OFFICIAL Ultimate WCW Nitro Entrance Crowdfund Thread

Do y’all really think Mattel is going to do something? If they are, they better hurry up because I’m about to spend this money elsewhere.

They’ve acknowledged the failure on the product page

I think their lack of leverage has been exhibited here with the 78% funded but why does it matter whether it’s a crowdfund or not?

Mattel has pushed stuff through before that didn't get fully backed like those Matty Collector campaigns back in the day and those didn't even require you to foot the whole amount in the beginning but it was a different model in that you were subscribed, pre-paid for a chunk and then billed monthly for each figure (or quarterly to save you shipping a la pile of loot system). I would actually be onboard for a return to something like that as long as they promised us no weird surprises. I'd be up for a WCW era specific subscription or WWF/WWE era specific subscription but if they say it's New Gen, I want only New Gen, not Becky Lynch and Cody Rhodes thrown in there randomly. But yeah, first, before any new offerings, they need to figure out this "logistics" issue because Matty Collector also screwed us on shipping when they switched to Digital River making us pay basically the cost of the entire order in shipping costs + additional monies on arrival for duties and whatnot. To be honest, I did not back this. I was going to on the last day but then saw there was no chance it would get through and didn't feel like having $700 Canadian tied up to something I already felt kind of guilty about buying. I agree with everyone that this was advertised like crap and putting it on Smackdown on the last day was pointless.

Steve and Bill are amazing for putting together an awesome package in the stage but the figures were just OK to me. I know this is subjective as Rey and Scott Steiner were the main two I lit up for but even then, I didn't see the value in just getting those two alone. I don't blame Steve and Bill because I don't know how much power they hold in the advertising budget and the international shipping portion but someone crapped the bed on this for sure. They should have found a way to distribute this better. In this case, I don't think it's that hard to find a less expensive way to ship it, I think they just didn't think it was an important point of focus and it blew up in their faces. Another thing is that they kind of forget that international customers are already used to paying more for things and we would have been a huge chunk of the customer base helping fund this thing. No offense to our American friends but I hear constant whining that action figures cost too much at retail and even when they're discounted to $10, they're too expensive. Meanwhile, Canadian/International customers are paying 1.5x to 2x retail plus shipping sometimes to get those poorly distributed toys. Many American toy collectors are tight with their wallets either because they can't afford it which is fair enough or they think it's the 1980s and a 6 inch premium toy should cost $5 as they've been spoiled with getting heavily discounted figures with very reasonable access and distribution and as already mentioned by a mod here, wrestling toy collectors are some of the biggest cheapskates.

Once again ... Thank you Steve and Team. Great design. Everyone was going crazy when you showed it a few years ago! I am grateful that you gave us the opportunity. I know how much work went into it, from design to sculpting, to negotiating with the factory, developing the price point ... laying out the plan ... videos, interviews, and promotion all over the place ... social media, WWE, Hulk Hogan, Diamond Dallas Page ... making a pivot with Steiner that I thought would work.

I am really really disappointed because I wanted it ... BAD! I hope down the line, you would consider pieces of it accompanied with some WCW figures ... with a smaller price point ... to build the set over time. Once the set is built - the same model could be used with Raw. Anyway ... I really appreciate all you do and your team.

But thats the point of crowd funders and not mass producing something. They know its a niche product, large, expensive and highly detailed. Thats why this model of selling was created. To guage if theres enough fandom to shell out more than a normal amount for a collectable thats usually bigger/higher in detail, at a minimum number of units needing to be made via factory. It may have been doomed from the start for other reasons, but an expensive, large, highly detailed collectable is the exact reason crowd funding from large companies exist.

It sure is

I think so nWo ring skirts and ring mat to go with the upcoming nitro ring would have helped for sure. Adding Bischoff would have been cool, but then requires a re work of the nitro ring package.
Debut Rey makes sense as an entry level figure even if kinda bland. Maybe give Rey him the WCW cruiserweight belt, even with him not holding it in these tights/time but would have increased the interest. Then you could do announce table with Mongo if they got him signed(worth the effort over Pastamania, imo), or a Mean Gene, sign Michael Buffer to get a figure to complete ring and make people need the stage to get a more complete ring team, and that really could have worked. Iron Mike Tenay, or many other ideas that coulda added the MachoMan type spark for the WCW fan that will still get the ring, but any of these figures help make the stage more of a must have for more reasons/consumers.

I feel like if this was the first crowdfunded project and the New Gen Arena was the second project, they both would have funded.