The crowd support phase for the latest series of the LEGO BrickLink Designer Program is now underway, with a record number of submissions to choose from.
With just shy of 600 new (or updated) designs to choose from and vote on in Series 10 of the BrickLink Designer Program, you’d be forgiven for feeling a little overwhelmed – not least because this is the biggest number of projects in a single series to date. Check out the table below for a full breakdown of the current program’s submission numbers by series.
LEGO BrickLink Designer Program projects by series
| BDP series | Number of submissions |
|---|---|
| 1 | 375 |
| 2 | 190 |
| 3 | 185 |
| 4 | 237 |
| 5 | 305 |
| 6 | 296 |
| 7 | 374 |
| 8 | 384 |
| 9 | 436 |
| 10 | 599 |
As always, only five of these projects will make it through to the crowdfunding stage, so we’re also looking at the smallest percentage of successful designs to date. And while the submission count has bobbed up and down from series to series, the general trend is only moving in one direction (at least since Series 4) – which means your chances of making it through are also decreasing.
With our cynical hat on, it’s not especially surprising to see the numbers trending in this direction. The program has likely already made its first millionaire, and the returns are strong enough that there’s genuine material gain up for grabs if you can make it through to crowdfunding. Of course, that’s not to say that everyone’s in it for the money: there are doubtless countless builders just hoping to get their designs into the hands of fellow fans.
And for those that don’t manage it this time round, all is not lost. The BrickLink Designer Program is currently confirmed to continue through Series 12, so there will be at least a couple of chances to resubmit. Series 11 will open for submissions in April, with Series 12 following in September. The crowd vote phase for Series 10 closes on February 20 at 12pm PT / 8pm GMT.
What is the BrickLink Designer Program?
The BrickLink Designer Program allows LEGO fans to submit original designs that may eventually become official sets. Following a crowd support phase, the LEGO Group and BrickLink select five sets each series that will progress to the crowdfunding phase. These five designs will then go up for pre-order, and any that reach at least 3,000 backers will enter production.
A maximum of 150,000 copies are available across all five sets, and while this allocation was originally divided equally (at 30,000 sets per design), in recent series the LEGO Group has introduced real-time production allocation to prevent sets from selling out.
How does the crowd support phase work?
During the crowd support phase, you can show your support for any and all submissions in the BrickLink Designer Program by tapping one of three emoji, which represent ‘Like it’, ‘Love it’ and ‘Not for me’. The LEGO Group and BrickLink will take the crowd vote into account when deciding which projects to progress to crowdfunding.
The five projects that receive the most votes won’t necessarily be the five that progress, though: the team also take into account variety in themes, designs and size. Head over to BrickLink to sift through Series 10’s 599 designs and vote for your favourite now.
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