In a world where personalization and customization are increasingly important corporate values, Lego has caused a minor kerfuffle with an online toy-making template that only allows boys’ naming options.

Lego’s Hero Recon line, which is the successor to the company’s successful Bionicle line of futuristic robot creatures, features an online template for customers to build a custom creature, adding armour and accessories. Created as part of Lego’s DesignbyMe initiative, the toy can be ordered or used in online games on the Lego site once completed.

The final step of the process prompts the user to create a code name for the character before adding it to the site’s online gallery. There are three naming fields involved. The first has 22 boys’ names to choose from, ranging from Alexander to William. The other two feature generic names of an extreme bent, like Missile, Shock, Shadow and Stinger.

The lack of girls’ naming options has disappointed fans. One fan contacted Lego’s customer service department and received this response:

“The members of LEGO Hero Recon currently can’t be given a girl’s name. We’re looking into making sure that we get this changed as quickly as possible though! We don’t want to make anyone think that there aren’t girl Hero Recon team members. This was an oversight that we will be looking at fixing. Please accept our apologies.”

Michael McNally, brand relations director for Lego, told the Star the company is looking for a quick fix. “As one of the most prominently featured heroes in the (Hero Factory) storyline, Breez, is female, it was a miss to not include girls’ names in the options for Hero Recon Team,” he said in a statement.

Marcia MacQuarrie, the editor of The Noise on Toys, an independent online consumer guide, isn’t all that surprised by Lego’s lack of girls’ options.

“With only 22 name choices, it’s not terribly personalized personalization,” says MacQuarrie. “The thing is there are a lot of girls that like these types of toys and they are not really recognizing that.”

She says the company has more success targeting girls in Europe, adding that it wouldn’t be difficult to add girls’ names to the Lego Hero Recon team. It is clear that the idea is to appeal to boys with this particular product and online environment, says MacQuarrie.

For a better example of personalized toys, she recommends the Leapfrog series, which offer many naming options for both boys and girls – a thrill for children who love toys that incorporate their given names.

Lego is coming up against a problem many shopping sites face when offering custom products. The question is whether to allow complete freedom or a set number of options. Sports leagues and jersey sellers have faced some criticism for setting their online filters too high, rejecting many customers’ chosen names.

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