There is no denying that figure prices have been on a steady and noticeable climb in the past few years. Belldandy was not a fluke, it sadly seems, but the start of an unfortunate trend towards sky-high retail pricetags. With figure prices showing no signs of slowing down, almost all of us have had to make some very tough decisions: more money per figure means less figures, of course.
But I think we were all shocked by the insane price Max Factory stuck on their Benten: ¥24,00. Which is totally insane, even given the size and detail. Of course a lot of people will go for him regardless. Personally, we are on the fence: it’s a gorgeous figure, but is he $200 after discounts + insane shipping fees worth of gorgeous?
This got me thinking: are there any figures I would be willing to spend that much on? Maybe PVC releases of some truly amazing garage kits, or re-releases of ones I’ve been drooling over (wedding Azusa, yes please!). So, Plastikitties, what do you think? What is the absolute maximum you’d be willing to spend on a figure, and how special would it have to be to get you to drop that much dough?
I only ever spent close to that amount on a very rare and very old resin cold-cast of the opera house from FFVI. And it was for my sister.
Personally prices like Benten’s are an instant no-go for me. I’d rather get 6 cute figures from the pre-owned section of amiami then one large figure. He’s beautiful, but that price makes me feel sick. It’s hard to enjoy something like that, because the cost is always going to be weighing on my mind. Do I take it out of the box? Do I display it without proper glass to prevent fading? What about dust?
Figures with those prices feel like investments, and I like to be involved in my figures. I want to touch them and feel the details, I don’t want to feel like I’m holding something I cannot damage because it cost more than I make on a paycheque.
Even if there was a release of an all-time favourite character of mine, I don’t think I could do it. $150 is I think as high as I could ever go without feeling like I’d made a mistake.
I agree–really expensive pieces make me nervous when I have them on display. What if I knock into the case? What if they break? Also I am so so bad about dusting, I’d hate to ruin their value.
Exactly! And who wants to spend that kind of money on something you won’t properly enjoy? And I’m bad at dusting too… I have to schedule a time to give everyone a clean off.
Someone needs to start a maid company that cleans figures exclusively. I’d pony up for that in a heartbeat.
Ditto!
That price sounds a bit extreme to me, but I spent $200 on a 6 inch statue the other day, so…. I guess I have no right to say anything. :p
I feel like the Swan is in a class of her own–with that much detail, plus the fact that she’s a statue, $200 isn’t bad at all! I’d sell a kidney for her. She’s perfect ;~;
Scale would count as a factor. I wouldn’t pay 200 for a 1:8 scale or smaller PVC, regardless of how elaborate the base/design/accessories are. 200 for a 1:5 or even a 1:6 (that’s pushing it) might be acceptable, but it depends on how invested I am in the design and/or character.
In my opinion, there’s a ceiling to which manufacturers should adhere to. We all remember when figs didn’t cost an arm & a leg. Over the last few years, the prices have been creeping slowly, and we’re probably going to factor in new technological costs, marketing, sculptor fees, licensing fees, et al. Anyway, prices of figs have climbed up exponentially like gasoline. And in a sense, they act as their own commodities and used in economic trade within our hobby. Do I like the trend? Not at all. Like the prices of gas, I doubt we’ll ever go back to those decent-footprint prices on figs (with the exception of Kotobukiya – they seem to be churning out their bishoujo line at okay prices).
I’m excluding mecha from this conversation because I’ve doled out ridiculous amounts of money for large-scale robits.
I feel like manufacturers are really not paying attention to customers at all. Hello, we can’t afford $200 for a 1/8, and even if we could, no one is going to pay that! It’s insane. It’s nice to see that I am not alone on this one, I honestly have paid upwards of $200 for some PVC figs but they were all rare aftermarket things and grails to boot. $200+ retail is a nail in the coffin for me.
Personally, a figure must be technically stunning, and the subject or character very close to my heart. I have spent up to $200 on a single figure inc. shipping, and I have been fortunate to not have fallen in love with anything more expensive, though if it was one of those characters I deeply care for and the item is gorgeous, I would buy it, indeed (I suppose this might change if I get into dollfies! Which I totally would if one were to capture my heart. Or I got a custom). That being said, some figures despite looking forward to them and paying a lot were dissapointments; I didn’t much like the pricetag I paid for the Insane BRS nendo … it just didn’t seem worth it, when I had her in my hands, and it really curbed the enjoyment I got out of her. And Benten…. really? DX Love is War Miku was only 14k on release, though I suppose the base in it’s many separate parts would be easier to produce and paint than the intricacies of Benten’s amazing sculpt, and he is gorgeous, but 10,000 yen more? I feel that the pricetag will turn almost anyone off, which is an utter shame, as he’s just gorgeous.
