With the popularity of the Transformatoriumrising, along with my sons interest in all things Transformers, we decided to start doing short videos – why waste such a perfect location!
Despite being a long-time blogger and having plenty of experience in front of the camera, my skills within the realm of actually creating video’s have always been fairly limited. Thus we started off with doing a few live-streams to The Transformatorium Facebook Group, then moved exclusively to YouTube with ‘The Transformatorium Show!’.
We’ve still got a long way to go, but both Orion and I are proud that each video is a little better than the last. So if you would like to watch our progression thus far, as well as being thoroughly entertained of course, check out our test pilot and first four episodes of ‘The Transformatorium Show’ below! And feel free to visit our YouTube channeldirectly and give us a like & subscribe while you are there!
Got any ideas about different things we could look at on our new show? Or suggestions on how we can make things better? Feel free to share your advice to our fledgling YouTubers in the comments section below!
And thus the great cataloging of my personal collection continues.
The Transformers Prime cartoon came out while the live-action movies were at their peak in popularity, and so took on much of their asthetic. Prime as a long-nosed cab, Arcee as a motorcycle, Bumblebee having a damaged voicebox – all lifted from the Movieverse. This meant that poor old Ironhide lost his spot on Team Prime as in the Movieverse, Sentinel had just killed him.
Prime has proven to be one of the most popular Transformer cartoons of all time, and it had a pretty good toyline to go with it, although all the sublines contained within became very confusing, including: First Edition, Robots in Disguise, Cyberverse, Arms Micron, Go!, Adventure, Thrilling 30, Beast Hunters, Beast Hunters: Preadacons Rising and even more!
Transformers Prime Autobot Figures
Transformers Prime Autobots
*Item #PRA001: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Ultimate Optimus Prime
Reference Photo: #P00260
*Item #PRA002: Transformers Prime Autobot Optimus Prime
*Item #PRA003: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Optimus Prime
Reference Photo: #P00261
*Item #PRA004: Transformers Prime Autobot Weaponizer Bumblebee
*Item #PRA005: Platinum Edition Transformers Prime Autobot Weaponizer Ultra Magnus (MISB)
*Item #PRA006: Transformers Prime Autobot Weaponizer Optimus Prime
Reference Photo: #P00262
*Item #PRA007: Transformers Prime Autobot Ultra Magnus
*Item #PRA008: Transformers Adventure Autobot TAV14 Ultra Magnus
Reference Photo: #P00263
*Item #PRA009: Transformers Prime Autobot Cliffjumper
*Item #PRA010: Transformers GO! Prime Autobot G06 Smokescreen
*Item #PRA011: Transformers Prime Autobot Kup
*Item #PRA012: Transformers Prime Autobot Hot Shot
*Item #PRA013: Transformers Prime Autobot Wheeljack
*Item #PRA014: Transformers Prime Autobot Bumblebee
*Item #PRA015: Transformers Prime Autobot Arcee
*Item #PRA016: Transformers Prime Autobot Ratchet
Reference Photo: #P00264
*Item #PRA017: Transformers Prime Autobot Bulkhead
Reference Photo: #P00265
*Item #PRA018: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Smokescreen
*Item #PRA019: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising Autobot Smokescreen
Reference Photo: #P00266
*Item #PRA020: Transformers Prime Autobot Fallback
*Item #PRA021: Transformers Prime Autobot Tailgate
Reference Photo: #P00267
*Item #PRA022: Transformers Prime Autobot Ironhide
*Item #PRA023: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Huffer
*Item #PRA024: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Trailcutter
Reference Photo: #P00268
*Item #PRA025: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Arcee (MOSC)
*Item #PRA026: Transformers Prime Beast Hunters Autobot Arcee
And so the great cataloging of my personal Transformers Collection continues.
Animated still proves to be a much beloved and popular part of the Transformers cartoon franchise. It saw a return to character-driven storylines with each Bot and Con portrayed as having special and unique powers. With a touch of humour and new takes on classic characters, both the show and toyline proved incredibly popular with fans, especially with their unique visual asthetic.
Transformers Animated Collection
Transformers Animated Autobot Figures
Transformers Animated Autobots
*Item #ANA001: Transformers Animated Autobot Optimus Prime
*Item #ANA002: Transformers Animated Autobot Optimus Prime Cybertron Mode
(Reference: Photo #P00233)
Item #ANA003: Transformers Animated Autobot Ultra Magnus
(Reference: Photo #P00234)
Item #ANA004: Transformers Animated Autobot Blurr
Item #ANA005: Transformers Animated Autobot Sentinel Prime
Last time we looked at the plethora of new cards to be picked up from the Rise of The Combiner Booster Packs for the Transformers Trading Card Game, along with their abilities and drop rates.
