Droid Depot -- is it worth it?

It really depends what you value in your theme park experience and how much you're into Star Wars. For us, Savi's Workshop was a much bigger deal than Droid Depot, so we did that (at $200 per build) when we visited Galaxy's Edge in Disneyland back in August, saving Droid Depot for our visit to Galaxy's Edge in DHS next January. The price is certainly more attractive than Savi's, but the droid experience lacks the show element of the lightsaber build, which I have to say is quite emotional if you're a big Star Wars fan.

Droid Depot gives you the option of customizing either a BB (rolling base) or R (wheeled legs) unit with different colors and shapes for each of the parts. Once completed, the droid is essentially a remote control car that Disney won't allow you to operate remotely within Galaxy's Edge. If turned on within Galaxy's Edge, however, the droids will "interact" (make sounds and turn their heads - similar to the old Pal Mickey) in certain parts of the land, but without the ability to take them out of their boxes or upcharge backpacks, there's not much else for you to do with them on Batuu. "Off World", the droids behave just like any other remote controlled toy with the ability for the user to move it around and make it turn its head and make sounds. You can see how each unit works by checking out the user manuals available directly on the Droid Depot page on the Disney World website.

Personally, if you're not really into Star Wars, I think Droid Depot is a bit of a cash grab, and you're paying an obscene markup for the ability to customize your creation and the "build stations" that are more work than experience for guests (kids seem to enjoy it though) compared to the experience offered by Savi's. There are plenty of other souvenirs within Galaxy's Edge that I think capture the spirit of Batuu without breaking the bank. Ultimately it should come down to your love for Star Wars and willingness to stomach paying $100 for what amounts to a mid-range remote control car. I haven't personally played with one yet, but the functionality and fun factor of these droids appears to be significantly less than ones from Sphero that are similar (or sometimes cheaper) in price but are of a smaller scale and less rugged than the Droid Depot units (Sphero units fit in the palm of your hand, while DD units are about 3x larger).

They do have a matted area now, outside of the droid build workshop, where you can try out your new ‘toys’. I was there last night, and although it’s not a large area, there were plenty of people giving their droids a work out. Both R2D2 and BB8’s were on display. I might build one when my grandson is old enough, but I can see them becoming just another remote control toy that finds its way to the back of the closet to be never used again.

Obviously, and going back to the Star Wars hard core, this might be something that becomes more of a keepsake and not a toy. Maybe like the light saber for a lot of people ??

I took a gamble last night and went to DHS hoping for lighter crowds because of it being Halloween. And it worked out great :). MFSR was no more than 30mins, mostly 15-20, and every time I walked well into the hanger area before I hit the queue line. I piloted the Falcon 6 times straight, and have pretty much mastered the left seat pilot role. I had 2 good right side pilots, and we managed just under 11,500 credits both times, although with Hondo’s cut we couldn’t quite make the 10K+ credits.

I’m beginning to memorize the course now, so it’s becoming a fun challenge to beat my score. I do wish they had a way to scan your results (something like test track with your car ??) so I could really see how I was doing. I would also like to have a switch for pure manual mode. The computer still wants to fly the Falcon into certain areas a little sooner than I would like, but I’m getting a good handle on just when it does that now. The key to a better score (apart from a good crew !!) is to ensure the left side pilot hits that brake button before colliding into the first container.

Next week, I’m going back to do it all again, but in the right pilot seat. I’ve never done the right side, but as a gamer I do reverse my up/down, so I should be OK, and knowing the course and what’s coming should help as well. Here’s to 12,000 credits and beyond ……. :)