With Loot Crate’s first in a series of Star Trek Mission Crates being out in the wild for some time now, lots of Trekkies new to the geek box subscription model are wondering: are they worth it? To answer that question, we’ll take a look at Loot Crate’s first Star Trek-themed box, the Star Trek: The Next Generation “Wolf 359” crate.
Loot Crates: How do they work?
The whole box-a-month, box-every-other-month, or box-every-once-in-a-while subscription model has been around for several years now and continues to pick up steam with more and more “themed” crates being offered. But, why buy a crate at all? A few reasons.
1. The surprise. A lot of looters (yes, they are called that) find the surprise of opening up a box of unknown items every other month fun. And it’s not a total shock what’s in the box. There is a sort of standard set of items you can expect: a tee shirt, a toy like a figurine or prop replica (Star Trek crates are guaranteed an official master series figure in each box), maybe a comic book, a piece of branded merchandise (like a mug), and typically at least one exclusive item that you can only get through a crate.
2. The money savings. If you’re a diehard collector who would be happy to own every figure or ship model ever made, then you won’t be wasting money by getting a Star Trek loot crate. The value of the items in the crate is usually around $60-80, sold to you at just $40 per crate. It won’t save you money, however, if you wouldn’t have spent your money on the items you end up getting, so keep that in mind if you don’t have money to burn.
3. The exclusives. Loot Crate boasts exclusive items in their boxes, but you never know what that item is going to be. It could be a sticker, or a tee shirt, or a prop replica.
Loot Crate boasts exclusive Star Trek items in all crates.
Mission Crate Subscription Plans
You have two options if you decide to try your hand at purchasing a Star Trek Mission Crate. You can buy just a single crate for $39.99 + shipping. If you choose to buy one-by-one, you’ll know the specific theme of the crate before you buy. For example, the first crate (which we review below) was themed around the Battle of Wolf 359, so think TNG and the Borg. The current crate for sale (available only through 5/15/18) is a Star Trek: Voyager-themed crate called “Dark Frontier”.
You can also subscribe for six crates shipped to you every two months at a cost of $35.99 + shipping per crate (for a total of $215.94 + shipping for all six crates). You can cancel your subscription at any time if you decide you don’t want any more.
Inside the first Star Trek Mission Crate
We wanted to find out if Star Trek Mission Crates pass our own personal litmus test to see if we can recommend that our readers spend their hard-earned cash on one (or six) of these puppies. So, as a benchmark for what to expect from Mission Crates, we break down the items in Loot’s first Star Trek-themed offering, the TNG Borg themed “Wolf 359” box, and how it measures up to products you can purchase independently.
What’s in the box?
The Wolf 359 crate came with three QMx products, an exclusive tee, an exclusive decal, a redemption code for Star Trek Online, and what we definitely have to count as a perk – a box shaped like the Galileo shuttlecraft.
Official Master Series Locutus of Borg Figure. This figure is the first of a series of mini Star Trek figures by QMx that reproduces their larger, more detailed “Latinum Edition,” in a 1:12 scale. The hand-painted statue captures the likeness of Patrick Stewart as the transformed Locutus and measures up to be six inches tall. It comes in a full color five-panel box with a box cover and window display. This is not one of the exclusive items in the crate. You can buy it from Entertainment Earth for $24.99.
Official U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 D Mini Master. Also from QMx is this mini figure of the Enterprise D. This is another hand-painted figure and stands 4.5 inches tall. You can also buy this one from Entertainment Earth for $19.99.
“Borg Assimilation” T-shirt. This tee comes in whatever size you specify when ordering your crate and is one of the exclusive items in the box. The closest you could get to this without ordering a Mission Crate would be to find another Borg-themed tee shirt, which would probably set you back about $20.
“Resistance Is Futile” Decal. This decal is another Mission Crate exclusive item. A similar decal or sticker would cost you about $5.
Star Trek Discovery insignia badge in the Starfleet division of your choice. Another QMx-made product that debuted at San Diego Comic-Con last year. We showed these off during our SDCC17 coverage, too. You can buy your own badge at Entertainment Earth for $14.99.
Image: HelloSubscription
Special first-crate commemorative box design in the shape of the Galileo shuttle craft from The Original Series. The box that the Wolf 359 Mission Crate items came in is quite possibly the coolest item of all in and of itself. The box is shaped like the Galileo shuttlecraft from The Original Series. The insides are even detailed to look like the inside of a shuttle craft. The most popular way people have been using their Galileo boxes? A cat bed, of course.
Hey @lootcrate, does the @StarTrek #Galileo have autopilot? Pilot is sleepy #looterlove #Missioncrate pic.twitter.com/0EOlJoHvyX
— Just me, Bella (@Shawnabelle1) May 6, 2018
Star Trek Online DLC redemption code. The final item is from our friends at Star Trek Online who have provided looters with a redemption code for downloadable content in the game. If you play STO, this is a nice bonus.
So, to sum up, inside the Wolf 359 crate, you’ll find:
- Official Master Series Locutus of Borg Figure – retail price $24.99
- Official U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 D Mini Master – retail price $19.99
- “Borg Assimilation” T-shirt – Exclusive (similar item approx. $20)
- “Resistance Is Futile” Decal – Exclusive (similar item approx. $5)
- Star Trek Discovery communicator badge in the Starfleet division of your choice – retail price $14.99
- A special first-crate commemorative box design in the shape of the Galileo shuttlecraft from Star Trek, The Original Series – Exclusive (no similar items available)
- And a DLC offer code for Star Trek Online – Exclusive (no similar items available)
The total value of these items is about $85, and if you got the Mission Crate, you paid $40 for all of it. Not a bad deal, but is it worth it?
