CYBERZOIC- Sci Fi Dinosaur and Dragon action figures
Created by David Silva
Armored Dinosaurs and Alien Dragons clash in this new science fiction toy line centered around nature and mankind's place within it.
Latest Updates from Our Project:
Beast Armor Fine Cuts, more Test Shots, and... Mammoths?
about 1 month ago
– Fri, Aug 02, 2024 at 10:42:59 AM
Hello again everyone, I hope you all are having an amazing summer! If you've been following the Cyberzoic action on social media, you know that we're rock'n and roll'n on development for the first wave. So let's recap the recent project news!
Factory switch
First off, I just want to touch on something I mentioned briefly on our last livestream. I recently made the decision to move the humans and armors for wave A from a new factory that we were trying out, back over to my regular factory. The main reason for this being that I felt the progress was going too slow and my regular factory confirmed they would be able to do the work. I'm also optimistic that having all of the components under one roof will help us recoup some of the lost time. This was a set back, but I'm hoping that any delays caused by this will be minimal.
Human figure status- wave A
We found that the fine cuts still needed some minor adjustments in terms of shoulder armor attachments and accessory thicknesses for proper functionality, so the plan now is to tool them along with the beast armors. Which leads us neatly into...
Armor Fine Cuts
The most challenging aspect of this project was always expected be the converting armors, but I'm happy to report that we've been making very good progress on this since the factory switch. They're now making sure that the armors fit correctly, and the parts tab together as needed for each mode. Final tweaks are still being made, but here's a look at the fine cuts so far!
Looking ahead to wave B, Ross is currently making some final improvements to the Jetraptor armor, improving both the aesthetics and functionality. Here's an in-progress sneak peek.
And speaking of sneak peeks, we have new art for this in the works as well!
More Dinosaur test shots
Picking up from last time with wave A and B creature test shot figures, we have two more to look at!
Deinoychus
(base not final)
Dilophosaurus
Razorhound catalog shots
Another round of fancy catalog shots, this time for our big Fire Clan raptor!
JoeFest was a total blast and we want to thank everyone who came out and visited with us!
We had plenty of awesome products for sale and also showed off test shots and prototypes to the public for the first time. We can't wait to return next year! See more JoeFest photos here and Ross and Chris go in depth about the event on Creative Beasts episode 8.
Prehistoric Elephants! Collaboration with Eons coming soon
Wooly Mammoth sculpted by Jun Huang, Mammoth calf sculpted by Ross Persichetti
That's right, Wooly Mammoths are on the horizon, thanks to the team at Eons, which you may know from their fantastic YouTube channel. We're creating new figures for their upcoming BackerKit crowdfund, set to launch on Sept 3rd! There'll be more exciting reveals soon so sign up for the project updates below!
BotM Utah and Achillo wave now shipping- final weekend to preorder
I just wanted to mention this here briefly that the new Beasts of the Mesozoic assortment with the first versions of Utahraptor and Achillobator is at our warehouse and fulfillment has begun as of yesterday! As usual, there are a lot of orders go ship so please allow our team several business days to complete all of the preorders. And for those who still wish to take advantage of the preorder pricing for any of these figures, you can still do so until Monday. Click here for the preorder section of the creative-beast.com shop.
Well, I think that's plenty for now. Our Kickstarter updates take a lot of time to read and to write, but if you're more into bite-size content, follow our weekly progress on my social media channels Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or you can visit the 'News' section of my website updated each week. And if you haven't already, sign up for our newsletter at creative-beast.com for project news, discounts and monthly gift card giveaways!
Enjoy the rest of your summer and until next time!
-David
New 'Beasts' Test Shots, more exciting Package Art, and Sneak Peeks at what's to come!
4 months ago
– Fri, May 24, 2024 at 11:40:14 AM
Happy Memorial Day weekend everyone! As we ring in the unofficial start of summer, it's time once again for the rundown all things Cyberzoic. But first, I do want to mention that for Memorial Weekend only, our Beasts of the Mesozoic in-stock items are 15% off!
