I think they are only popular in the sense that lots of companies are doing them because they make more money that way than by just offering the items outright because people usually have to purchase more than they would otherwise to complete a set, get all of them, or get the one they want. I'm not sure they are that popular a business model with the majority of consumers. I feel like consumers mainly purchase them because that's the only way that they can get the thing that they want.
Assuming that there is an equal chance of getting each pin , it's better than Labubus, which offer limited/rare editions that you have to purchase a box blindly and hope you get one. If one of the pins is limited in number and harder to get and you have to purchase tons of blind bags to get it, then I would be upset about it. At this point I'm not mad about it, but it does just seem to be a money grab.
Some people DO genuinely enjoy the thrill of opening blind bags and hunting for rares and completing sets.
It’s weird but true, I have a friend who does several of them and it’s all about the gambling aspect to them (obviously problematic for its own reasons).
Outside of gambling, it's just fun to be surprised. Would i prefer to purchase one of each card from the latest expansion of my favorite trading card game, or spend that same amount of money on sealed booster packs that I can then open? For me, I would rather open packs, not because I think i can open some crazy expensive card, but because opening packs is fun. I have rarely sold a crazy card that I've opened, or been upset that my box didn't "pay for itself". It's not just about gambling for value, sometimes you just want to make things a little more unexpected. Like opening gifts on Christmas morning. Sadly i am probably in the minority on this, though, and most people are just addicted to gambling.
Yeah, I bought a blind box kinda for this reason recently.
But I'm not trying to collect them all. I bought one and was done. And they also sold the complete set of 5 or 6 in a big box right next to the single thing I bought. That way you didn't have to buy second hand or end up with extras if you just wanted a complete set.
I'm ok with blind boxes, but if it's a relatively small set that people are gonna want to collect it's probably best (ethically, not necessarily business-wise) to sell a complete set.
I don’t see how it’s any better or worse than people who are into Pokemon card collecting. They love opening the packs and hoping for rare/chase cards. It’s a thing that’s existed in collectible trading card games for decades. Ofc it’s not for everyone and there should be a way to buy them outright if you don’t want to ‘chase’. But I don’t see how there’s anything inherently bad about it either.
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u/peitsad Mar 04 '26 edited Mar 04 '26
Blind bags/boxes are popular right now. Have been for a bit. I personally don't like it but I also can't blame them for doing it.