Getting a surprise Star Trek box in the mail every other month is lovely, but most of us don’t have $215 to spend on a six-month subscription just for the surprise of opening up some new toys. Exclusives are obviously a big bonus, but what if you get an “exclusive” product that you don’t want or don’t have room for?
If you’re like us, then the monetary incentive is the biggest reason to get a Loot Crate. But whether or not it is worth it to you depends on whether you actually want any of the items that come in the box. If you’re a big collector, then the Mission Crate is for you. But, if you’re not? The more discerning collectible purchaser may be disappointed after spending $40 and getting — potentially — some things you would not have decided to purchase on their own. You’ll have to decide whether or not Mission Crates are a good fit for you.
Next Mission Crate: Dark Frontier
The next Mission Crate, which can only be ordered until May 15th, is a Voyager-themed box. The official description reads:
Stardate: 52619.2 – Seven of Nine must make a terrible choice: return to the Borg or watch as the crew of the Voyager are assimilated. Relive one of the most intense moments of Star Trek: Voyager with official gear, including a Seven of Nine Mini Master!
If you’ve made the choice to try out Loot Crates, head over to the official website to order your Dark Frontier crate before they are all gone. (Supplies are limited.)
I’ve never seen the appeal of these things. Call me a stick in the mud, (Mudd?) but it’s a lot of useless fluff surrounding one or two nice items. I have friends who do Loot Crates for other franchises, and they’re forever trying to get people to take the stuff from them because it just piles up. I can think of better uses of my hard-earned gold-pressed latinum.
Yea, like that never happens with consumerism today. ;-)
Love the Kitty-in-the-Galileo pic! =)
Shuttlecraft Cat!!!
Hi Kayla, do you get to pre-define your t-shirt size when you sign up? That would be a deal-breaker for me. Thanks
If you go to their website you can see that, apparently, you choose your shirt size when you sign up.
Yes! As Diginon says you choose your shirt size and your Starfleet division (command, science, engineering, medical) when you sign up.
You DO get to select you shirt size and division choice, and you can change it at any time.
Only got the Wolf 359 crate so far – which was delayed. The Klingon ‘War of the Warrior’ crate has also been delayed. I also haven’t seen my Enterprise -A model that was an exclusive if you ordered the full year in advance. So, while I enjoyed 001, I’m waiting to see if this has been worth the money :)
I purchased a year’s subscription on February 11. Not a single item has arrived yet. I email LootCrate support and every 2 days I get an automated email that they are experiencing higher than normal support requests and will answer soon.
YET… every week I get spam from them trying to sell other franchise themed LootCrates.
This company is beyond brutal. Stay away, is my advice.
They have had a ton of issues getting the Star Trek crates out on time, which is surprising considering they have a track record with the subscription box model. I’m shocked you haven’t gotten a single box yet. Sorry to hear it.
Your first crate will the the Way of the Warrior crate as you are in the same boat as me. I ordered January 17th and they did get back to me letting me know about the delay.
This is the 4th day in a row I’ve received this automated message from LootCrate support…
“Sorry for the delay! Due to an increase in volume our reply time is taking longer than what you might have previously experienced. We are currently working to answer your request as soon as possible! Don’t worry, we have your ticket and will be getting back to you shortly! Thanks! ”
The glass-half-empty part of me thinks the writing is on the wall for this company.
It’s all well and good as long as your crate doesn’t arrive damaged — in which case they’re not helpful at all. They never responded to the photos I sent of the damaged item…
The fallacy is to assume I would buy all that stuff, because only under that condition would the box be a bargain. I collect enough Trek related merch already, no need to spend money on some surprise shipment that doesn’t really contain any exclusives that are even remotely interesting. (And even if it would, I can just get it on eBay for a lot less that what the box costs).
So far I’ve paid for three boxes and received one. Like others have mentioned, deadline is coming up for Box #3 but Box #2 hasn’t shipped yet. Costumer service told me they hope to have it out by end of the month, but that’s far from promising. I like the crate but afraid they are going out of business like their competition did.
I ordered the Wolf 359 Crate on Black Friday because they gave a discount of 15%. Then when they finally charged me for the much delayed crate I WAS CHARGED FULL PRICE + SHIPPING! They told Paypal that the extra money was the shipping. It was a complete rip off, and the next time I want something from a crate, I’ll look for the pieces on Amazon or another site. I’d rather pay more for something when I know what the cost will be than to have my “shipping” make my crate cost more than $50.
Though I was very happy with the contents of the first crate, I am very annoyed and concerned with their business practices. I paid for the first crate nearly a year in advance and received the crate two months after the scheduled launch date (some poor people still haven’t even received theirs yet). I have also been charged for the second and third crates. Second crate is over a month late and hasn’t even shipped yet. Though I like the product, I wouldn’t recommend this service to anyone. You aren’t even guaranteed to hear from them when a crate is delayed. I had to email them asking for an update more than once only to get a copy-and-pasted response.
I paid in full for the 6 crate plan so I could get the exclusive. Then they started offering discounts. Which annoyed me. Then they started having problems with the shipping. I’ve lost interest in their products. I’m finding that the collectibles in Lootcrate I wouldn’t buy from most of the sights that they are usually sold on. I Thought the Star Trek HeroBox from Superhero Stuff had more to offer in terms products.
First box was delayed, suppose to ship in November, didn’t ship till February. Second box is delayed, was suppose to ship in March and now won’t be shipping till mid-June. This is absolutely ridiculous and not worth the money! I have recently cancelled my subscription.