August 2011 New Specialty Toys — Puzzles & Skill

The Movie Maze Gift Holder is a great combination of a gift box, and challenging puzzle. The Movie Maze is the perfect gift for teasing that difficult to buy for person. Holds 2 DVD's, or 3 CD's, or 2 Video Games inside. Books, Video Tapes and more can be placed inside The Movie Maze. "Made in the U.S.A., An innovative idea to make gift-giving fun. Great way to give a holiday or birthday gift. More than just a puzzle-this item makes gift-giving fun," Ken Tinner, VP sales & marketing at Mag-Nif, Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 2008.

The Money Maze is a great combination of a gift box, challenging puzzle and intriguing bank. Place cash, checks, gift cards, lottery tickets, jewelry and more inside the Money Maze. Lock the door and watch as the recipient is forced to solve the puzzle in order to access their gift. "Our products are made in the U.S.A.. The Money Maze is more than a puzzle, and it makes gift giving fun. They are great for holiday gift giving," Ken Tinner, VP of sales and marketing at Mag-Nif, Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2003.

Liberty Puzzles makes classic wooden jigsaw puzzles made with quarter-inch plywood and the finest archival paper and pigment inks for brilliant, lasting color. "Each puzzle features dozens of charming, intricate figural ("whimsy") pieces in the shapes of characters, animals, and fancy geometric shapes," Christopher Wirth, manager of Liberty Puzzles, told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 2011.

Tavern Puzzles are reproductions of a type of puzzle traditionally forged by blacksmiths to amuse their friends at country taverns and inns. Our collection incorporates traditional designs, as well as original works. All puzzles are hand-crafted and individually assembled. Each puzzle is mechanical in nature: the object is to remove one piece. Neither force nor tricks are needed; old-fashioned problem solving will do it. 100% handcrafted in USA. Launch date: February 2011.

Mr. Happy, Mr. Strong, Miss Chatterbox...piece together all of your favorite characters from Roger Hargreaves' series of Mr. Men and Little Miss books.  Launched in 1971 after the creator's son asked him what a "tickle" looked like, the Mr. Men and Little Miss books have continued to remain an integral part of every child's introduction to reading. Launch date: March 2011.

Enjoy the exploits of this fat, lazy and lovable cat by piecing together over 70 Garfield comic strips, each a hand-picked favorite chosen by Garfield creator, Jim Davis.  Originally launched in 1978 and still having 200 million daily readers today, Garfield is the most widely syndicated comic strip in the world, making this 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle a great hit with teens and adults alike. Launch date: March 2011.

Piece together some of your favorite scenes and characters from Beatrix Potter's classic tales of Peter Rabbit and friends in this 500 piece jigsaw puzzle.  Made in the USA from extra thick chipboard to provide for a better quality fit. Features "80 point chipboard instead of the usual 67-70 point board in order to provide for better puzzle play," Adam Silver, VP Sales at New York Puzzle Company, told TDmonthly. Launch date: September 2011.

Jemima Puddle-duck and Mr. Tod take a stroll down a country road, while rabbits and other wildlife busily move about, in this 36-piece floor puzzle featuring Beatrix Potter's timeless art.  Made in the USA from extra-thick puzzle board and wrapped on both front and back for extra durability. Launch date: March 2011.

36 piece Floor Puzzle featuring an image of a birthday party for the lovable Paddington Bear.  Made in the USA from extra thick puzzle board and litho-wrapped on both the front and back for outstanding durability.  Celebrate a child's birthday along with Paddington. It has "Sturdier and thicker pieces than most floor puzzles," Adam Silver, VP sales at New York Puzzle Company, told TDmonthly. Launch date: March 2011.

Puzzle Doubles! Giant take the concept of a traditional puzzle to a whole new level!  Each product in this series includes a 30-piece, 3’ X 2’, beautifully illustrated “talk about” floor puzzle.  Once children have completed the puzzle, they can turn it over and color the giant illustration themselves using the four write-on/wipe-off crayons enclosed.  The crayons can be wiped off with a dry cloth.  Puzzle Doubles! provide children with multiple learning activities combined in one great product!  Ages 3+ years.   

This 300 piece puzzle glows in the dark for extra value once the puzzle is completed. Each piece is unique and fully interlocking.
—In a Summer 2011 survey, Syd Clarke, owner of Ali Cat in Carrboro, N.C., said that this Glow-in-the-Dark unicorn puzzle from Ravensburger was a best-seller.

This 1500 piece puzzle  features one of Van Gogh's most iconic works. Each piece is unique and fully interlocking.
— In a Summer 2011 survey about best-selling puzzles, Donna Frederick, owner of The Play House Toy Store in Durham, N.C., said that Ravensburger puzzles over 1000 pieces were a best-seller. “There are not a lot of [companies] who cater to older people who like puzzles but not kiddie pictures,” she told TDmonthly.
— In the same Summer 2011 survey, Syd Clarke, owner of Ali Cat in Carrboro, N.C., said that this Van Gogh puzzle was one of his best-sellers in the category.
— As of 7/12/2011 this product had 5 out of 5 stars from 5 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: "Outstanding quality;" durable; beatiful artwork; challenging.

