Why is MegaHouse's "Variable Action Kit: Neon Genesis GPX Cyber Formula" a "Half-Finished Kit"? Hobby Industry Inside Vol. 59

MegaHouse, known for developing products featuring many popular characters, is developing a new series of "Variable Action Kit" (a.k.a. "VAKIT") for "Neon Genesis GPX Cyber Formula". This VAKIT series, while largely assembled like a plastic model, has a pre-assembled chassis, wheels, and other undercarriages that require precision. The VAKIT series is a "semi-finished kit" that can be assembled without using any tools at all by removing the color-coded parts from the runners by hand, which is quite surprising. Even those who think plastic models are a bit difficult to assemble may be interested in the easy-to-assemble VAKIT.
How did the VAKIT series come up with the unique product specification of half-assembled kits?　We interviewed Mr. Kobayashi, who is in charge of Life Hobby at MegaHouse, Inc.

The concept of "Variable" is applied to the assembled kits!

─ ─ "Neon Genesis GPX Cyber Formula" (1991) is a 30-year-old anime, so why did you decide to commercialize it at this time?

Kobayashi: We have been commercializing the "Cyber Formula" series since 2014. At that time, "Mado King Granzort" (1989), which had already been commercialized, was selling very well not only in Japan but also in Asia, so we researched ...... for works that could be similarly developed globally, and found that "Cyber Formula We found that "Cyber Formula" was also very popular, and we proceeded to commercialize it. As a result, "Cyber Formula" has been a long-selling title for 7 years this year.

─ ─ The Variable Action Kit (VAKIT) is in 1/43 scale, which is familiar in miniature cars. It seems a bit maniacal, but why did you choose this scale?

Kobayashi: Among the "Cyber Formula" related products that we have already commercialized were the "Variable Action" 1/24th scale, the "Variable Action High Spec" 1/12th scale, and the "Cyber Formula Collection" which is about 1/64th of the original size. All of these products have been designed with a general car model scale in mind. Therefore, we decided to make this VAKIT in 1/43 scale, which is common for miniature cars, because it is a size that can be easily collected and is also easy for users to paint colors and make small modifications.


The body is divided into parts like a plastic model. Could you tell us in detail why and how you decided to make a semi-finished kit instead of a finished product?

Kobayashi: This is related to the 1/43 scale size mentioned earlier, but our intention was to make it easy to assemble in a reasonable size and at a reasonable price. We wanted to make the kit so easy that even those who are not familiar with plastic models can assemble it in a few minutes. To achieve this, we wanted to use snap-fit specifications that do not use glue, and a touch gate that allows parts to be detached from the runner without the use of nippers, as well as stress-free work such as putting rubber tires on the wheels and hammering in shafts. As a result, we ended up with the specification of a semi-finished kit.