Now with that plug out of the way, our biggest Cyberzoic news is that tooling is completed for the beasts of Wave A and B, and we now have our first test shot figures! There's also new package art, more improvements, our first catalog shots, and even a few sneak peeks at what's to come. So settle in, because here we go!
New Test Shots!
The first plastic-injected test shot figures are here for the Arctic Dragon, Smilodon, Deinonychus, and Dilophosaurus! Allosaurus has actually just been completed and is enroute to me now from the factory, so watch for new photos of that very soon!
Kuraokami the Arctic Dragon
It's extremely gratifying to finally see this design in plastic form (if you missed my previous update on the design history and lore of Kuraokami, I highly suggest checking it out here)
Much time and effort was put into getting the most range as possible out of the neck movement. I must say it works really well!
Our first mammalian figure was an interesting challenge to design and engineer, trying not to sacrifice any more of the anatomy than necessary for poseabilty, and I'm extremely pleased with the result. The range of poses that this figure can achieve is beyond what I thought possible!
Speaking of Achillobator, now that the factory has an actual plastic version to work on top of, we have our very first look at the fine cut for its armor, the Razorhound!
Need to move the armor forward just a smidge...
Still more tweaking to do, but it's exciting to see progress!
New Package Art
And with cool figures, we must have equally cool package art! Let's escape to Gaea 2 once again with these incredible works. (Click the main images for a large view.)
Deinonychus Set by Raph Lomotan
More great work from Raph, as we get a glimpse at the mysterious Desert Clan and their Badlands surface patrol.
This layered art will be used for both the Deinonychus and Gunrunner armor.
Lizard Dragon by Raul Ramos
I've been working with Raul for a long time now and he never ceases to impress, but he may have actually outdone himself on this one. I love everything about this so much. The composition, the colors, the depth and the mood. It's all there!
The Gaea 2 forests are a dangerous place, and it's often hard to tell who's the hunter and who's the prey.
Yeah, Velociraptors can climb trees on Gaea 2.
Long time fans will recognize this piece as a tribute to my 2014 sculpture/ kit Dragons vs. Raptors.
The new Velociraptor colors were based on the Utahraptor at the center of the original kit.. which was based on a harlequin duck. In retrospect, I think I sculpted it too small...
Man, has it really been ten years already? Sheesh.
More improvements!
We were able to squeeze in some last-minute edits to the Dragonslayer as well as finalizing the display stand.
Dragonslayer
A few parts had to be made to attach slightly differently to ensure a proper fit for Argenteus.
The most notable additions are the new foot pedals, which store inside when in armor mode. We'll also have clear plug-in 'headlights' on the back of the lower guns.
The flight stand has been in the works for sometime now, and will be compatible with stand parts for the dinosaur stands that we just developed.
The base will be reused again for the Pyrodactyl, Jetraptor, and Icestalker vehicles as well.
Argenteus
We made one more small tweak to Argenteus. Much like his hulking Fire Clan rival, Dybukk, Argenteus now too will sport a bicep swivel joint, allowing for more realistic poses.
Gladius Prime weapon port adapter
And last but not least, we've added a small adaptor part to be included with the Gladius Prime armor which will allow it to use guns and other side plug weapons from the different armor units.
Catalog Shots
We have our first 'catalog shots' for Cyberzoic! These will be for various promotional materials and will likely be on the final packaging as well.
Allosaurus set
Arctic Dragon
Sneak Peeks
Cyberzoic issue #1- Comic layout page
A lot of work is being done right now between myself and comic artist Tadd Galusha for the first issue of the Cyberzoic! And while it's too early to show much, I at least wanted to share one of our page layouts as an example of what we have in store.
Not giving anything away here, but I can say this happens within the first few pages. Can't wait to show more as we progress on this!
