GregF

Protohuman -- Since it was not my decision, I can't give you all the reasoning for it. All I can tell you is what Legal told me, and has told people who have emailed about this issue -- LEGO has no plans at present to distribute the game or license anyone else to do so. We hold the copyright to the game, which means that anyone who has a copy of it outside of the company has an unauthorized copy that was made in violation of our intellectual property rights. Those copies can't be used without the express permission of the LEGO, and since we are not prepared to release the game, we are not giving that permission. Not much point in debating this with me, because like I said, I don't work in Legal and don't know all their reasoning for it. I am simply the messenger in this case, and the message seems pretty clear to me. I am conveying it in order to forestall more PMs to me about this issue or more people asking our lawyers about it.

Well, let me put it to you this way -- suppose you wrote a fan fiction story that you ended up really not happy with and feeling wasn't a good representation of your writing? Would you want someone posting it publicly, and having it reflect badly on you? The game was not of the quality LEGO wanted, so we have no interest in the public seeing it.

GoldenTahu -- Boost enthusiasm among BIONICLE fans to what end? There is no more BIONICLE, beyond the story serials, so boosting enthusiasm basically does nothing for us at this point. And to answer the earlier -- based on my conversation with Legal, no, I would say it's highly unlikely anyone else will be allowed to do anything with the game. The statement I heard was pretty unequivocal on that point, so I would say it's a dead issue.

Yes, a LEGO employee got a copy of the game -- that's who I spoke to. But as I said, the "game" he got was just sound files.

A number of people have asked recently about the old Legends of Mata Nui computer game from 2001 that never got released, so I thought I would share what info I have on this here: * The game, as most of you know, was cancelled before release due to its not being up to our quality standards and so not fitting into our marketing plan. * I know at least one BIONICLE fan spoke to our Legal dept. about getting a copy of the game. My understanding is that Legal's position is that we are not releasing any part of the game to the public, and since we own the copyright, anyone outside LEGO who did have a copy of the game would not be able to share it either. However ... * I also spoke to the one person I know here who did get a copy in 2001, prior to cancellation. He says all that was available on the LEGO servers at that time were random sound files -- nothing even remotely like a playable game. What this means, I don't know -- it's possible that, since the game was being developed by an outside developer, and not finished yet, we did not have the main files here. If we did, my guess is they were scrapped long ago, but that is just a guess. Regardless, since it was not something LEGO considered to be high enough quality, for obvious reasons there is no interest in having it see the light of day. And even if we did, I honestly don't know that there would be anything for us to release.

There would be no point in my posting the list, as none of the names have been approved by Legal yet. And I most likely won't post the list when they are -- I never have before -- I will just use the names as I need them.

My list of proposed new names for BIONICLE 2010-2011 is now written up. Those of you who had, with my agreement, sent me lists of names you wanted checked on for your projects, please resend so I can add to mine. Thanks, Greg

No -- it was not a messenger box was full message. It was a "this member has chosen not to be contactable by personal messenger" message.

Bones hits it on the head -- until you see how New World shapes up to be, you don't know what connection it will have to this universe. What if Mata Nui learned something from observing it that may later influence in some way the society that does or does not get created on Spherus Magna? Or what if it in some way influenced his behavior during the 2009 story? Who knows what direction the creators may someday take it? Just as an example -- let's say New World had very sophisticated astronomers and they saw the Shattering happen (obviously some time after it really did, due to the time it takes light to travel, etc.) They don't know what caused it -- maybe it was an attack from some alien race? Maybe that race is going to target them next? They go into a panic, build shelters, starting warring with each other over who gets to be in them, etc. By the time Mata Nui gets there, most of the population is hiding underground and the ones on the surface are sure they're doomed. Quite a lesson to be learned from observing this civilization, and it is directly tied in to events in the main story of BIONICLE. And that's just one direction ... not the best, no, but I whipped it up in a minute. Imagine what a whole team who spends weeks or months could come up with? What NW is trying to do is to give writers and artists a new place to play, where they don't have to constantly worry about stepping on toes of the official story. They won't do all this work and then have something contradict them next year or something. Makes perfect sense to me. And if it doesn't to you, well, don't read it. Simple as that. Some of you guys act like you are required by law to read anything that has BIONICLE in the name -- you're not. If the project doesn't appeal to you, and you don't want to give it a chance to catch your interest, then ignore it. What's so hard about that?

Sorry to beat a dead horse, but ... this morning I got a very intelligent PM from a premier member asking some questions regarding the look of the Agori and the Glatorian. I sat down, spent five minutes or so giving him his answers, sent it off ... and he is not contactable by Messenger. PLEASE do not send me PMs if your account is not set up to receive replies. It wastes my time and yours.

ET -- If you have an issue with the membership, then you should take it up with Nuhrii or Bonesiii. If there are legitimate reasons people should not be on the team, bring them up. Each segment of the team had one person who made recommendations for who they thought should be on it from their area, with the exception of the basic BZP segment, which came in part from my recommendations to Nuhrii and his back to me. There were names I did a little bit of a double-take on, but let go through because I don't want it to be a team of yes-men. Again, if you know some substantial reason someone cannot or should not serve, you should address it with the team leaders. If it's not based on anything but personal dislike, then that is different and probably not worth mentioning.

