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3D Printers for Kids

posted by mattie_p on Monday February 17 2014, @12:55PM   Printer-friendly
from the my-little-printer dept.

similar_name writes: "The prospect of children printing their own Transformers and My Little Pony toys is a step closer, after toy firm Hasbro revealed a partnership with 3D printing company 3D Systems. The two companies are working together to 'co-develop and commercialize innovative play printers and platforms later this year.'"

[Ed. Note] The first one I would print is Applejack.

 
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  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by Random2 on Monday February 17 2014, @01:28PM

    by Random2 (669) on Monday February 17 2014, @01:28PM (#863)

    While customization isn't something new, what happens to series with established canons if people are allowed to print their 'own characters'? Part of the draw of the characters is that you get to play with 'Optimus Prime' and follow the stories for example, not that you have some random character that isn't related to the series. Of course, kids are quite capable of making up their own stores and integrating them into what they do, but does that actually work out? Do we know of a case where something like that happened and was successful?

    I would like to think it would evolve into something like the expanded universe of Star Wars, but since it's with kids instead of adults I don't really see that happening. Basically it seems more like a novelty to go 'ohh, shiny 3D printing' rather than something that'd really take off.

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  • (Score: 2, Funny) by paddym on Monday February 17 2014, @02:20PM

    by paddym (196) on Monday February 17 2014, @02:20PM (#920)

    Yeah, following the canons was always a concern of mine when I played with transformers. I was placed in the corner if I couldn't describe the themes of my interactions, or if the outcome was fate-driven instead of character-driven. Can you imagine if they ever made generic ripoffs of HotWheels? Nobody ever bought those, so those companies are all defunct, but it would have been a disaster if they caught on. I had 5 versions of Voltron! I had to come up with these time-machine based stories and make sure they never looked directly at one another to keep it consistent. I think I single-handedly saved the world from the butterfly effect many times over by being very careful what I imagined. That's ok, you don't need to thank me.