Bristle Dragon sculpt now in progress
In case anyone missed this last month, I've finally started sculpting Helina's trusty Fire Clan steed, the Bristle Dragon! This was originally planned for the Kickstarter, but as with several items, had to be saved for later. Feels great to finally be sculpting a dragon again!
You may recall seeing the Bristle Dragon shown some time ago in this awesome promo illustration by HPL gamedesign.
No release date info yet, but be sure to keep an eye on my social media for future updates!
Show appearances
Comicpalooza- Houston, TX- this weekend!
The boys are in Houston, TX this weekend for the big Comicpalooza convention! If you're in the area, stop by booth #1226 and meet artists Ross Persichetti and Chris 'Chaotic' Albers!
And just a reminder that JoeFest only one month away! Not only will we have our Beasts of the Mesozoic items for sale, but we'll also be showing off our latest Cyberzoic test shots, as well as a few other surprises.
Okay, I think that's enough to cram into one update. Thank you to those who've read this far, I realize these aren't short, but I do like to be thorough. But when I'm not making super-long Kickstarter updates, you'll be able to find me on my social media channels Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or just visit the 'News' section of my website for 'bite-site' content as it becomes available. And if you haven't already, sign up for our newsletter at creative-beast.com for project updates, exclusive discounts and monthly gift card giveaways!
Also, next Thursday, May 30th, join Chris, Ross, and myself on our monthly livestream show 'Creative Beasts' at 8pm EST at our youtube channel . We'll recap this past month, and also geek out about toys and pop culture, like we do.
Those pesky raptors are always going where they aren't welcome.
More New Package art plus Fine Cut updates for Creatures and Characters!
6 months ago
– Fri, Mar 22, 2024 at 07:59:53 AM
Happy spring, Everyone! It's time now for the latest from Gaea 2, and we've got a lot cooking for this Cyberzoic update so let's begin with some epic package art!
New Package art!
I have a couple of amazing new package art pieces to show this time around.
(Click on each image for a larger view.)
Saber Tooth Tiger Set
First up is the final art for the Kickstarter Exclusive Sabre Tooth Tiger set by wildlife artist and industry veteran, Ezra Tucker! 100% traditionally painted in oils, Ezra brings his classical style to Cyberzoic as only he can. What an honor it is to have been inspired by his work as a child and now working with him here. I'm so grateful to have him along on this journey to finally revisit a world of sci-fi wildlife!
In addition to the incredible package art, we're also paying homage to the Dino Riders Sabre Tooth tiger release from 1990! Here's a preview of the box front.
The package graphics will feature a lot of call backs to the vintage counter part, seen below.
These homage boxes are always the most fun to design- can't wait to see how this one turns out!
Kuraokami (Arctic Dragon)
Also revealed recently was another stellar package art piece, this one for Kuraokami the Arctic Dragon, done by Raul Ramos!
I've had the pleasure of commissioning Raul for many impressive illustrations, but this one might just top them all! As an amalgam of vertebrate lifeforms, Kuraokami is the embodiment of the natural world in all of its beauty and power- a concept which Raul captured here perfectly!
And here's a hint for what's in-progress now.
Fine Cuts
Moving on to the figures now, we have more updates on the fine cut development.
Here we have a look at the fine cut figures for the Wave B animals, Deinonychus and Dilophosaurus!
For as good as ol' Allo looked before, there was still room for improvement. These new adjustments include: a wider jaw gape, disc hinged wrists, an additional neck cut and...
A new modular stand and ankle pivot feet!
This new foot design is not only is this expected to allow for more dynamic posing, but also make it easier to swap the feet.
Arctic Dragon
And just one update for the aforementioned Arctic Dragon, but it's a big one. More tail segments added!
While this isn't something that would always work well visually for the dinosaurs, dragons such as Kuraokami here, have comparatively large scale textures, making this design ideal for hiding so many tail joints.
