Like the title says, what preferences influences your collecting habbits?

Franchise? (Example: "Star Wars man! Gotta have every last alien!")
Character? (Example: "ooo, I simply *must* have this Harley Quinn doll!"
Gimmick/Action feature? (Example: "Eww, I don't like how they have this guy's head spinning. Do not want.")
Articulation? (Example: "I refuse to buy a toy that has less than 15 points of articulation.")
How easy/Hard it is to complete a line?
Deco choices made for a figure?

And more involved, if you *are* a completionist, what sort are you? The kind who must have every single figure released in a line? Or are you a character completionist, where you have to have every version of a given character?

Myself, I tend to pick and choose, and often tend to be a character collector.
Such as Star Wars, I couldn't give two shakes about anything in that franchise, but I *have* to have every unique Asohka figure. MU as well, I'll only pick up characters that appeal to me.
Transformers, used to be anal about getting every one I could, but now I'm pick and choose over what appeals to me.
And DCUC, I'm not a completionist for the line as a whole, but I have to have every single lantern they release.

Gimmicks/action features have rarely positively influenced me (I did find Armada Scavenger's walking gimmick to be unbelievably fun though!) and more than a few times I've found it to kill what could have been a great figure, with a silly punching gimmick.

Articulation: I prefer about DCUC level articulation. Much more than that and it gets into rediculousness. It also depends on the size of the figure. Get down to smaller toys, the less they really need. I personally found DCIH to be about what was needed for that size. The excess articulation they got with the final molds of that line made them ackward and extremely fragile. But Articulation is not always a dealbreaker, either way.

Deco: Sometimes this influences me. I bought DotM Cyberfire Bumblebee based on his deco alone, where I haven't bought a movie Bumblebee since the first Concept Camero mold from the first movie.

mainly anything Vader and sith for star wars,for marvel anything Dr.Doom or anyone with cool armor and that holds true for all lines I collect with the cool armor or mask's,and I only buy decepticons with TF's.

For me its mainly the Nostalgia factor , and the sheer coolness of the line. Very nice question

I guess I still look for the kind of stuff I would've picked up as a kid, only now I'm old enough to actually get them. I collected everything from Mighty Max to 12 in. GI Joes as a kid, and that reflects heavily on what I still buy.

forgot to mention mainly all cobra when it comes to joes.

Damn dude, this is is going to be a good thread! Well done! Allow me to contribute! Lol

Marvel is my #1. I love reading pretty much everything, and tough it out if I don't. I try to keep my collection divided by categories. Villains/Teams. I am a sucker for completing up to date teams and costumes, if I don't have it, I go crazy lol.

Dc is my #2. I am not to fussy on costumes, but depending on the character, I might need a team. Example: I only have 2 metal men, and as cool are they are, they aren't a must have, but I buy in the hopes of completing the team. The team as a whole is a must have for my collection. But with a character like Black Adam, I can easily just have him because, hey, it's Black Adam!

As for gimmicks, I try to avoid figures that has a gimmick that effects the articulation or the figure itself in any way. If it comes with a gimmicky weapon that I can toss aside, I am ok with it. However, if it was a Chuck Norris figure with a round house kick gimmick, that is TOTALLY different!

Last and final reason, is memories. I feel as humans, if we lose touch with the child inside of us, we aren't really free and alive, just drones. Action figures helps me keep in touch with my childhood and memories I keep close to my heart [like my grandfather playing with my G.I Joes as an 75 year old man and putting them in dirty sex positions LOL.] I collect toy lines too just off of good memories, like Star Wars, Gi Joe, and soon to be DBZ Figuarts.

A very interesting comment, I think I just grew to respect you even more dude.

Haha thanks dude. It is really how I feel though. Of course, there is a time to be a an adult, and times when it is more than appropriate to do fun things, even if they are childish.

Franchise? Star Wars man! Gotta have every last alien! ----Yes that would be me (if you mean original trilogy aliens only)

Character? ---The more the merrier

Gimmick/Action feature? ----The only gimmick I like is glow in the dark or light up figures. No action features.

Articulation? ----I have passed on a few Marvel Universe figures that have huge gaps caused by torso articulation.

Deco choices made for a figure? ---should stay accurate to the comic or film origin of that character. Hasbro concept series are low priority for me.

**** Definitely variety over completionism (is that a word?). My collection started in the '70s when I was a young lad. Later it grew with a mix of Battlestar Galactica, Buck Rogers, Gi Joe , and Star Wars. I decided to make a rule to only collect this smaller scale . Now parts of my loose collection look like miniature costume parties.

This one will be a doozy. Hmmmmm lets see. (Note: there is always an exception to my preference being that I will get anything if I find it at a great price and I already collect it)

MUs: I try to work on my dream teams.

MLs: I work on teams and try to complete as many BAFs as I can

Play Arts: I need every darn Final Fantasy Play Art they make ....all of them

WWE Elites: whichever wrestler Im interisted in at the time.

DCUC: need them all but JSA comes first also anything Harley Quinn

TFs: Mostly updated/modern/G1 members of the G1 show and looks. I also get the cast of the movies when I find them at a deal.