Dollfies are a black hole for money. I can’t even include them in a conversation about cost, what we paid for Saber Lily… orz it was a lot ;~;
I spend significantly more on poly-stone figures (stuff from Gaming Heads and First 4 Figures); but I really do find $200 quite hard to swallow for a PVC.
Though to be honest… I can’t remember a time I avoided buying a figure based on price; though I suppose there are cases where being cheap has swayed me towards buying a figure I usually wouldn’t.
“Wow, look how cheap it is, I should get it! I don’t have room, I don’t need it, but SO CHEAP!” Yeah, I know that feeling >.<
Fortunately, I do not want to own this figure, because if I would like to, I would be facing the same problem as you do. When I think of 200$ it seems ridiculous for a figure (ALL of my friends say that even 70$ is a lot too much), but if it would be character that I love like Kurisu from Steins;Gate, Himari from Mawaru Penguindrum, Elisabeth from Bioshock Infinite or even Saber I would really reconsider. In my opinion I would sacrifice figures that I don’t like THAT much for one that I love with perfect sculpt. For this price I would also like this figure to be somewhat big like Ultimate Madoka or Saber Motored Cuirassier.
I would like to add that Sideshow Collectibles offer figures for price in that range, which is just killing me…
Sideshow’s stuff is INSANE. We only have one figure from them, the 1/4 Rinzler, and it was only because we loved both the design and their execution (and Stephen got a discount through work haha). Statues I’ve never really gotten into because of 1) the price difference and 2) the faces, which I think are poorly executed most of the time in comparison to PVC.
yeah but sideshow figures have sideshow face which means if they have a face they aren’t worth owning. Seriously Storm looked like Wayne Brady…. Also they have a habit of tacking on a piece of fabric and adding $100 to the price it shoudl be. Seriously their she-hulk was a small bit of pants madefrom crafting fabric and it was $100 more. Sideshow is a company I hate more than DC Direct when it comes to statues and DC Direct wouldn’t know Quality Control if it hit them in the face with their statue….
It would break and they would stick it in a box anyway and mark it QC passed because they are literally THE WORRRST
New holy grail: figure of Wayne Brady cosplaying as Storm
All youneed is sideshow’s Mohawk Storm. Remember how fucking excited for that thing I was? And then we saw it at SDCC and I AM STILL SO ANGRY
CHRIS SMASH
My most expensive figure by far is Selvaria Bles>ebCraft’s which cost me $179.54 + shipping. I’ve not bought anything else that crossed the $150 mark to my memory. It’s hard for me to say there’s a hard price point of an upper limit, but when I see things that are like $400-$500 on the second hand market (which is actually said ebCraft Selvaria’s going price these days, even in Akihabara), I just can’t believe anyone would pay those prices or sacrifice so much money for one of these things.
But sometimes, these things just resonate with you in a way that makes you feel you just have to have it or you will forever be sad for missing out, and it may lure you into paying more than you’d have previously felt comfortable with. That’s the bar I try to set for most of my purchases these days.
There are quite a few figures I would love to own who retail for insane prices (Volks’ Sasara, Wedding Azusa), but even though I love them and know I want them I’m unwilling t go over $200-$250. I find it hard to commit that much money to a PVC figure, since at the end of the day… well, it’s a piece of plastic! Maybe if I had more disposable income, but every time I see something in that pricerange I just think “oh my god, that’s a Dollfie head or a night at a very nice restaurant.”
I spend that much about once or twice a year and everything I do spend that much on are 1:6 and 1:4 scale coldcast. To charge that much for PVC no matter how much clear or detail on the sculp to me is completely insane. If I’m going to spend more than about $120 on a figure it’s going to be something from Bowen or Sideshow. Oh who am I kidding sideshow can’t sculpt faces it’s going to be Bowen or Kotobukiya whose quality has improved to the point where they are starting to rival bowen in both sculpt and QC. Their QC isn’t quite there on the coldcast yet but damn it’s getting better and better with each new figure they put out since they started branching into that area. Also that area. MF both here and with Godoka and some of their other stuff recently are just out of their fucking minds with pricing.