All of these animal figures, as well as Smilodon, are being tooled as of now and we should being seeing the first injection-molded test shots sometime next month. Armor unit fine cuts will be finalized and adjusted as needed once we have these test shot figures to work on top of, ensuring the best fit.
Character Fine Cuts
Not be outdone, our character figures are also currently receiving the fine cut treatment. Big shout out to my good friend and production manager, Dave Vonner for taking on the development duties for this side of the toy line.
Here's a first look at the Wave A character fine cuts!
Dragolina
Argenteus
Fire Guard
right arm and fist will be on final
Helina
These figures are enroute to me now from the factory for final review, with tooling expected to begin soon thereafter. Stay tuned for more!
Upcoming Conventions
Before I go, I have a couple of convention appearances to announce!
For those in the Houston, Texas area, visit the Creative Beast Studio team of Ross and Chris at Comicpalooza! They'll have plenty of Beasts of the Mesozoic products on-hand as well as a few other surprises!
Join Chris, Ross, and myself at JoeFest this June in Augusta, GA! We'll have plenty of BotM goodies for sale, new releases, and our first Cyberzoic test shots on display!
Well, that'll about do it for this update! For even more insights into our current projects and what's to come, join Chris, Ross, and myself on our next livestream event, next Thursday night, March 28th at 8pm EST on our youtube channel. This time we'll also be joined by special guest, SpinoDude!
P.S.- Somewhat related, we finally have a Stegosaurus!
Fun Fact: Dave Vonner's other job is dinosaur wrangler.
BackerKit Survey Lockdown is on Tuesday, Feb. 20th! Plus a sneak peek at the final Sabre Tooth art!
7 months ago
– Fri, Feb 16, 2024 at 08:29:36 AM
Hi All,
I just wanted send a quick reminder that the BackerKit survey lockdown is coming up this Tuesday, Feb. 20th!
Please be sure to submit your Kickstarter surveys and preorders soon if you haven't done so already. As of this writing there are still 219 backers who have yet to finalize their survey, so don't forget! Even if you don't intend to add anything else, we still need your mailing address. As of this coming Tuesday, all Kickstarter surveys and preorders will be locked down and credit cards will be charged for items added post-Kickstarter. For KS backers, this is also the last chance to take advantage of the Kickstarter campaign pricing and bundles.
I've heard of instances where backers did not receive a survey, so please be sure to check your spam folder if this is the case. And if anyone needs assistance, please direct message me, and I'll follow up as soon as I can!
Preorders
All Cyberzoic preorders will remain open until the items are in-stock, but the production quantities for wave A will be determined based on the order counts taken at lockdown.
Remember that while we expect to have additional quantities available after the preorder fulfillment, there is no guarantee.
Kickstarter Exclusive
And for Kickstarter backers, this is the last call to order the Kickstarter exclusive Sabre-Tooth Tiger Set with Helina!
Speaking of...the package art for this set, done by the amazing Ezra Tucker, is now completed! But we want to give that its own update, so for now, here's a front box teaser:
Expect to see a full reveal of this and more new art in the next update!
New Yutyrannus Set box art, Art Prints shipped, Wave A Improvements and more!
8 months ago
– Tue, Jan 16, 2024 at 10:04:53 AM
Happy New Year everyone- I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season! There's a lot to look forward to in 2024 and we've been super busy making everything just right as we head into production.
But before we get to the fun stuff, I want to mention that 81% of the surveys are now completed, which means we're still waiting on 19% of the backers to finalize their rewards and provide their shipping details. Remember, the BackerKit lockdown is on February 20th, and all credit cards will be charged for BackerKit add-ons at that time (you will not be charged again for items paid for on Kickstarter). This lockdown will also conclude access to the Kickstarter pricing and bundle options, so be sure to submit your final orders in time! If anyone needs help with their survey, please contact me here via private message.
Okay, with all of that out of the way, get ready for a big 'ol run down of all the latest news and developments for Cyberzoic!
