Transformers Studio Series Gamer Edition Barricade review

Of all the War for Cybertron video game characters that received toys back in 2010, Barricade is taking over Soundwave's spot as one of the main releases in the line for the Gamer Edition. Yes, the same Barricade that was briefly introduced and clashed with the game being a prequel to G1, this guy gets a Deluxe figure to join alongside the mainstays of the franchise, which does make me wonder who else will get a figure alongside the characters we already know about. I mean, War for Cybertron has everyone else who's in the Gamer Edition subline along with Soundwave while Fall of Cybertron had a subline that introduced Jazz, Shockwave, Grimlock, and the Combaticons, so I'll be happy to see redos of these guys with better engineering and sizes...shame the same cannot really be said for Barricade.

Here is Barricade in his vehicle mode, arguably his best mode yet. I like the Motormaster-esque color combo of grey, purple, and black. The yellow on the back reminds me of the eyes of an animal for some reason, like the RPM Wolf Cruiser, but he has a grille protector rather than a gun nose. The angles and alien aesthetic compliment the character, and it makes it nearly impossible to repurpose this guy as someone else.

Side profile is where the RPM Wolf Cruiser resemblance makes me realize that it feels somewhat reminiscent of the RID 2015 Decepticons, Steeljaw to be exact. So I guess it could work for him like Steeljaw. I do find the mushroom pegs being colored and angled differently kind of funny.

 

The gun can be stored on top with a unique square peg rather than the standard 5mm pegs.

For a vehicle mode size comparison, here he is next to Optimus Prime, and you can get a sense of how big the guy is next to the Autobot leader, though Prime was bit of a smaller Voyager in this form.

Transformation is mostly creative, but there are certain parts of it that feel like what you accomplished aren't worth it in the end. The way the hip kibble, forearms, clunky backpack, and the feet are the biggest culprits. The core robot mode does look promising once again, especially with the deco and torso design, but look at how stupid the forearms look with the panels blocking the thumbs; they look misassembled yet this is the proper configuration! The wheels in the hips is accurate yet they look horribly oversized on him, and the clown feet both look bad and barely help him stand. The back is mostly compact, but some hinges can go a long way with making it look cohesive, honestly. The paint apps put in him are probably why they compensate for a mediocre Deluxe.

His head is the best part about the guy, thinking about it. It's a stylized G1 look that feels unique even if it apes a bit of Megatron's bucket head. The yellow eyes are thankfully crisp, too. His articulation consists of a limited and stiff ball neck, ball jointed shoulders, bicep swivels, limited elbow bends, ball jointed wrists, ball hips, thigh swivels, knees, and ankle hinges but no pivots. I know he's more stylized than the SS86 guys but it's pretty embarrassing that he feels limited like an early RID15 Warrior figure.

His gun is swappable with his right forearm, but while Optimus looked mostly decent from the girth of the gun, it looks embarrassing on Barry, almost like the forearm is trying to grow back after it was cut off. Ironically, the gun can peg on the back while the forearm cannot, opposite of Prime's swappable arms. This subline's going to be shit in some ways. At least its blast effect compatible.

For a size comparison, here he is next to Optimus Prime, serving as a surprisingly tall Deluxe next to a shorter Voyager. Optimus isn't perfect but he felt much better engineered by comparison. Barry feels weak and not worth the asking price. No disrespect to the designers but I can't see the accomplishments going from the CAD files to this. I hope Bumblebee is better.

Final ranking: ⭐⭐ out of ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