Todd McFarlane explains why Fallout and Helldivers figures are getting pricier, not just bigger

Todd McFarlane used his IGN Live 2026 stop to show off upcoming McFarlane Toys figures for Fallout and Helldivers 2, but the headline detail is the approach. He positioned the Paladin Danse figure from Fallout 4 as part of the Elite Series, and he framed it as what he jokingly called “the Cadillac model,” because it supports more complicated sculpts, more paint, and more accessories. That matters because it tells you how McFarlane is solving a very specific problem in collectibles: how to make the “premium” versions feel worth it without alienating fans who do not want, or cannot afford, the high end.

In other words, the pitch was not just “more characters.” McFarlane stressed that the company “always wanted to have different lines at different price points,” explicitly recognizing that “everyone wouldn’t want or be able to afford the more high end versions.” He then connected that tiering to his selection philosophy for figure waves, where he breaks each wave into A, B, and C characters by popularity. And even with fans demanding the biggest names first, he said you do not want to “burn all the A characters right out of the gate,” because those are the characters that ensure fans come back for each new group of figures, while B and C characters get room to grow a collection rather than being crowded out.

That wave strategy is also why the Fallout license became such a momentum engine for McFarlane Toys. McFarlane said video game characters have been “a growing component for them the past few years,” but he added that “Fallout caught us by surprise.” The way he described it, when the company first took on the license, it was more of a “let's see how it goes” situation. Quickly, though, fans asked for more, and McFarlane attributed a major part of the success to the fact that the games opened up their library. From a business lens, that is the real unlock: franchises are not just individual characters, they are reservoirs of new variants, new outfits, and recurring fan attachment that keep SKU pipelines from running dry.

On the Fallout side of the display, McFarlane showed the Paladin Danse figure in the Elite Series tier, and then moved through other picks, including a figure for Joshua Graham from Fallout: New Vegas and the Fallout 76 T-45. What is notable is how those choices reinforce the A, B, C framework. Joshua Graham, as a recognizable figure from Fallout: New Vegas, fits the “A” logic that tends to pull new buyers in, while the T-45 from Fallout 76 sits in the broader armor and faction universe that can help sustain ongoing demand across different collecting preferences. Even when the company is producing premium sculpts, the assortment still has to cover the full spectrum of fan appetite, from display-ready showpieces to more accessible collectors’ options.

Then the event shifted from Fallout to Helldivers 2, which McFarlane’s company is also bringing into physical form. He displayed two figures: the TR-40 Gold Eagle and the B-01 Tactical Elite Edition figure. The details here help explain why the Elite Series framing matters. These figures include wired capes, and they also feature patterns on those capes, which McFarlane said is “not something they've done a lot of previously.” The B-01 Tactical Elite Edition figure adds more accessory density, including “tons of accessories,” and even an extra touch that fans can appreciate: among the multiple hands available is one doing the Shaka.

This is where second-order implications start to matter for executives watching consumer product licensing. When a company spends more on sculpt complexity, paint, cape patterning, and accessory sets, it is not only raising cost. It is also raising the bar for perceived value, meaning the product has to earn its shelf price through visible craftsmanship. McFarlane’s explanation links that to assortment planning. If you only release premium “Cadillac model” items, demand likely concentrates and fractures. If you build layered lines at different price points, you can keep the entry buyers engaged while you still have room to upsell the premium collectors. And by spacing A characters across waves rather than dumping them all immediately, you are extending the life of the line and reducing the risk that the most in-demand demand collapses into a single release window.

For peers in toy, collectibles, and broader video game merch partnerships, this is a practical blueprint hiding in plain sight. Licensing success often gets reduced to “did the franchise have fans,” but McFarlane’s remarks emphasize “did we map that fandom into a durable product system.” The system includes price tiers (Elite Series versus other lines), a creative execution checklist (complex sculpts, more paint, accessories, cape patterning), and a release rhythm (A, B, C characters that prevent burnout of the biggest names). In a market where consumer attention can spike and fade quickly, wave design is a way to smooth demand instead of gambling on one breakout figure.

Meanwhile, for decision-makers dealing with the increasingly crowded universe of game-based products, the payoff is clear: the business case is not a single character sculpt, it is a multi-wave engine that stays profitable by keeping collectors returning. McFarlane may have shown figures from Fallout 4, Fallout: New Vegas, Fallout 76, and Helldivers 2, but the deeper story is how he intends to keep those franchises monetized over time, not just at launch.