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Skylanders Giants review: Big toys, small changes
Of all the good fortune I've been afforded in my life, little compares with the joy of becoming a parent. That probably goes without saying. However, being able to justify the ludicrous cash outlay that comes in the pursuit of a hobby was, for me at least, an unexpected side benefit of having a son. Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, Activision and developer Toys for Bob's experimental marriage of gaming and collectible toys, was just such a ridiculous expense. Fun, truly, but ridiculous just the same.A year on, Skylanders: Giants deviates little from this tradition, with new purchasable plastic figures to collect and gameplay that again feels a bit like experiencing Diablo or Gauntlet through the lens of a Saturday morning cartoon. It's simple, yet addictive, and like Spyro's Adventure before it, Giants has quickly become a household favorite. Countless late nights and early mornings have already been victimized by this game's ability to draw us in for "just one more level."%Gallery-162453%
Skylanders Giants enters retail portals on Oct. 21
Your Skylanders are about to get a whole lot bigger. Activision has revealed that Skylanders Giants will launch on October 21 (October 19 in the UK, says CVG). Of course, that means that not only will the game launch in October, but so will a host of new Skylanders toys.That includes the likes of Swarm, the killer bee seen in the video above. You can also see him in inanimate toy form in the gallery below. Better start making some room on the shelf.%Gallery-161090%.
Three new Skylanders shock, burn and boom into Spyro's Adventure
Spyro's universe is expanding -- much like ours, but without the physical, philosophical or scientific implications -- with three new characters. Lightning Rod, Zook and Sunburn, the last of which comes to Skylanders in the Dragon's Peak Adventure Pack, are all available now. Lightning Rod and Zook are $7.99 each, and the pack including Sunburn runs $19.99.Lightning Rod, who we're convinced is modeled after Aladdin's Genie and Robin Williams' beardiness, is an air character whose attacks involve electro-bolts; Sunburn is part dragon, part phoenix, breathes fire and can teleport; and Zook, a life character, carries a bamboo bazooka and is adorable.Lightning Rod shows off his moves in the video above, and Sunburn and Zook take over the two after the break.%Gallery-149510%
Rare Skylanders sell for more than $1,000 at auction
The supplemental toys surrounding Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure have become the latest in a long line of collectable merchandising campaigns to reach "You paid how much?!" levels, following in the proud footsteps of Pogs, Pokemon cards and Beanie Babies.An eBay auction for 6 apparently rare Skylanders figures has sold for £797, or $1262.68, before shipping. The auction included gold versions of Chop Chop, Flameslinger and Drill Sergeant, as well as silver versions of Eruptor, Boomer and Dino-Rang, and we doubt it'll be the last of its kind. There's no way that these things will retain their value, of course, so we don't recommend participating in this sort of madness, but it is fascinating to watch. Kind of like a train wreck in slow motion, where the train is crashing through one of those houses on Hoarders.
Skylanders creative lead eying Wii U's NFC for the future; mobile game explained
"Giants is the idea for the future," Toys for Bob CEO and development lead Paul Reiche III told me during an interview this morning, just ahead of this weekend's Toy Fair 2012. His company's latest project, Skylanders, is up for an award at the big show, not to mention an award or two at DICE 2012 (also this week), but he's already looking into the future. To an extent, at least."In terms of the Wii U, we're looking at it," he said in response to a question regarding the Wii U's recently announced NFC functionality -- functionality that's very similar to that found in the RFID-enabled Skylanders. "All of the details about the NFC technology haven't been released to the public yet, and it's really interesting," Reiche added, but he wouldn't budge on how much experience his company had with the Wii U's tech just yet ("I can't talk about that, I'm afraid.").As for that other Skylanders game that was announced today -- the mobile one -- Reiche was able to be a bit more verbose, though not much. "We will be having new mobile associated with Giants, but we are also still working on a very fun experience using your toys in the Skylanders world that's for mobile," he told me. So, two games then! "I played it, I like it, I don't know what its release schedule is. This one isn't being implemented within Toys for Bob," Reiche added.So, how does it work? Reiche couldn't get too specific, but he did say it'll use the web-based Skylanders experience to draw information to the mobile game. "No NFC phone necessary. We want anyone to be able to enjoy it. We want someone who just buys a toy to have a meaningful experience on someone else's mobile device."