Bowen does some top-notch stuff, but it is so pricey! I’d love to get my hands on Bowen’s Tigra statute (full size, not the bust version), but it would have to be under the $200 mark for sure, which isnt likely *sigh* Really I just want Koto or someone to make a good PVC version of her!
it was 199 when it came out. I mean I just snagged their rogue which is like a foot and a half tall and was 239 (200 with my shop discount) Like that’s the thing. Bowen with his prices, even since he’s raised them (Tigra was only 200 when she came out) has always been for the most part fairly priced for coldcast.
Are you talking about the new Modern Rogue statue? I got it a few weeks ago and I love it. 🙂
I know it’s so great. So so great
Damn, if only you had put this message up like back in last spring/early summer. Had one for sale at the shop I worked at for like $120 after discounts.
I think this company is testing us. If you pay this amount, you are sending a message, and It will turn a standard in other figures like this one. And that’s the problem with Dollfies; Pricey, exclusive, and you usually don’t play with her because it’s a very fragile doll.
It’s funny because some people have been doing jokes about “trap” and all that bullshit, and the only one trap here has been the price. I like this figure a lot, maybe I could do the effort and buy it (and I could forget about buy other things in next months for sure…) but I wont do it. I paid a lot for Godoka when she was released, and I think I will never do it again. With that money I can buy two or three figures this year, or invite my BF to dinner to a special place!
So Max Factory:
http://themadcapoutlet.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/tumblr_ma9u66uoyx1qirdq5.gif
Uh-huh, my thoughts exactly. From the hype Godoka received and in the bargain bin for 60% off 3 months later, that’s where and when I would start looking for Benten.
that’s my hope.;.
Anything over 100 I super question getting. It has to be something super amazing for me to say yes. (IBRS).
I own that Loki, slideshow, he was also a 6 month no buying figures choice. (I missed out on some really good ones then too). I think I might have scratched his paint playing with him when I knocked him over too… 🙁
I’d buy belldandy for 150 possibly….but not the 180 she started at , and defiantly not 200 for a fig.
7 years ago, I wouldn’t buy a fig over 50.
Plus what if like belldandy, he broke in shipping….I’d be devastated.
Currently I’d draw the line at 20% more than I feel like paying for a fig around similar size ( ~100) so ibrs is a stretch, as is other big figs in that range of 150.
Nendo and such, paying 50 or more is also a no. ( unless exclusive)
Prize/trading, more than 20-30 is also a no.
I feel like is a size and quality and rareness goes into all of what I am willing to pay money for, but 200 for a static 1/8 I can say no to. ( only regret from above is the gsc beatless fig I never bough due to her being 1/10 and expensive for her time)
Lurker here, but I’ll put in my two cents since I’m one of the few who ordered Benten.
As always these things really depend on monetary value vs. object value. I hesitate even on $60 figures, but Benten is the only one I’ve ever seen that met all aspects of my unusual criteria, and I didn’t want to wait in case it sold out. I’m not happy with the price, but it’s a reasonable sacrifice as the only way toy companies will get me to drop another $200 on a single figure is if the next one not only meets the criteria again but tops Benten in all aspects… which would be extremely rare.
That being said, $300 is the absolute maximum I’d pay for scaled figures. Anything above that price would have to be both big and looks as if it’s sculpted by master Baroque-era sculptors as I no longer consider that “figure collecting” but “art collecting”.
And this right here is why I feel so conflicted on Benten: he IS gorgeous in every way possible and I’ve spent more than that on figures in the past even.
Since you guys get so many figures, at this point I think maybe you guys should sit on it for a bit, and if you come back later and still really want it and would seriously regret not getting it sometime down the road, then put in the order? Almost everyone who’s ordered is specially budgeting for this, so the pain is still very much present haha.
I’m probably going to pass and hope he goes on sale for the simple fact that even if he doesn’t, aftermarket price will be about retail.
Not including shipping, I’ve never paid more than about $120 for a single figure. Anything over that and I have a hard time justifying the cost. There are some really nice figures out there that I have no intention of buying unless they get a reissue. Alter’s Bounty Hunter Yoko and GSC’s Love is War DX Hatsune Miku being the top examples. Great figures, but I won’t spend that kind of scratch for a single figure. Of course, I jumped at the GSC Shinobu reissue because it’s listed at a reasonable price.