Halo: I just get the noble six team from reach the master chief three pack and a cortana

Star Wars: YODA. I only really get Yoda. Sometimes I get others but for the most part strictly Yoda

My goal was to get every Marvel Legends, Marvel Select ,Marvel Universe, Marvel Icons figure made, but it'd cost me a damn fortune and a ton of space. So I'm trying to focus on getting every ML,MS,MI,MU version of Ironman, and focus on have both a 3 3/4'' and 6'' scale Avengers, along with trying to get almost every MU figure, which includes thor,cap,etc but spiderman line I pick and choose.

I want to have a hellboy collection someday, just the figures are impossible to find without paying a premium.

I love 3A and may get back into them but again price is a factor, I think the large scale bertie bot would be the 1 and only piece I'd get if I got back into it, and it's like 3-400$

Hottoys is my new love, I got my Battle Damaged IM figure and he's definatley my holy grail the jewel of my collection. I want to get an armoury but to get the mark 1,2,3,warmachine, blackwidow,whiplash,suitcase armour, iv,vi then the secret stealth version and the actually armour display that's like $4-5000 haha ,.. some day, *and the winning numbers are......

Basically nostalgia for me love vintage toys especially robotech .. I also like the new stuff .. But always prefer vintage ..

What influences my collection with following aspects based on OP's examples.

Franchise: Transformers is the only franchise I'll always pick up figures from.

Character: This one varies a bit. I like many characters but there's definitely certain ones that I'll always pick up if I like the design.
- Batman: It all depends on design.
- Starscream:One of each incarnation is all I look for.
- Snake Eyes & Storm Shadow: I will always pick up these two.
- Optimus Prime: Design is the only thing that matters to me when it comes down to it.

Gimmick/Action feature: This doesn't factor in at all.

Articulation: Only matters in the smaller scale of 3.75''. There are exceptions though like the new Thundercats toy line.

Deco choices made for a figure: If I don't like the color, I won't pick up at all. Good example would be Legacy line Batgirl.
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Otherwise I'm not into completing any line at all. I mainly pick what I like based on design and coloring. So if I ever get more pictures up of my collection, you'll see that it's just random with what I do end up buying.

I'm more of a Character kind of collector. I see a character I want and I buy it. from there i work toward teams that character might have been a part of but I don't go crazy trying to collect them all. and this is true of any line not just marvel. I have a few TFs just the ones that in my mind matter, same with GI joes

It's a very interesting question, good job Jetty!

I guess what influences my Transformer collection is a nostalgia factor... I grew up with the show and toys and comics, so it has a special place in my memories. I think what first awoke that was seeing Armada Unicron in toy form, I remember thinking "Holy crap! They finally released this guy? How can I say no to that, I always wanted him as a child!" And with the Classics/Universe/Generations toys they've been releasing for the last few years, I saw a chance to complete a collection that I would have wanted as a kid, with all my favourite characters.

I've branched into other toylines like GI Joe Renegades and Lego, and TF sub-lines like Alternators and PCC, just because I find aesthetically pleasing to have on display. But my main collection will always be Transformers and for that reason.

Anything X-Men related. From there it's merely a cool factor. I'll pick up figures here and there that may not go with what I have but are interesting.

It has to be a character I like- for instance, I'm skipping Patriot.
He's in a crappy costume that's a few years out of date and he's a pitiful, whiney ass of a character.

Secondly, it has to look good- I skipped Blade and Jean Grey for that reason: a terrible figure in every way does not get bought- that would only encourage them to et away with more bad figures...I'd rather make a custom or wait for a new version.

Sometimes I buy a fig for customizing only- like the Star Wars ARF rider clone trooper- he actually has articulation and a removable helmet!?! I'm making a SHIELD "Capekiller" from him- the idea just struck me while I held the package in Toys R Us and i had to have him!

I take it youre talking about The Marvel Legends Blade? If so I think it looked great man.

He definitely means the MU figures. I totally agree that Jean is terrible, but I still like Blade. I know he could have turned out soooo much better, but I was just so surprised he was released at all.

I thought of something else that I completely left out! Duh!
The toy itself can definately influance me to buy it!

Generations Drift... I cannot stand the character. Not because he's new, but because he's just so bad.
The toy however is one of the best molds to come out recently, and loath I am of the character, I couldn't pass the toy up.

How much money I have and what the last movie I saw was.

I agree . The character sux, but its a cool toy and it made a great blur too.

This in a nutshell.

Totally agreed there... I actually splashed out for the United Drift because this guy looked so good. He's also the reason I'll be joing the TFCC next year, so I can get SG Drift!

I'm primarily a character collector, but I'll step out of my element once in a while if something really grabs me, which tends to happen a little more frequently than I'd like.

#1 for me is Transformers. I collect the G1 characters. Classics & MP's are my favorite lines, but I'll grab a movie figure here and there.. as long as it's a G1 character.

#2 is MOTUC - If I had the figure as a kid, I must own the Classics version (I still own the 36 MOTU figs I got as a kid).

#3 is Marvel Universe. It started with X-Men, but has expanded to pretty much any character I'm familiar with.

Like Jason said earlier though, if the fig sucks I'll pass regardless of the character (unless it's Soundwave ).