Arguably, figures are the most elegant way to capture the essence of a game in the real world. Every gamer has likely dreamt of their favourite character, existing only as 2D art or polygons, materialising on their desk. The sense of stability you get from a figure, always looking at you from its spot without needing to power on a monitor or smartphone, is unique.

However, figures crafted without sophisticated engineering or aesthetic consideration can sometimes lead to utter disaster. While some are outright 'cursed artefacts', others are structural failures foreseen from the planning stage. We've seen examples that mercilessly shattered the wallets and sanity of collectors worldwide. Today, we've gathered the most legendary figure design calamities that grotesquely distorted the identity of our beloved characters.

This is the Spider-Man Advanced Suit version from TAMASHII NATIONS' 6-inch action figure line, S.H.Figuarts. The creators aimed to perfectly replicate Spider-Man's dynamic web-slinging through New York's skyscrapers and his fully crouched flight pose in an action figure. The issue is that Spider-Man's actions, unlike most characters, require an extreme range of motion. To achieve this, they implemented a steeply angled cut in the hip and thigh connection, along with a rotational joint at the bottom – a 'three-part hip joint' design.

The result, however, was disastrous. Every time the legs were spread or stretched, instead of a seamless connection between the red and blue organic suit lines, the hip components split completely sideways, creating a visual abomination. This made the hips appear bizarrely narrow, with the thighs jutting out awkwardly. It looked as if the hero was wearing embarrassingly small women's thongs or a tight toddler's nappy over his sleek suit. To add to the awkwardness, part of the joint mechanism protruded from the crotch area, resembling underwear. A true catastrophe born from prioritising articulation.

This case proves how a minuscule difference in eye painting can instantly transform a cute, harmless character into a serial killer from a horror film. It all started with the initial production run of the Animal Crossing villager amiibo for Super Smash Bros., launched ambitiously by Nintendo in 2014. While they intended to replicate the original's round eyes, a slight error in the paint application scope proved to be the downfall.

The irises of the villagers produced in the early manufacturing process were slightly larger than in the original, and the paint application seemed oddly misaligned. The effect of this subtle difference was immense. These vacant eyes, staring into the void, were dubbed 'soulless killer eyes' by fans, conjuring nightmares. Nintendo eventually had to revise the design, reducing the eye size and completely readjusting their position. A prime example of how a tiny paint application mistake can completely alter a character's identity.

While Nintendo's amiibo series satisfies both the desire for figures and in-game bonuses, early models drew collective outrage from collectors due to the 'transparent support stand' introduced for structural stability. When dynamic poses weaken the connection to the base, a sturdy support is indeed necessary. However, resolving this with a semi-transparent pillar that clashed with the character led to major disasters in some cases.

The most infamous examples occurred in The Legend of Zelda series. A thick, yellow plastic pillar was inserted into Link's charging pose, which, due to its colour and angle, sometimes appeared to emerge from his crotch, earning it the nickname 'pee stand'. Taking it a step further, the Urbosa amiibo featured a transparent support stand to keep it in a seemingly airborne pose, but it was unfortunately designed to be inserted right into her rear and beneath her skirt, causing extreme embarrassment.

Reshiram, the main legendary Pokémon from Generation 5 and the proud mascot of Pokémon Black, boasts immense global popularity thanks to its noble and mystical visual, blending elements of an arctic wolf, dragon, and bird. A distinctive feature of its design is its entire body being covered in white fur, with a dignified tuft of fur elegantly rising between its legs. Of course, in the original 2D art or game graphics, this appears as a perfectly natural formation.

The problem arose when this soft fur material's silhouette was poorly replicated in plastic or plush toys. Some mass-produced figures and plushies failed to accurately depict the fur, instead finishing it as a blunt, cylindrical protrusion. This transformed the mystical legendary Pokémon into a 'barbarian Pokémon' hiding a giant weapon in its crotch – a prime example of clumsy three-dimensionalisation.

The grand prize goes to the Bowser figure from Jakks Pacific's 'World of Nintendo' line, released in 1986. While Bowser is the main figure, they were determined to include Mario somehow. They particularly wanted to capture Mario's dynamic 'jump' pose next to Bowser. To achieve this, they attached a Mario figure jumping beside Bowser and added a spring underneath to simulate a jump.

The issue was that the shaft securing this spring mechanism was positioned precisely between Mario's buttocks and crotch – the centre of his hip joint. During mass production, this mechanical protrusion wasn't hidden or smoothed out, resulting in a thick, long cylindrical bulge being moulded directly in the centre of Mario's lower body. It was a visual catastrophe. This figure, prioritising functionality over appearance, has paradoxically become a legendary, rare collectible.