>>10056361I see TVC playsets and they just make me kind of sad. When I was a kid this wouldn't qualify as a playset any more than a nativity scene stable at Christmas time. Hasbro doesn't remember how to make playsets, so they just make dioramas and slap huge pricetags on them.
To actually understand what makes a good playset, you have to approach it like a dollhouse. A dollhouse is basically a little world for a child's characters to live in, so for this "world" to feel comprehensive, the toy designer has to think about ways in which they can represent various scenes and activities that the playset will inspire. Just like the TVC vehicles though, Hasbro prioritizes scale and screen accuracy over play and imagination, and then they bury it in a high price tag that only an adult collector would ever consider buying.
To me these new "playsets" are like those NECA and McFarlane action figures I used to buy 15 years ago that had little to no articulation. They looked good but there's really no appeal for me to just pick it up and start manipulating it, and the appeal of being able to pick up and manipulate a toy is why there are adults who buy them instead of models and statuettes.
I think my ideal playset, as an adult, would be something that looks detailed like a diorama, but is not bound by the rules of "screen accuracy." Individual components of it could look accurate, but things like layout and scale should all be thrown out the window whenever it gets in the way of play value and creative toy design. I also think my ideal playset would be something that can "unfold" kind of like the old Bat Cave playset-- if you want a big centerpiece to drop in the middle of the floor, you can do that, but it can also be unfolded or separated and spread out so you can put it on a shelf and/or against a wall as a display environment. I believe there is an acceptable middleground between quality diorama and play value, but Hasbro ain't looking for it right now.