Yutyrannus Set art by Raul Ramos
Teased during the later part of the Kickstarter campaign, we now have a look at the completed package art for the Yutyrannus Set by the amazing Raul Ramos!
As with all of our package art, we not only want to show our featured subjects in action, but also take the opportunity explore the Gaea 2 environment.
A Tech Knight genetically designed from birth, Qi'Lara is an outlier when it comes to the Technologist Clan collective, preferring a more secluded lifestyle far from the limitations and traditions imposed in the more established regions. Assigned to the northernmost habitable Tech Clan city, Qi'Lara and her specialized battalion are tasked with protecting Draco Crista and its surrounding areas from the dangerous native species. Though sparsely populated, the city is an essential mining area for the Tech Clan, being rich in metals and other minerals, but most important for its blue energy stones. These are the rarest and most ancient stones, absorbing carbon energy from the planet for thousands of years.
It's theorized that the father north you go, the more abundant the blue stones become, but these areas are extremally inhospitable to all but the toughest of native species, a journey similar to our own Mt. Everest, but with hostile wildlife, and have thus not been well documented. Despite this, small human settlements have been reported north of the Tech Clan border.
The Earth wildlife bred for this sector consists of those best adapted for both cold weather and combat, with any natural adaptations to the colder climate being enhanced by the Tech Clan geneticists. The Tech Clan utilizes variety of Earth wildlife here, which includes Yutyrannus, Nanuqsaurus, Crylophosaurus, Utahraptors, Dire Wolves, and Polar Bears.
We also try to add a little something extra with these art pieces and for this one we see another dragon species native to Gaea 2, our first herbivore dragon known as the Snow Dragon or Nivis draconis. These are relatively docile creatures who graze on the local flora and actually help protect the area from the various mountain carnivores which live in the higher elevations.
Similar to the Arctic Dragon, the origin of the Snow Dragon design stems from my experience working on the McFarlane Dragons designs, way back in 2003. This design was one of the very first concepts I did for the line, and predates my Ice Clan (Arctic) Dragon design by several years. As with all the designs I initially pitched, it was too non-traditional and went unused. And given the circumstances, this was totally understandable.
The idea here was basically an alien dimetrodon-like creature that lived in an arctic environment. It's great to finally see this design resurrected and I absolutely love how Raul pushed this design further. Hopefully we'll see a figure of this dragon later on in the Cyberzoic line!
Yutyrannus Set prototype gallery now up
For those wanting to see more of the Yutyrannus Set, I've posted have a full gallery here.
World of Cyberzoic prints- shipped!
As many of you are aware by now, the World of Cyberzoic prints were all shipped last month. For those expecting a print but have not yet received one, please double check to make sure that your BackerKit survey has been filled out, otherwise I will not have an address to ship to. As of this writing we still have five incomplete print surveys
Damaged prints
There have been a few instances of the prints arriving damaged, and I sincerely apologize for that if this was your experience. I do have a very limited quantity of replacement prints so if you feel that you'd like a replacement, please send me a private message or email me at [email protected]. Photos of the damage are required and the replacements will be sent on a first come first served basis.
That all being said, the prints turned out beautifully and I thank Lewis LaRosa and Sunny Gho once again for creating this amazing piece!
New Cyberzoic Print!
Announcing a new Cyberzoic signed art print by Ross Persichetti- ‘Dryptosaurus Fleet’, featuring the armored Dryptosaurus and Fire Knights!
We're making great progress on the Wave A offerings and our production plan has been broken down in to three sections: animals, humanoids, and armor units. Since the humanoids and armor units rely heavily on the mounts, the animals are our top priority right now and we already have our first fine cuts for Waves A and B. These are not final but it's great to be at this stage so soon after the campaign. I have plenty of notes for the factory on how to improve these which we'll get into next time, but for now here's a look at the initial fine cuts for our wave A creatures!
