With a few weeks away until the FiGGYZ launch, I spoke with the company’s CEO Alex Davis to understand why these are an interesting and different type of collectible.
Alex is also the CEO of First 4 Figures, which has made a worthy name for themselves with excellent statues of famous pop-culture characters.
To get an idea of their output, feel free to check out my recent review of their Gravity Suit Samus statue from Metroid Prime. It’s beautifully done and undertaken by people who clearly know and care about the host property.
So this is why I thought FiGGYZ was interesting, and why I wanted to talk with Alex to find out more.
“With First 4 Figures, we’ve built a premium collectible business, but the truth is, those statues are expensive, large, and limited in availability. That makes them inaccessible to most people, especially in today’s economic climate. I saw a real need for something smaller, affordable, and more widely available. People still want to own pieces of their fandom, and we wanted to give everyone that chance. FiGGYZ was created to be the opposite of high-end exclusivity. It’s designed to bring joy, variety, and collectibility to a much bigger audience.
“FiGGYZ takes a pixel art approach, but more on that in a minute. The core product is a soft PVC character with magnets on the back, allowing it to snap onto a metal background. Each background is reversible, so collectors can flip it to get a fresh display whenever they like. We’ve also added QR codes to bridge the physical and digital world. This connects each FiGGYZ to our app, where there’s a lot more in development, including the FiGGYZ Verse: an online world where you can view collections, earn evolution packs, and play FiGGYZ mini-games. The experience goes beyond the collectible itself. And then there are the chase variants: Gold (1%), Silver (3%), and Bronze (6%) backgrounds randomly inserted and not sold separately. It adds a layer of excitement and rarity to each wave.”
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The pixel art was an interesting choice, so I wanted to know why Alex had gone down that specific stylistic path.
“Pixel art is timeless. It appeals to those of us who grew up in the 8-bit, 16-bit, and 32-bit eras, but it’s also become massively popular again with modern indie games. Even younger audiences, thanks to games like Roblox and Minecraft, are already comfortable with blocky or pixel-like designs. So it feels universal, not retro. What makes FiGGYZ stand out is that we’ve gone all-in on this format. No one’s really making full collectible ranges in pixel form like we are.”
Obviously, for something like this to work, you’re going to need a lot of major properties to sign on, and the line-up that I was shown was already very impressive. There’s also a decent momentum of releases planned as well, as Alex explains.
“There’s literally a launch every single week. We have so many IPs involved that we had to build a schedule that makes sure every fandom gets its spotlight, something for everyone. We officially launch on June 4th with five IPs: Sonic, Banjo-Kazooie, Cowboy Bebop, Street Fighter, and Shenmue. The following week adds three more IPs, and then we continue dropping one to two new waves each week. This weekly rhythm keeps collectors engaged and always looking forward to what’s next.
“But we’re going a lot further than that. We’re building what we call the FiGGYZ Verse, a digital universe where fans can showcase their full collections, connect with others, and unlock new experiences.
“Again, this ties into the QR code on the back of each FiGGYZ that connects to our app. When you scan it, it adds that collectible to your FiGGYZ World profile. From there, you can view your collection digitally, unlock badges, and earn achievements.
“One of the big features inside the FiGGYZ Verse is the evolution mini game. When you play, you’ll receive digital packs that contain 10 cards, five character cards, and five background cards. These cards evolve over time through simple game mechanics, gradually unlocking lore surrounding three original characters that exist only in the FiGGYZ Verse.
“The great thing here is that if you manage to evolve one of your characters all the way to its final Legendary Evolution, we will send you a free physical FiGGYZ of that evolved character. You cannot buy it. It’s a real, tangible reward that proves you made it all the way. It’s our way of connecting physical and digital in a meaningful and rewarding way.
“We’ve always been known for video game collectibles, but with FiGGYZ, we’re intentionally looking to go much broader. Movies, anime, comics, music artists, VTubers, sports teams, you name it. The vision is for FiGGYZ to become a platform where any fandom can live and be celebrated. So in the future, whatever slice of pop-culture you celebrate, there should be a FiGGYZ that speaks to you.”
Finishing up, I was also sent a few FiGGYZ to check out for myself. The first of these being Spike from Cowboy Bebop. Having interviewed the likes of Shinichiro Watanabe, Kimitoshi Yamane, and Yoko Kanno, I have a certain investment in the anime, and the pixellated Spike was very nicely done (shown top).
I also think that after the dreaded soul-draining Funko Pops, we actually need some decent and affordable collectibles for fans of games and anime. By contrast, these FiGGYZ genuinely feel viable and something I’d actually want to own. The fact that they are magnetic also makes them nicely multi-purpose and can be put pretty much anywhere.
In any case, the first wave of FiGGYZ will be released this June, with details revealed on the official site.
Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