I would hold off on declaring NW "fan-created canon." The last plan I heard was that it was going to involve multiple story contests where I would have to look at winners and then rule them as being canon or not. As I told the organizers, I have no idea if I am going to have the spare time to be able to do that. I hope I do, but I can't make promises as my life, particularly in the second half of the year, is going to be exceedingly hectic.

One other point I would like to make - there are two major things in comics that I can think of that I either have no interest in (Marvel's Ultimate books) or that I think are poorly executed (Grant Morrison's Batman work). I choose not to spend money or time on either. But can either really be said to be bad ideas? I would have to say no, because both have resulted in great sales and lots of buzz for their respective companies. The fact that I personally dislike or have no interest in something does not make it a bad idea -- just an idea that does not resonate with me. Each of these fan initiatives has a goal. You measure success by how well they meet that goal. And none of the goals include "please every member of BZP," because that is not possible to do. So before you condemn any of these initiatives, I think you need to ask yourself -- is this actually an idea that will not achieve its objectives, or is it simply any idea you personally don't find interesting?

Jimmybob -- Understood, but WHY is it silly? Star Trek has done it. Star Wars has done it. Marvel has done it (what did the Squadron Supreme world have to do with Earth-616? Next to nothing, yet it not only got mini-series but graphic novels written about it). DC has done it. Not every story they tell in their extended universes deals with the major characters or the major worlds we have heard of before. One of the best SW stories I ever read was Planet of Evil by Jim Bambra, which had virtually nothing to do with the main characters or Tatooine, Coruscant, Hoth, etc. It's a big story universe ... why is it silly to explore a part of it? If you have legitimate issues, then yes, bring them up. Talk to the people running the project and tell them why you think it isn't going to work. Like I said, they may not listen to you, but you can at least make your opinions known. Just saying something is silly doesn't rate as constructive criticism, and I am sure you wouldn't say it without substantial reasoning to back it up.

One time, some while ago, there was a project in the works at one of my jobs that I was unhappy about. I just knew that creatively it was all wrong, it was going to miss our audience, and it was just in general a bad idea. And I made that pretty clear to the people around me (as I am wont to do). Then one day I got some very good advice from someone I respected -- she said, "If you're worried that it is going to be all wrong, volunteer to work on it ... and make it right." (I did, by the way, and it turned out pretty well.) Why am I sharing this story? Well, there are three fan initiatives floating around online right now -- New World, BIONICLE: Next Generation, and the BIONICLE Story Squad. My awareness of them ranges from the very familiar to the passing acquaintance, and I cannot predict success or failure for any of them. The people working on them certainly seem dedictated and willing to put the time in on these projects. All of these projects are in their infancy and still have lots of questions attached to them. What's interesting, though, is that they seem to be provoking a lot of hostility in some quarters here. If I offer to help out on one or the other, I get a hornet's nest of angry PMs. I see people being downright abusive in forums (people who should know better than to behave that way). I don't know if it's legitimate disapproval, jealousy, bitterness, or what -- one thing I have identified is that some people seem to feel strongly that fans should not be allowed to suggest things for canonization in story. Let me address the last first. LEGO has the LEGO Ambassadors program, the Kids' Inner Circle, and even fans helping to design some of the models we put out. The first letter of my dept. name -- C -- stands for "community." BIONICLE has a passionate fanbase and a history of letting them contribute in small to medium ways to the storyline -- and with the demise of the sets, the company wants to broaden the involvement of fans in the creation of story. In some cases, as with BSS, it means creating something new -- in others, it means letting people have some leeway to try something new and see if it works. Just as I get to play in the BIONICLE universe, they get to do some of that too now, with the same restrictions that I have always operated under. And as always, nothing will become part of official story unless I okay it. You have a right to disagree with LEGO's thinking, but that is the policy I have been asked to implement. Now, some people may think that if they kick up enough of a ruckus, these projects will fail/get cancelled and official story will be safe from dreaded fan input. Sorry, not so. See, my mandate is to get fans involved with story -- it says nothing about BZPers or BS01 folks or Kanohi Journal or any of that. So if were to turn out that working with this community just isn't going to happen, I can always turn to KIC or to younger fans who I have met at events or in focus groups and let them contribute their ideas. So the only thing that would be achieved would be putting this very creative, very passionate community of fans on the outside looking in, and I don't think anyone wants that to happen. Do I KNOW BSS, NG, and NW will be stellar successes? Nope. Do I think there will be bumps in the road, creative dead ends, and who knows what else in the process of finding out how they will work out? Yes. But people have stepped forward, said they were willing to work, and I hope that their endeavors WILL be successful. So my advice to the community is to play nice. Show some respect. If you are certain that one of these project is going down the complete wrong road, don't gripe about it in forums -- volunteer to help and steer it back onto the right road. If you see problems that maybe the people working on it don't see, bring them up in a helpful, constructive way. (If the project team refuses to listen to you, and the problems eat them alive, at least you tried.) If all you have to contribute is bile and hostility, I'd suggest you zip it, because the only thing you may achieve is the marginalizing of your community. BIONICLE post-sets is a huge opportunity both for you and for me as far as new story goes. If you want to be a part of that, great. If you have a constructive suggestion to make things better, I would hope the people behind these projects would have the sense to be all ears. And if you don't want to be involved at all, don't knock the people who do. It only makes you look small.