Well as promised, this time we will see the cards in play! As there are already dozens of youtube videos and sites that are showing Combiners facing off against each other, and the only two Combiners I can make so far are Menasor and Dreadwing, I thought we would do something different – a Combiner vs a Titan!
Clash of the Tit… er…. big bots!
It would be a bit unfair to send ol’ Dreadwing up against Metroplex I thought, so I picked Menasor for the battle. I will be looking mainly at how the Stunticons and Menasor perform.If you would like to read more about how the Metroplex character functions, please check out my review of the Metroplex Pack here.
Before starting, it should be noted that I received these cards for review purposes from Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast. Neither company has paid me nor tried to dictate the contents of this review. Bigangrytrev would like to thank both companies for their generosity.
Setting up the board
When setting up to battle with a Combiner, you will of course have all members of that team. There is little point in having 4 Stunticons on the board but leaving Drag Strip at home. All cards are (for Combiners that use 5 characters) 5 stars apiece. Pick three to shove up front and a couple to hang behind. The difference between each Stunticons stats is negligible, though Motormaster is ever so slightly stronger, so I recommend getting him ready to rock.
Making Menasor
Find this Card!
First off, don’t worry about if some of your Stunticons are KO’ed. You can still make them into Menasor.
Unlike the G1 cartoon, to join all your characters together they all need to be in robot mode, even your KO’ed ones.
You need to employ the Stunticon Enigma card. If this has been thrown to the discard pile, don’t worry. Being a green card, it can be retrieved and swapped with one of your own.
Once combined, Menasor will carry over any damage points taken by the individual Stunticons, so try to get him to combine before they get too hurt.
When combined, you will discard all the Utility, Attack and Defense cards your individual bots were sporting, except one from each catagory which can then be applied to Menasor.
Menasor vs Metroplex
Menasor Crush!
They have surprisingly similar stats:
*Both have 25 Stars.
*Metroplex has stats of 6 Attack, 35 Health and 1 Defense.
*Menasor has stats of 6 Attack, 35 Health and 2Defense.
This makes Menasor that slight bit stronger than Metroplex. As incongruous as this seems to any diehard TF fan, one must remember that Metroplex can still flip to his City Mode, as well as deploy his 3 sidekicks (presuming they are not already KO’ed), giving him the edge. So don’t get too cocky when you whip out your Stunticon combiner, you haven’t won yet!
Basic Game
The basic game is hardly worth mentioning here. Given their almost identical stats it’s simply a matter of the opponents taking turns flipping cards until one behemoth dies. Great fun for really young players, but holds little appeal for even those with a modicum of Transformers TCG experience.
Advanced Game
Find this card too!
Gameplay proceeds as usual, with you equipping your characters with different utilities, weapons etc and you and your opponent KO’ing each others cards whilst trying to save your own. A lot of it is skill, a lot of it is down to the luck of the draw. If you find any cards specific to your team however, employ them at once, they can really help!
The trick to using your Combiner Group effectively is using your individual characters in conjunction with each other, balancing their strengths and weaknesses as well as their special abilities in order to do the most damage before combining. For instance Motormaster can protect other characters from non-attack damage, Dead End will give you an extra card and Breakdown can gain you extra attack damage.
I also highly recommendgetting many of your characters into robot form as soon as possible, so when you decide to unleash your Combiner you only have one or two characters max that needs flipping. Keep your eye out for the Stunticon Enigma Card too, if you only have one in your deck and you let it get away that’s it, you may as well let your opponent walk all over you because it’s quite hard to win a game with just the individual characters, since none of them are particularly spectacular.
When playing as Menasor, you get two extra cards right off the bat for combining him. You then get Bold 1, Tough 1 and Pierce1 as well as playing an extra action on each of your turns. This means he can seriously kick Cyberarse, especially if you have the right Action Cards slotted. In fact of the 4 games with friends of Menasor vs Metroplex, Metroplex was only successful in one instance.
So yes, from actual game play I can confirm that the Rise of the Combiner Booster Packs are well worth picking up. I heartily recommend you trade cards with friends so that you can build yourself one of these awesome Combiner Characters as soon as possible!
Got any questions or anything to add? Pop them in the comments section below!
For a bit of fun and a bit of comparison I pulled out of my storage crates a lot of my Decepticons. In particular, toys that were updates of classic characters, mainly (but not exclusively) from G1. I was amazed and how many characters have gotten new toys!