Click the first photo of each figure to see more.
Smilodon
For those unfamiliar with the production process, the 'fine cut' is a hard resin copy of the sculpt which, once approved, represents the final version of the parts to be used for creating the metal molds for tooling. So any final adjustments to the sculpt are made at this stage.
One feature that we just had added at this stage is the option to swap the ears between heads, with one set swept backward, and the other more upright. This feature plays directly into the helmet attachment for the Saberbeast armor, allowing for either head to be used with the armor. (This is why our Saberbeast prototype can only be showed using the relaxed head.)
Allosaurus
Allosaurus will include the adjustable stand seen here, but its positions can vary. While similar to the smaller stand that will accompany Utahraptor, Achillobator, and Dilophosaurus, this stand will be big enough to accommodate figures such as the larger Tyrannosaurs, including T. rex and will be made available separately as well.
The intention here is to have the lower leg joints sturdy enough to have to allow for posing without the stand, but with these front-heavy bipeds, it'll be a good option to have it for long-term poses.
And yes, we will be working to get that mouth to open wider. ;)
Kuraokami
The Gaea 2 guardian is looking stellar, but we're still going to push for more movement on the neck section.
As you can see, the neck is quite complex, with all except the center 'sphere' planned to be in a flexible plastic.
They've started adding additional segments to the tail, and more will be added to the rest of the tail for a smoother tail bend.
Tooling for this body will be finishing up soon and I expect to see the first test shot (injection molded test figure) within the next few weeks.
And we didn't even get to Deinonychus and Dilophosaurus! But this is already a long update so I'll save those for later.
Final parts layouts for Wave A humans
Final refinements have been made to our human characters, which remain mostly the same, just some peg adjustments and tooling prep, but I wanted to include a look at the final parts here nonetheless. The only adjustment worth mentioning is that the hands are now on ball joints instead of disc pegs. The factory advised that using disc pegs at this small scale with swappable hands would likely tear the joint. We've also made the back weapon pegs compatible where possible.
Argenteus
Dragolina
Fire Guard
Helina
New bases added!
We'd been planning to include a small foot base with the figures, but weren't able to design it until recently. Each human will include one of these 'Cyberzoic' embossed clear plastic bases that look good separated or interlocked together.
Final Armor Sets!
As with the animals and humans, we've also been busy improving the armor units as well, plus we've added a little something extra- blast effects! But first we'll take a look at the armors.
Dragonslayer
Improvements: Additional alt mode connections added; edited or reinforced Weapon/accessories utilize the 5mm port system blast effect peg holes; Helmet/visor halves repositioned to allow more space for the pilot in alt mode; Added turret arm hinge to minimize spare parts; Solar hexagon detail added to inner windshield; Adjusted calf armor to grip Allosaurus better; Reconfigured subframe arm to accommodate assembly; Edited Tail armor to securely tab together
Saberbeast
Improvements: Refined details to better match the design drawings; armor now sits correctly just above the shoulder (prototype version sits a little high); smoother telescoping guns; optional 'battle handles' with gun triggers added; belt and saddle adjusted to be used with or without armor parts; 3mm and 1mm blast effect ready.
Razorhound
Improvements: Strengthened neck connection; adjusted spine/ neck for natural resting position; improved Carnotaurus compatibility; 1mm blast effect ready; enlarged handles and pegs to be cross compatible with other armors.
And now with Blast Effects!
These will be included with each armor set and can be interchangeable with any 3mm or 1mm port. Color and part type will vary depending on the armor set.
(Large blasts- 3mm ports; small blasts-1mm ports.)
Here's what they'll look like in action!
I could keep going, but I think that's a good place to wrap this up.
Just a reminder, Chris, Ross, and myself now have a new monthly podcast on my youtube channel called 'Creative Beasts' where we discuss Cyberzoic, BotM, and pop culture! Tune in to our next show on Jan. 25th!
