February 2008 - Every couple of weeks, Hasbro will answer three questions per web site about their Star Wars products. Here are the questions and answers for the latest round:
1. Many or most Power of the Force figures had extra accessories (two guns were common). Why do current Star Wars figures include so few accessories now?
Answer: We give each figure the accessories we feel makes the figure complete. Some figures get one or even none (in the case of an astromech droid or holo figure) while some may have whole Cantina bar sections, a moisture vaporator, or even a kybuck.
2. Why, despite being pictured with them on the card's front artwork, do nearly all Clone Troopers not come with rifles, but small blasters instead? The back of their cards even say, "Weapon of Choice: Blaster rifles."
Answer: It's a matter of cost. We usually don't include both weapons if the figure is super-articulated or has deco - both factors which raise our costs. We do try and rotate the weapons around.
3. Are there any playsets in the works? We really, really need a Mos Eisley bar (with light-up tables!) and a Jabba throneroom.
Answer: There are no playsets in the works. We are concentrating our efforts on bringing out a healthy range of Star Wars vehicles, since we feel the figure/vehicle play pattern is the more dynamic one for Star Wars. In the past decades, playsets have really struggled in Star Wars (and in boys toys in general) as kids do not see them as the important "center" of their play experience. In Star Wars, there are few examples of buildings or settings that are truly iconic and would be the anchor of play sessions. The ones you mention would be narrowly targeted at collectors (kids are much more interested in the prequel trilogy, versus the original trilogy), and as such would not be something that we would look at if we did decide to pursue playsets.
