LEGO have updated their online store with a page for the upcoming Minecraft set 21128 The Village, which means that we now know the official Australian RRP. At 1600 pieces the set was never going to be cheap but $349.99 may be more than some Minecraft fans wanted to pay.
The price seems quite high – but is it overpriced or reasonably priced? Read on for a look at the price in more detail.
A lot of the contention about the Australian price for this set seems to stem from the fact that the US price is just $199.99. When you convert that to Australian dollars and add 10% to account for the GST you are looking at $281.62 AU. Around $68 less than the actual Australian RRP. Of course we very rarely get sets priced at a straight conversion from the US price. A 20% markup is not uncommon, which would be around $337 AU.
Generally US prices are some of the lowest in the world. Let’s see how the price over in England compares. £169.99 converts to $312.20. Considering that the UK has a different tax amount to Australia’s 10% GST it looks like we are getting a worse price than our English friends.
How does the price compare to the other Minecraft sets released this year? Looking at the Price Per Piece for all of the 2016 sets we can see that 21128 The Village has the highest PPP of any of the sets.
Set Number | Name | Pieces | Australian RRP | AU PPP | Link | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | 21123 | The Iron Golem | 208 | $39.99 | $0.1923 | View |
![]() | 21124 | The End Portal | 559 | $89.99 | $0.1610 | View |
![]() | 21125 | The Jungle Tree House | 706 | $149.90 | $0.2123 | View |
![]() | 21126 | The Wither | 318 | $59.99 | $0.1886 | View |
![]() | 21128 | The Village | 1600 | $349.99 | $0.2187 | View |
PPP can be a difficult metric to use because there are lots of different types and sizes of parts but it works reasonably well with Minecraft as the sets all have a fairly blocky style.
The average PPP for the other Minecraft sets released this year is $0.1886. If that rate was applied to The Village the Australian price would be just $301.76.
It certainly looks like if they wanted to LEGO could have gone for an Australian price of between $299.99 and $329.99. The $349.99 does seem a little high. Hopefully this set will show up in stores and on sale.
Do you think the price is fair? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Too rich for me, looks like something that could come out of bulk buckets.
Unfortunately I think the price is a victim of where our currency was heading. At today’s exchange rates though you will be better off ordering from Barnes & Noble.
This is a completely unjustified price gouge.
Lego doesn’t care about the Australian market.
They’re acting like a typical large American corporation even though they’re not one.
Their only excuse for charging this price – they charge what the market will pay!
So much for free trade and all that reteric!
If our dollar drops 30% doesn’t mean any of us get paid more. So when the pricing isn’t truly based on the $ then it shouldn’t be used as an excuse to increase them.
Rant rant rant!!!!!! – sorry all but corporate greed @##$$ me off!!!
I agree with all in this subject, when is the the TLG going to recognise this huge australian market share!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and give us a fair go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So, the Minecraft ‘village’ set is $350 for 1600 pieces, yet the Ninjago ‘Temple of Airjitzu’ was $300 for 2028 pieces. Go figure. I kind of get the size-of-piece/type-of-piece affects price … But it does seem a little bit rich pitching this at this price-point. 20% off, and we’re down to $280 … Here’s hoping Myer stays true to form and has it on their lists. Hard to believe we’ll see it anywhere else.
I know which one I’d choose…Temple of Airjitzu is stunning. I’m still hoping one of the local retailers has it as an exclusive at some point but I’m not holding my breath.
This and the new UCS Hoth Set are too high. Take the Temple of Airjitzu or a Modular. They are banking on the exclusive rights at the moment. It won’t last long until people transition away from them, or look elsewhere to a cheaper PPP and MOC build.