DSC_4691
Well, I survived my first snow storm of the season, mostly because I dodged the last few while on the West coast. Between the power outages and trying to avoid parental duties, I found time to take a look at another piece of Vancouver swag - Figma Tracer from Overwatch.. you know, in case all my recent Hentai Woody previews didn't give it away. Picked up off a Facebook seller for $45 CAD.
I used to be an avid gamer, but between work, getting married, and parental duties, the only real time I get to play these days is either while I'm supposed to be on the crapper, or when I'm supposed to be sleeping. As such, many of the current gaming trends have passed me by - I'm not bitter.. it's just not my time anymore. One such trend was something called Overwatch, which is an first person based arena shooter with a collection of characters I know nothing about (other than Widowmaker, the mostly naked one) with a collection of powers or abilities or something. One of the characters, Tracer, is pretty much the unofficial (or maybe it's official) mascot for the series, dressed in her crazy ski goggles and skin tight orange leggings. Much like most of the world, the character was introduced to me through controversy... people got upset over some overly sexual victory animations, Blizzard did some fixes, Tracer ended up still being the most featured character in animated porn.. so life basically went on.
With a retail price of about 6,300 Yen, Tracer is effectively entry level Figma in terms of the contents, though having not played the game, I honestly have no idea what is missing. There's the figure, three total face plates (smiling, laughing, neutral), trademark twin Pulse pistols, a Pulse bomb, a variety of hands for using these accessories, and of course the traditional Figma dynamic stand.
Based on some screen caps and official game art, it seems that Good Smile Company did a pretty good job at capturing the essence of the character. Her outfit has been faithfully recreated, including the fuzzy bits on her bomber jacket and detailing of the hair, The standard Figma body has a build that is generally a good match for Tracer, if not a bit on the lanky side. As with many Figma, the head is slightly undersized... strangely, Figma Tracer looks more "realistic" than actual tracer, who was created (along with many of the other cast members) with an very cartoonish aesthetic in place. Eyes are undersized as well across all sculpts.. or perhaps they're not quite expressive enough. Nitpicky, yes, but that's why I'm here.
Tracer, much like The Major, Angela Balzac, and of course, Black Widow, has an outfit that generally doesn't get in the way of the optimum articulation of the base Figma 2.0 body.. sort of. Most major points of articulation are present, which include full ankles, single jointed knees, full hips, mid torso, full shoulders including some chest collapse, bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, and head articulation. For those keeping score at home, you may notice that something is missing.. namely, a waist articulation point. In this case, the joint would have been where her jacket ends and her leggings begin. Not sure if this was a conscious choice for cost cutting reasons, or perhaps it was to avoid having continuity issues due to the presence of the straps at her side. Speaking of straps, the ones that go around her thigh do interfere with the articulation somewhat, but I feel it's more an interference with the easy of motion, rather than the quality of motion itself. At the end of the day, as established in a previous article, this body just isn't as articulated as the SH Figuarts current offering
Paint and decal work are generally up to Figma snuff. The work on the figure itself is pretty good. I love the light to dark orange fade on her pants as well as the paint work on the jacket itself. The various pieces of white and silver gear on her body are slightly weaker, most likely due to a need for multiple coats of paint. Typical paint masking errors and flaws are present, with the silvers being the worst examples (though there are also some really nice silver accents, like on her zipper). The translucent blue plastic used on her suit is a nice touch rather than simply a painted blue piece, as is the use of the translucent orange for Tracers goggles. Decal work is sharp, with excellent decals and a stead hand that applied them on nice and straight. Paint on the pistols, on the other hand, are kind of crude, most likely due to the killer combination of multiple coats of paint, small size, and lots of masking required. Crude as it is, the result is still better than the Hasbro version with most of the paint missing on those pistols.
Finally, we have build quality. As expected, the general product is quite good. The joints are strong, there are no tolerance issues with regards to fit of parts or limb length, nor are there any issues with articulation due to poor quality of workmanship. Assembly gaps are very well hidden on the upper body, but are somewhat visible on the legs. My biggest gripe is the crap QC on the tolerance of the cavity that holds in the front of Tracer's hair - it keeps falling off with the slightest jostle.
Figma Tracer is clearly your choice if you want a really good action figure of your favourite character. She's pretty much everything you'd want in an action figure except for perhaps the ability to do the most extreme of poses and, strangely, a waist joint. With the second game coming out, I'm guessing that unless one of the character didn't make it to the sequel, there will probably be Figma of the newer costumes which should trigger a sell off of original characters. From a design perspective, Tracer definitely has the ability to stand out on a shelf full of Figma due to her unique colour scheme and awesome orange pants.
Another solid entry into the Figma lineup.