So enjoy this short video I made of the display. Also below you will find some screenshots and a full list of the Decepticons on display along with links to reviews of many of the figures displayed here – have fun!
There have been a ton of Transformer gaming apps in recent years on both Android and iPhone; a few have retired and several are still chugging along. In anticipation of the new Bumblebee Movie coming out later this year, we have a new game (currently only available through Apple) based on everyone’s favorite little yellow bot in Transformers Bumblebee Overdrive.
Pretty much every app has been based on either the Movieverse or Generation 1. This is most definitely G1 with a bit of Generations thrown in. And like G1, this game is 80’s arcade all the way baby!
You start the game as Bumblebee and work your way through 4 main stages over and over, gathering crystals and coins in order to unlock new characters. Once you reach a certain points level, you then take on a boss character, the defeat of which will unlock new weapons and bonuses within game.
Lets fight!
The four main stages consist of Highway, Canyon, another Canyon and Decepticon bases.
Highway
Like the run to Brisbane Airport
Lots of innofensive traffic which you need to dodge, the only real enemy you encounter and flying Decepticon Drones that fire off missiles, one hit of which can kill. It is during these highway drives that you can try to earn bonuses from completing events, such as destroying a certain amount of Phone Booths or Fire Hydrants.
Canyon – style 1.
Who takes a sports car that expensive offroading?
Lots of swerving required here. Surprise spike pits pop up, silver mines are laid about, more flying Missile Drones and as you progress Laser Cannons. Ironically the main thing you need to avoid are rock columns, crashing into one kills you instantly.
Canyon – style 2.
Air Time!
Nothing to crash into here, but you are being pursued! Here we get some G1 goodness with you being chased by Stunticons Dead End & Breakdown as well as other G1 Cons Ruckus and Ground Hog. There is also the StunticonOffroad from Combiner Wars and Slice(r) from Timelines thrown in. Taking out these other cars is probably the easiest of the levels, though as it gets harder sometimes you find ones parked in your way as you fight the others.
Subtle hints are provided
Decepticon Bases
Here is the only part of the game where you get to fight as robot mode and a plethora of different dangers get in your way. Laser Canons in different configurations, barriers both physical and electric and purple flying Conheads who resemble the same ones found in Transformers: Devestation. These levels are also the ones were you get to test out the different weapons you have unlocked by defeating bosses, in particular I like the laser beam you get for defeating Acid Storm.
The laser kicks ass!
Bosses
Nearly all G1 based (apart from GenerationsBattleslash) and they are a lot of fun! You only get to fight these when you have reached a certain amount of points. In the classic 80’s arcade style, these bosses throw different energy weapon patterns at you and as long as you avoid the obvious patterns the bosses are easy to defeat. Quite an enjoyable part of the game, it’s a shame that they come along so rarely.
And you only get to fight them once
Character Unlocks
You start as Bumblebee and, much like any toy isle you go down, the easiest other character to get is another version of Bumblebee, this one resembling in part his look from TF: AOE. The other characters to get at this stage are Sideswipe, Arcee and Optimus – Optimus requiring a whopping 500 crystals! When you obtain a character you use your coins to increase their armor and firepower, then use crystals to ungrade them to the next level to start all over again. I just got Arcee this morning and she is quite fun in robot mode since she has two guns, which means double the firepower when you use the upgrades like lasers and homing missiles.
‘Freedom is the right of all sentient beings – as long as they pay through the nose with crystally goodness’
In-Game Purchases
Guess the game companies need to make their money somehow
What app doesn’t have these. Personally I’d never buy even the cheap ones but maybe there is someone out there willing to spend over a hundred bucks on the big pack.
Yeah, good luck selling these!
Is the game worth playing?
In short doses yes. It’s lots of fun! In big doses no. Your finger gets tired after a while and to be honest when I was most of the way to the points total for Battleslash I was hoping I would crash as I had had my fill. Also despite the minor variations you get each run through, having only 4 stages to work through over and over again gets understandingly repetitive.
Will I still be playing this game in a months time?
I doubt it. I’ll unlocked Arcee a few hours ago but no way could I be bothered saving enough crystals for Optimus. Also as mentioned before, the amount of points you need to gain increases exponentially to reach bosses. The first three (Tracer, Quake and Acid Storm) are not too onerous but then suddenly you find Battlelslash to be a whopping 256,000 points and that takes forever to reach.
So should you download it?
If you are a TF fan sure, why not! It’s a bit of cheesy 80’s arcade fun but it really doesn’t have anything to keep you there for the long haul.
Got something to say about this App? Put it in the comments section below!