Skylanders Giants will not require new Portal, mobile apps coming, Toys R Us to have exclusive figures [update]
More details about Skylanders Giants are coming in from the event currently taking place in New York. First and foremost, the new game will require a new Portal (i.e. "the thing you put Skylanders toys on") in order to recognize the new giant characters. Said Portal will accommodate up to two giant figures at a time. In addition to the giant figures, 12 more normal Skylanders figures are in the works, though it's unclear if they will work exclusively with Giants or if they will be compatible with Spyro's Adventure.Furthermore, dedicated Skylanders mobile apps are planned for the future, though no further details have were given. The press release announcing the title did, however, promise "advanced integration across console, handheld, mobile and online."Finally, Toys R Us CEO Jerry Storch revealed an exclusive partnership with Activision going forward. The retailer will sell exclusive figures this year, including "Legendary Trigger Happy" and "Iridescent Blue Bash," both of which are stronger than their normal versions and feature new abilities. In March, Toys R Us will also have a 30-day exclusive on the "Dragon's Peak" adventure pack. See pictures of the new figures in the gallery below.More details as we get them.Update: Skylanders Giants will not require a new portal, as it turns out. The new technology referred to at the event will be contained in the figures themselves. Specifically, new figures will light up when placed on the portal, as mentioned in our previous post. We apologize for the confusion.%Gallery-146693%
Activision announces Skylanders Giants, featuring giant Skylanders [update: Trailer, screens and figures]
Last month, domains for "Skylanders Giants" appeared, followed by a lot of cryptic teases from a "SkylandersGiant" Twitter account. Today, Activision and developer Toys for Bob have revealed that Skylanders: Giants is actually a full sequel to the game released last year. Alongside the new game come brand new figures to collect and, as the name implies, they are much larger than the toys released so far.Specifically, eight new characters will be released, all of them "more than twice the size" of normal Skylanders both out of the box and inside the game world itself. New figures will also feature integrated lights that illuminate when a character is placed on or near the Portal of Power. Finally, Skylanders Giants will be compatible with previous Skylanders figures and, what's more, figures will retain all the stats earned in Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure.Skylanders Giants will officially debut at the American International Toy Fair later this month. Presumably, we'll have more details, including a price and release date, by then. A Skylanders event is about to take place in New York, we should have more details and media shortly.Update: We've added a new trailer and galleries of screenshots and the new figures. Also, according to the trailer, Skylanders Giants is coming this fall.%Gallery-146688%%Gallery-146689%
Activision grabs 'Skylanders Giants' domains
The land of Skylanders may be getting giant-sized in the coming months, as a smattering of domain registrations bearing the name "Skylanders Giants" recently popped up. A few of said domains even go as far as to call it a full on "game" rather than just an expansion to last October's magical character-swapping action game slash collectible addiction. Just imagine a giant Drobot! The possibilities!The registrations are still fairly recent according to Fusible, only dating back to January 19, and none are tied directly to Activision. That said, it's common for publishers to register domains for unannounced projects via proxy, which is exactly how these were handled. We've reached out to Activision for comment, as well as Drobot, but don't expect to hear much from either.Update: Activision offered no comment and neither did Drobot.
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure review: Gotta buy 'em all
There's some primal need buried deep within the human psyche that's fulfilled by performing repetitive, simple acts and watching numbers rise slowly and compellingly as a consequence. Ask anyone who ever got hooked on a Blizzard game; it's powerful stuff. Now imagine combining that need with another that's just as enslaving ... say, collectible action figures. Like Pokémon, but with a $7.99 price tag on each 'mon. It's the kind of concept that makes rooms full of suited executives twirl their mustaches approvingly. It's exactly what Activision -- together with veteran Star Control developers Toys for Bob -- have done with Skylanders. As much ecosystem as game, the full Skylanders launch range comprises 32 three-inch plastic action figures (most sold separately), a disc-shaped "Portal of Power" peripheral, an assortment of add-on toys that work like DLC, and enough flashy packaging to give your garbage collector a bad back. Oh, and there's a kid-friendly button-mashing videogame buried under all that, too. %Gallery-131485%
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures compared visually
Activision sent new screens highlighting some of the (highly collectible!) characters of Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure. Above: "Voodood," who looks kind of like a metal Cubone. Since the company sent screens of the Xbox 360, Wii, and 3DS versions, this is also a nice chance to see them next to each other, and figure out which world you want to zap your Spyro toys into.%Gallery-131485%%Gallery-131484%%Gallery-131483%
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure preview: Babes in toyland