Benten on the other hand, is not reasonable. Yes, he’s very detailed and awesome-looking, but so is Aoba. And even at 14k, he was REASONABLE. $250 for a PVC is silly. Even if it is almost a foot tall. Nippon-Yasan has Benten up for $185…. when a price-tag of almost $200 seems like a deal compared to other retailers, there’s a problem. This isn’t a Hot Toys or Sideshow piece, and yet the pricing is similar. I don’t think this is a sign of standard figure pricing to come, but I think if Benten sells out (which he probably will), it’s just going to mean more of these premium-format figures in the future. So each of us will have to decide if we want to spend our money on more, less costly figures each year, or fewer of the more expensive, more detailed, and probably more fragile variety.
Now all of that being said, I ordered Benten from Nippon-Yasan just in case he does sell out. That way I can turn around and have a sealed copy to sell when the price skyrockets. If he doesn’t sell out, I can just cancel the order. XD
In the case of Alter’s Bounty Hunter Yoko, keep an eye out on the aftermarket. I got one unopened like a year or two ago for 9k.
Not sure what an absolute maximum would look like for me, but to pay over $200 for a PVC figure… I would think it would have to be a super ultra grail or something.
(Closest I’ve ever come is RAH Kyouko Sakura, who is more like $170-ish with discounts, w/out shipping. And she’s got waifu status for me.)
I shelled out for Aoba, Belldandy, and Godoka, but I really can’t see paying this much for Benten right now. He is incredibly lovely though ;_;
With the details, I worry about the extensions breaking during shipping and at home due to cleaning accident. That would make me so mad. Yes, i display my figures so I can enjoy looking at my collection. They are not investments, just toys.
Did not like the little black boxers or the strappy shoes, so am relieved the price is just a bit over my comfort range.
The sculpt, like Belldandy, is a beauty. Just too many protrusions. :p
There is no figure in the world I’d be willing to pay 24000y for, no freaking way. My upper limit is half of that (think Alter’s Suzuha) and then it would have to be a character from a show I really loved (and Steins;Gate is my favourite anime from the last few years, so hey) as well as look worth the price.
Anything above that however…nope. Nope nope nope. I’m not swimming in money around here, and the knowledge I could get a cartload full of figures (I’ve splurged a bit during the holidays, getting around 12 figures, and I paid somewhat around the same price) instead is enough to put me off. Because really, in the end a figure is still just a plastic representation of some character, and there’s tons of characters I love. What would make them special?
Not to mention that prices like that tend to be bargain bin fuel.
For me it would have to be a really, really amazing figure to get me to pay that price, mostly because my income isn’t huge and that would eat up most of it (especially with proxy, shipping and customs fees).
So far, the most expensive figure i’ve bought (well, pre-ordered) has been Deep sea Miku for 11800 yen, just because i fell in love with her sculpt and base. This is kind of the maximum i’m willing to go right now.
Saying that though, certain figures are instant buys for me. For instance, if they made a detailed, scaled demi-fiend figure i would be all over it. Same with Minako Arisato from P3P.
Once price goes above a certain level, I cannot enjoy an item like Benten anymore.
The perceived value in this hobby is rapidly shrinking. I have often wondered how much of price increases is an actual rise in production cost and how much is just a money grab. The after-market has shown manufacturers that they are leaving money on the table. Why wouldn’t they want a piece of the sweet, sweet cash pie. Eventually prices will level out; because at some point enough people will stop buying the product that the manufacturers take notice. They keep testing our price tolerance. As long as we keep buying, prices will keep going up.
On the other hand, Kidrobot’s newest Huck Gee 8″ Dunny (2/13) retails for $200 + sales tax, and will prob. sell out!?!
Yeah, I don’t understand designer toys.
Like, AT ALL.
Yup. I’m still debating posting that as I have absolutely nothing nice to say about it.
I buy most of my girls secondhand now, but I think the most I ever paid for a girl was $215, shipping included, for Satellizer El Bridget. Before you gawk too much, remember that back then I didn’t know MFC existed, so I bought her from Amazon, so I paid more than I should’ve. To be fair, she was TOTALLY WORTH IT. Absolutely one of my favorite figures.
Would I pay that much again? For anybody? Hell no.
My limit seems to be $150, secondhand or preorder. I ended up paying about $140 for Asmodeus (with shipping) and that hurt. I like to keep it at $100 and lower, honestly.
Damn, I don’t even think my run of 100 only naked Saber that’s resin even cost me that much and that’s one of the single rarest pieces there is.