DSC_4691
Well, I survived my first snow storm of the season, mostly because I dodged the last few while on the West coast. Between the power outages and trying to avoid parental duties, I found time to take a look at another piece of Vancouver swag - Figma Tracer from Overwatch.. you know, in case all my recent Hentai Woody previews didn't give it away. Picked up off a Facebook seller for $45 CAD.
I used to be an avid gamer, but between work, getting married, and parental duties, the only real time I get to play these days is either while I'm supposed to be on the crapper, or when I'm supposed to be sleeping. As such, many of the current gaming trends have passed me by - I'm not bitter.. it's just not my time anymore. One such trend was something called Overwatch, which is an first person based arena shooter with a collection of characters I know nothing about (other than Widowmaker, the mostly naked one) with a collection of powers or abilities or something. One of the characters, Tracer, is pretty much the unofficial (or maybe it's official) mascot for the series, dressed in her crazy ski goggles and skin tight orange leggings. Much like most of the world, the character was introduced to me through controversy... people got upset over some overly sexual victory animations, Blizzard did some fixes, Tracer ended up still being the most featured character in animated porn.. so life basically went on.
With a retail price of about 6,300 Yen, Tracer is effectively entry level Figma in terms of the contents, though having not played the game, I honestly have no idea what is missing. There's the figure, three total face plates (smiling, laughing, neutral), trademark twin Pulse pistols, a Pulse bomb, a variety of hands for using these accessories, and of course the traditional Figma dynamic stand.
Based on some screen caps and official game art, it seems that Good Smile Company did a pretty good job at capturing the essence of the character. Her outfit has been faithfully recreated, including the fuzzy bits on her bomber jacket and detailing of the hair, The standard Figma body has a build that is generally a good match for Tracer, if not a bit on the lanky side. As with many Figma, the head is slightly undersized... strangely, Figma Tracer looks more "realistic" than actual tracer, who was created (along with many of the other cast members) with an very cartoonish aesthetic in place. Eyes are undersized as well across all sculpts.. or perhaps they're not quite expressive enough. Nitpicky, yes, but that's why I'm here.
Tracer, much like The Major, Angela Balzac, and of course, Black Widow, has an outfit that generally doesn't get in the way of the optimum articulation of the base Figma 2.0 body.. sort of. Most major points of articulation are present, which include full ankles, single jointed knees, full hips, mid torso, full shoulders including some chest collapse, bicep swivel, single jointed elbows, and head articulation. For those keeping score at home, you may notice that something is missing.. namely, a waist articulation point. In this case, the joint would have been where her jacket ends and her leggings begin. Not sure if this was a conscious choice for cost cutting reasons, or perhaps it was to avoid having continuity issues due to the presence of the straps at her side. Speaking of straps, the ones that go around her thigh do interfere with the articulation somewhat, but I feel it's more an interference with the easy of motion, rather than the quality of motion itself. At the end of the day, as established in a previous article, this body just isn't as articulated as the SH Figuarts current offering
Paint and decal work are generally up to Figma snuff. The work on the figure itself is pretty good. I love the light to dark orange fade on her pants as well as the paint work on the jacket itself. The various pieces of white and silver gear on her body are slightly weaker, most likely due to a need for multiple coats of paint. Typical paint masking errors and flaws are present, with the silvers being the worst examples (though there are also some really nice silver accents, like on her zipper). The translucent blue plastic used on her suit is a nice touch rather than simply a painted blue piece, as is the use of the translucent orange for Tracers goggles. Decal work is sharp, with excellent decals and a stead hand that applied them on nice and straight. Paint on the pistols, on the other hand, are kind of crude, most likely due to the killer combination of multiple coats of paint, small size, and lots of masking required. Crude as it is, the result is still better than the Hasbro version with most of the paint missing on those pistols.
Finally, we have build quality. As expected, the general product is quite good. The joints are strong, there are no tolerance issues with regards to fit of parts or limb length, nor are there any issues with articulation due to poor quality of workmanship. Assembly gaps are very well hidden on the upper body, but are somewhat visible on the legs. My biggest gripe is the crap QC on the tolerance of the cavity that holds in the front of Tracer's hair - it keeps falling off with the slightest jostle.
Figma Tracer is clearly your choice if you want a really good action figure of your favourite character. She's pretty much everything you'd want in an action figure except for perhaps the ability to do the most extreme of poses and, strangely, a waist joint. With the second game coming out, I'm guessing that unless one of the character didn't make it to the sequel, there will probably be Figma of the newer costumes which should trigger a sell off of original characters. From a design perspective, Tracer definitely has the ability to stand out on a shelf full of Figma due to her unique colour scheme and awesome orange pants.
Another solid entry into the Figma lineup.