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure is one of those things that's tough to explain in preview text, but easy to understand once you've seen it in action. It starts with a series of real-life plastic toy characters, 32 in all, molded in the style of Spyro the Dragon and his friends, old and new. These real-life toys can be placed on a drum-like device called a "portal," that then connects up to your gaming console (the Wii to start, though Activision promises more later on). Once you're all set up, the action is surprisingly easy: Place the toy on the portal, and instantly that character appears in your game, playable and ready to go. Switch toys, and your character switches, but retains all of the XP and loot it earns on the go. "It's the easiest pitch in the world," says Paul Reiche, studio president of Toys for Bob, the developer behind Activision's new take on Spyro. "It's so emotional and primal. It's what you expect. You have a toy, it's in your imagination, it's alive, and the fact that it isn't is strange. So when you see it instantly come to life, it's a natural, pleasant experience." He's right -- while the actual game behind Skylanders is clearly meant for younger players (we'll get to that in just a second), the technology is pretty amazing to children of all ages. Toys for Bob has made the transition between the real-world toys and the in-game characters almost seamless, and it makes this kids' game worth a look.%Gallery-125347%
Have a look at the heroes of Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure
There are 32 different toys-turned-characters in Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, and the videos posted after the break will introduce you to seven of them, from the hack-and-slash undead knight Chop Chop to the gemstone brawler Prism Break and the blue dragon caster Zap. Each character, as you'll see, is aligned with a certain element, and various parts of the game (along with the enemies therein) are made to match up with those elements, meaning players will probably have to mix and match with friends to get the most out of the game's stages. Each character can of course be leveled up through 11 ranks (increasing the strength and function of your abilities as you go), and they can grab items and loot while playing along as well, all of which is saved in the actual toy as you play. And players can even pit their heroes against each other in head-to-head arena battles, proving that your Stump Smash can beat anyone's Ignitor. You can check out all of the various real-life toys in the gallery below as well. %Gallery-125347%
What's in a Name: Toys for Bob
Toys for Bob's Paul Reiche III, co-creator of the Star Control series and Pandemonium, lets us in on the thinking behind his studio's name. Whenever you're putting together a studio, right, it's like name, t-shirt, and then let's do the contract. So Fred [Ford] and I had formed a partnership to do Star Control 1. And we had all of these different names laid out, including this Bosco the Bee mascot that didn't work out. And finally my wife -- she's a poet, very interested in psychology -- she said create a name that generates interest, that doesn't distance yourself from people, and that you can reinvent. I love toys, I always have, and she knows that and Fred knows that. And so it was just a perfect fit. Bob is also a universal name -- everyone knows a Bob, I used to listen to the Bill Cosby and he was always talking about Bob the mechanic. And part of my brain is just permanently Bob. We have an official rule, which is that everyone gets their own Bob, whoever you want. "Toys for Bob Kotick" is a fairly good analogy for us, since he's paid for everything we've done. But I'm a sort of a Church of the SubGenius guy myself. Toys for Bob is currently working on Activision's Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, due out later on this year. Like this feature? Be sure to check out the What's In A Name Archives.
Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure announced, incorporates augmented reality
Augmented reality dragons. Have you ever heard such a completely radical combination of words in your entire life? Activision and developer Toys for Bob are banking on the novelty of that concept to make their recently announced franchise reboot, Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, a hit. Here's the pitch: The game includes a "Portal" mat, upon which players can place one of over 30 toys modeled after characters, including the titular dragon. This drops the character into the game, where its unique set of skills helps the player ... you know, do platform-y stuff. Though it sounds like a lot of love is going into the actual game -- with a script penned by the writers of Toy Story and a score composed by Hans Zimmer -- the toys actually seem to be the focal point. Each figure includes some sort of internal memory, which saves the experience, gold and improved skills of their in-game counterparts. From there, players can drop their toys on other players' Portals to use their customized characters in one of the game's cooperative or competitive modes. Oh, and to make these little guys even more collectible, each toy adheres to an element (fire, water, earth, etc.), augmenting its abilities and giving it access to exclusive areas of the game. Skylanders is set to launch this fall for $70, which nets you the game itself, a Portal mat, three toys and some trading cards. No platforms have been announced, though the game was demonstrated on Wii during its debut presentation at the 2011 American International Toy Fair today (that's right -- mystery solved). Man, if we were 12 again, we'd go absolutely nuts for these things. Heck, even in our jaded mid-20s, we're having a difficult time tempering our excitement. Check out the galleries below for a look at the game and its importable statuettes. %Gallery-116315% %Gallery-116316%