Featuring detailed images of 8 favorite noisy vehicles, this wooden peg puzzle makes the vehicle sound when a piece is placed correctly in the puzzle board. Eight sounds in all. Full-color, matching picture under each piece. Dimensions: 1.2" x 8.5" x 11.7" Assembled. AAA batteries not included.
— Michael O'Dell of Toys from the Attic in Rehoboth Beach, Del., told TDmonthly in a Summer 2011 survey that he sells 10 Melissa & Doug sound puzzles each month.
— As of 7/12/2011 this product had 3 out of 5 stars from 23 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Affordable; engaging. Cons: Many reviewers said the sounds were poor quality.
— In a February 2012 survey about wooden toys, three out of 14 retailers said that puzzles from Melissa & Doug were their best sellers in the category. “Melissa and Doug has been a core of the store for years and years," Mike Snyder, owner and manager of Cville's Hobbies, Games and Toys in Charlottesville, Va., told TDmonthly.

An estimated third of the world's population watched The Royal Wedding on April 29th, 2011. This puzzle shows Will & Kate, the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge, on their wedding day. Piece Count: 550. Piece Jigsaw Puzzle Finished Size: 24"x18". White Mountain Puzzles are made in the U.S.A. with recycled materials.

Part of the four games of the Architecto line, use these 18 orange blocks to build and replicate different models in order to enhance spatial visualisation skills. Children will be captivated by the amazing structures they create, whether in perspective or a towering high rise. The Geoblocks are sold separately so users can transform Architecto, Equilibrio, Tangramino or Cliko into a two-player game. One set of Geoblocks is already included in the four Architecto line games. Launch date: 2005.

This is a set of 27 interlocking Cubes arranged in a 3x3x3 cube shape.  The puzzle challenges the player to transform the arrangement of the 27 cubes from one shape to any other shape, without disengaging any of the Cubes from each other. Cubes must be shifted by sliding along their faces.  The Cubes can shift in all three dimensions: X, Y and Z, but each face slides in only one direction. There are many solutions because there are millions of shapes you can tranform from and to.  The ultimate goal is to be able to logically understand how to shift from one shape to another in the fewest number of moves.  Other games can be invented by disengaging the Cubes and re-engaging them with the colors "flipped" on one or some of the Cubes, creating a "marked" Cube. The challenge is then to shift the "marked" Cube or Cubes into a specific position in the arrangement
Awards: TDmonthly Top Toy Award, June 2011
— Why it won: This cube puzzle challenges kids to use their spacial-temporal reasoning and logic skills. It's innovative design allows for more open-ended play than similar products, and it is portable for fun on-the-go.

Earth-friendly wooden play ball puzzle that exercises skills that prepare children for reading, math, problem solving and more. This 16-piece puzzle features four scenes of a boy playing sports. It's made of wood harvested from sustainable forests, and comes packaged in a handy carrying case to help keep track of the pieces.Launch date: July 2011.

Earth-friendly wood rainbow fairies puzzle that exercises skills that prepare children for reading, math, problem solving and more. The 12-piece puzzle is made of wood from sustainable forests, and comes in a handy carrying case so kids can easily keep track of all the parts. Launch date: July 2011.

Soft foam books with bold photographs of sweet and funny kittens that pop off each page and stick to sides of the tub. Launch date: August 2011.

Soft Shapes Puppies are soft foam books with bold photographs of puppies that pop off each page and stick to sides of the tub. Launch date: August 2011.

Players race against each other or work together against the clock to find the patterns hidden in the grid. Each time a tile is turned over, the pattern on that tile may be created by combining two or four of the tiles in the playing grid. Features 70 durable and vibrantly mind-bending pattern tiles, Acuity reinforces the importance of visual spatial skills and pattern recognition.
Awards: Parents' Choice Gold Award, 2010

Combination of game play, brainteaser, optical illusion.

Perplexus Rookie offers newcomers to Perplexus a three-dimensional puzzle challenge, with 75 barriers to success. Users must guide the metal ball through a maze of twists and turns, down dips and around winding spirals toward the maze finish. Players maneuver surprising routes of challenge that test hand-eye coordination, focus and perseverance. 6.5 Inches in Diameter, Perplexus Rookie is a brainteaser puzzle filled with layers of detailed maze structures. A shelter finish keeps the ball in place at the end to secure success.
Awards: 2012 Creative Child Awards – Puzzle of the Year, 2011 Oppenheim Toy Portfolio – Best Toy Award (Gold), 2011 NAPP Gold – Seal of Approval, 2011 Canadian Toy Testing Council – Best Bet, 2011 ASTRA – Best Toys for Kids, Game Play (3-7years)

This is a set of 8 interlocking Cubes arranged in a 2x2x2 cube shape. The puzzle challenges the player to transform the arrangement of the 8 cubes from one shape to any other shape, without disengaging any of the Cubes from each other. Cubes must be shifted by sliding along their faces. The Cubes can shift in all three dimensions: X, Y and Z, but each face slides in only one direction. The 8 Cube set introduces the player to this innovative new toy. The ultimate goal is to be able to logically understand how to shift from one shape to another in the fewest number of moves.  Other games can be invented by disengaging the Cubes and re-engaging them with the colors "flipped" on one or some of the Cubes, creating a "marked" Cube. The challenge is then to shift the "marked" Cube or Cubes into a specific position in the arrangement.
Awards: Dr. Toy Best Vacation Product of 2011