One point I would add to Spink's comment -- "they" won't be choosing to canonize anything. I will. BSS does not have the authority to do canonizations. There seems to be this mistaken impression that the BSS is suddenly going to mean lots more canonization or lots more canonization suggestions. I can say a definite no to the former, and as for the latter, I was already buried in canonization suggestions. I see no reason there will be less or more as a result of this. If you have an issue with that, you need to take it up with your fellow BZPers who are desperate to get something in story as opposed to the BSS people ... they have no control over who makes suggestions or how many they receive. And as I pointed out in another topic, this is what LEGO Company wants. They want fan involvement in story. That was mandated late last year, and this is one of the ways we are choosing to execute it, and probably the least intrusive way.

I am going to be offline for a week for work reasons, so won't be able to answer questions. I will get to them as soon as I can when I get back.

... But if you do something nice for someone, like send me one of their theories because they are too new a member to be able to PM, please make sure you can be contacted by the PM system or I can't respond to it. If your ability to receive PMs is shut off, there's not much point in sending me questions.

Reign of Shadows #10 is almost done -- sorry for the delay, but I think you will find it was worth the wait. In addition to the resolution of the whole fight in the chamber and the first appearance of Artakha, we get the return of the Toa Mahri and the startling answer to one of the most frequently asked questions of the last year or so!

-- For those of you kind enough to ask, it is confirmed that I will NOT be at Comic-Con this year. I asked not to go because I have a family commitment around that time this year. -- If you PM me a question, please make sure that your account is set up to receive PMs. I have had a number of people send me things that I then cannot answer because their settings are adjusted to not accept private messages.

Bones -- I can't promise anything on prefixes, because those too have to be run through Legal.

Consensus is important, I think -- I mean, shortly after getting impassioned pleas to do Kinetics as an element, I got impassioned pleas from other members I respect NOT to. That sort of puts me in the middle on an issue that really isn't vital to what I am doing now. I don't think anyone wants the entire periodic table represented in BIONICLE, and I think some of this is coming about from a misunderstanding. Someone wrote today and said I was "more at liberty" to canonize things now -- which sort of confused me. What has changed is there are no sets in summer 2010 and onward that I have to work into story. That's it. That has nothing to do with whether or not new elements can get added into story, etc., or what the explanation for some previously unexplained 2009 set issue is. I'm neither at more or less liberty than I was a year ago on that sort of thing. One suggestion that has been made is that I come up with any new elements that get added into story, which is fine, except that I probably won't because I see no real need for a mess of new elements.

In the last week or so, I have all of a sudden gotten bombarded with people wanting to know colors for various elements, and others wanting to add new elements to the story. Relax, please -- I am not looking to open the floodgates and add a ton of new tribes/elements to the story. As for colors, I understand you need them for MOCing, but your best bet might be to do those things as polls so we get an idea of what the site as a whole thinks of various suggestions. I am not a set designer or a MOCer, so not the best person to determine what color looks nice with what.

Recently, a BZPer posted a topic insisting I had been rude to him in my answer to his PM. He had asked a question for which I did not have what I felt was a good or complete answer, so I appended, "for what it's worth to you" to the end of the answer -- since I had no way of knowing if the little bit of info I was giving would answer his question. He somehow decided that meant I thought his question was worthless or stupid, which was not the case. (If I HAD thought that, I simply wouldn't have bothered to answer at all.) As I think most of you know, "for what it's worth to you" simply means, "I don't know if this will any help to you or not, you have to decide that." I have since explained this to him, but he seems determined to remain offended, and there is nothing I can do about that. But I thought it brought up a larger issue. Yes, I answer a lot of PMs here, when I don't have to -- but that also means I am not FORCED to. So while sometimes my answers are curt -- even a lot of times -- I don't try to be rude and I don't intend to be. You guys are fans, and because of that, you need to be treated with respect. For some people, getting just a "yes" or "no" may seem harsh or rude, but that comes from the fact that if I take time to write long answers to everyone, I won't have time to answer all the questions I get. And in some cases, like this one, someone just honestly misinterprets something I say, and all I can do in that case is try to explain that they took it the wrong way. I will not sit here and say I am never a little cranky on here , especially when people are trying to reopen debates for the 12th time that have long been closed. There are some things it is just a waste of time to go into, and if it's obvious the person knew that before asking, then my patience wears a little thin. But in the end, you are taking your free time to ask me stuff, and I am taking mine to answer -- and so we both have to respect each other, for the same reasons.

My hope is that I will do a good enough job on the serials that you guys will find new things to MOC. And yes, we are going to Bota Magna in summer 2010. Maybe some other places too ...