxiety calmed. but yea, literally bought another 3in1 castle and a $50 dollar pick a brick order. surprised it worked honestly lol. if they would have allowed pre orders for the new lion king's castle they could have solved any complaint i had :D what's crazy is how simple the piece use in this set is. imagine if they released a forest men battle pack next month how pissed a bunch of people would be.
Nostalgia is by itself a very strong force. Combining that with FOMO is basically cheating.
Tiago Catarino on his RUclips channel this set and according to him it will be released again in August as a gift with purchase. I want one but the same time I think I need to save my money to be able to buy the castle that's coming out and the spaceship. And if the prices are going up I'll probably only be able to get one of those. PS great review liked your video.
I waited to get the blacksmith for this. There’s a preorder list for the blacksmith, but I already got the forest hideout. I love the gwp, but I really had to think hard about whether to spend that much money or not. I’m still mulling over whether to resell the blacksmith when it arrives
i always plan my purchases with GWP in mind. im planning to get the lego friends opera house and something else to reach $190 so this is pretty good timing. but i would definitely not recommend anyone spend money just for the free gift. it's never worth it. i recommend checking out lego leaks to find out their future release windows for free gifts and plan ahead.
Indeed! Last year I meticulously planned out when I would buy Barracuda Bay just so I could get the Amelia Earhart tribute with it. In the end, I was pretty "meh" about the GWP and ended up adoring Barracuda Bay, haha. 😅
Ordered mine, should be arriving this week. Was going to pass on it but glad I watched this video, will go nicely with the new castle.
Yeah...this is really aggravating especially with the new castle coming out. I absolutely will be getting that one and this would have been a great addition to it. Hopefully they re-release it when August rolls around.
Dang I have a bad habit of not keeping up with the promos. If this was released as a real set, I would’ve totally gotten one….
Wholeheartedly agree. My FOMO has been making this set absolute torture, even though I can't afford it right now. I feel better about waiting, even though I might not get it now.
I am envious of your willpower in this regard! In the long run, I think it will be cheaper (and wiser) to wait, especially if Bricklinking it becomes a viable option.
One point against this set that I didn't mention in the script was the instruction booklet; it was awful. Lego seems to be going with a new style that seems really "cheap". I had to use a paperweight to hold it open and move it for each step which really had a negative impact on the build experience. 😟
I’m not a huge LEGO fanatic, so correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t 6 days shorter than usual for these promotional sets? I feel they usually run for a few weeks at least.
Yeah it’s usually a whole month, sometimes more
Thank you very much for this video. I just got back into Lego and missed most of the cool sets like Barracuda Bay or the mentioned Forest Hideout. I bought the Forest Hideout in the after market for around 45€ and I am still quiete happy with it. Now that the Lionknights castle is such a success (I am building it currently right in front of me) and they have announced a remake of the 2013 medieval market, I think they see how much people want to have these classic sets back with a new touch and the usage of new parts. But I hope that they also see that no one can be expected to buy 10 300€ sets in a year. Some smaller builds could be perfect tontest the market and give people the option to improve their own (for example) medieval castle landscape.
I got lucky seeing a post about this GWP. My wife wanted the Van Gogh, which qualified. I had decided to invest in extra copies of Blacksmith even before the price hike from USD $150 to $180. Buying one Blacksmith as a separate order got me a second copy of Forest Hideout. I was lucky to have the budget and the rare instance of my wife wanting a set. I'd buy 2 or 3 more if I could, because I'm building a large castle setup. But not for $50. I bought tons of bricks for MOCS instead! I let my daughter build most of the first Hideout when we got them. I recently converted a TreeHouse to Forest main base camp, and unboxed the second Hideout. I took the hinges off the first model, freezing it open. Then I worked on building the second one in reverse. I ended up butting the "castle" blue roof back-to-back and same for the tree sectio. I put more plate one step down for a big base to eventually MILS plate, and hinged the whole thing on the far end so it opens. Then went crazy w/ flowers, bushes & plants. It's awesome. Took the shields off and replaced them with vines coming out of a leaf piece so I could put shields on minifigs. Agree with your take that Lego should sell these sets. Why not make more money now that the GWP was a success anyway?
So glad I still have the set back from August 2022
i got mine when the delorean came back in stock but still the set should be available normally i have seen other gift sets in the past be available to purchase seperately
As a kid I was a huge city fan. Wanted to buy r2 because I felt nostalgic and this was the best way to get me to buy it.
PLEASE MAKE MORE VIDEOS ABOUT THE CASTLE THEME!!!!
I was lucky enough to get my hands on this set, it arrived Monday, my blacksmith house hasn’t arrived yet but I had this to build first. It’s a very nice set.
It’s a brilliant marketing ploy. Even I bought the new train set to get this set. I would have bought the train set from another store for a much lower price otherwise.
I didn't realize how popular this thing was. I had gone to the Lego Store, picked up the most recent modular building, and they threw this in with it. I was like "oh, cool", and still have it sitting, unopened, in my closet
It was offered as gift for purchases over 150 from Lego online shop, but apparently sold out within the first day.
The plan is buying something exclusive (with GWP) and selling it with discount on the after market, just to receive that GWP for a reasonable price.