Media
From HEROsector01
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Hero Factory utilizes various forms of multimedia in order to disseminate the story and promote the sets.
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Hero Factory Story
The story for the Hero Factory toy line is divided into segments, with a new story wave occurring every six months. The Breakout storyline altered that trend, consisting of two waves under a single banner and lasting for a whole year.
- Story Year Late 2010: Rise of the Rookies - The introductory chapter follows rookies William Furno, Natalie Breez, and Mark Surge, as they and the Alpha 1 Team deal with team leader Preston Stormer's former teammate Von Nebula.
- Story Year Early 2011: Ordeal of Fire - The second storyline introduces new enemies led by the Fire Lord, and the Alpha 1 Team are forced to undergo a risky process in order to gain the power necessary to overcome the villains.
- Story Year Late 2011: Savage Planet - The story takes place on the techno-organic planet Quatros, where Witch Doctor is illegally mining Quaza to gain power. The Heroes are equipped with animal-like equipment to survive on this damaged planet.
- Story Year 2012: Breakout - A mass breakout of villains from the Hero Factory occurs, and each Hero suits up to take on a villain for individual missions.
- Story Year 2013: Brain Attack - Brains capable of possessing other creatures form an army to attack Hero Factory.
Digital Media
HeroFactory.com
A website was developed for the toy line, and serves as the main hub for interactive story material.
- HeroPad - The HeroPad allows users to enter codes obtained from sets, and access rewards.
- Animations - There is a number of animations available on the site, which either serve as introductions to the storyline or promote the various sets.
- Online Games - Multiple online games are available to play, either as characters in the Hero Factory story, or as the player's own custom hero.
Hero Recon Team
The Hero Recon Team website has story information regarding the Recon Team in addition to its main feature, an online application that allows users to design and purchase custom-designed sets representing Recon Team agents.
Microsites
There are multiple non-LEGO websites that advertise and contain Hero Factory content.
- YTV Microsite - YTV, a Canadian youth television station, constructed a microsite for the Hero Factory line, featuring online versions of the comics (as well as the exclusive copy of Comic 3: The Enemy Within), games, and other activities and information about Hero Factory.
- Toys "R" Us Hong Kong Microsite - A site hosted by Toys "R" Us, a popular toy store chain. The site displays online versions of Hero Factory comics, and advertises several links to HeroFactory.com. There is also a leaflet for the late-2011 sets.
- Argos Microsite - Argos is a large general-goods retailer in the United Kingdom. As part of their "Kids World" section, they had a microsite for the Hero Factory line. The site featured character bios for all of the sets released in Winter of 2011, as well as stats for them, and links to various downloads, such as screensavers.
- Cartoon Network United Kingdom Microsite - The UK site of the television channel Cartoon Network has several microsites for various shows that it airs, including Hero Factory. The site advertises the Heroes and villains of the Breakout line, featuring various wallpapers as well as the online game Breakout.
Mobile Apps
Starting in 2012, The LEGO Group began publishing Hero Factory apps for mobile devices.
- Breakout (Game) - A simplified version of the 2012 online game of the same name, which instead of featuring multiple levels included one level and a number of timed challenges. The game featured an achievement system which unlocked codes that could be entered in the online version of the game for game points.
- Brainify - A 2013 app that allows users to upload or take photos of people, then animate them to show that person being mutated by one of six evil brains.
- Brain Attack (Game) - Another app released in 2013, in which players can create a character and select a Hero as a sidekick in order to fight waves of evil brains.
Television Episodes
Television episodes are the bulk of the story media used by Hero Factory. The episodes have appeared on Nickelodeon networks in the United States, and on Cartoon Network in European countries, each being about 22 to 23 minutes long.
Music
The television episodes Episode 8: Breakout: Part 1 and Episode 9: Breakout: Part 2 featured the song Breakout by the band Cryoshell, who had previously contributed to BIONICLE videos. On December 9, 2012, the song was released as a single for digital download, with artwork designed by Christian Faber and inspired by the Hero Factory visual direction for that year.
Movie
In 2012, Universal Studios released plans to create a full-length, live-action Hero Factory movie.
Print Media
Comics
The Hero Factory story has also been presented through comics. The comics in the main series are based off the scripts for the television episodes, however, other comics not connected to the main storyline have also been released.
Books
2010
Two activity books were released to promote the Hero Factory story in 2010. These books, translated into Polish language, were published by the AMEET publishing company.
- Hero Factory: To Serve and Protect
- Hero Factory: Galaxy's Most Wanted
In addition, an English language activity book was made available on the LEGO Shop:
- 853083 Hero Factory Mission Log Book
2012
Starting a new series devoted to untold aspects of the Hero Factory story, two chapter books were released in 2012. These were written by Greg Farshtey and published by Scholastic.
Additionally, two Hero Factory readers were written by Shari Last and published by Dorling Kindersley:
2013
The Secret Mission book series continued in 2013 with at least three other chapter books by Greg Farshtey, two of which are still forthcoming:
Two more Hero Factory readers from Dorling Kindersley were also announced for a July 15 release:
Magazines
Magazines have been an important medium for promoting the Hero Factory story. Many Hero Factory features are included in the official LEGO Club Magazine and LEGO BrickMaster Magazine. Additional magazines include the Hero Factory Promotional Magazine, the Makuhero Star and also the Makuhero Times, published as bonus material for subscribers to the LEGO Club or LEGO BrickMaster magazines.
Fan Contributions
For BIONICLE fansite BZPower's 53rd BIONICLE-Based Creations contest, entrants were asked to build a robot creation, which instead of being voted upon by the members, was to be judged by LEGO. Member Varderan created the winning entry, which he called Silver. The robot later appeared in the Hero Factory television episodes as a robotic menace from Preston Stormer's past.
Fox Sports Crossover
In September of 2012, crowdsourcing website Tongal announced a crossover project between Fox Sports and LEGO, featuring Hero Factory characters. The winner of the contest designed a web series featuring Hero Factory and the Fox NFL Sunday mascot, Cleatus, whose previously unknown origins were revealed to be the Hero Factory.
