February 2010 Notable Toys — All

What's the best plan for climbing Mt. Everest? How about the worst plan for making a million bucks? Find out in this party game that's all about giving outrageous advice. Select a card containing a piece of advice that best fits the judge's chosen activity. Score points if the judge takes your advice, but keep in mind that plans change with the roll of a die… You might have to give out bad advice, your grandma's advice, or even advice from a psychic! Includes 300 advice cards, 100 to-do lists, 8 wooden pawns, 1 custom die, 1 game board, and Rules of play. For 4-8 players. Launch date: Spring 2010
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products - 2010, 2010 Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Best Toy Award, Gold Seal, Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award, Major Fun Award, Dr. Toy’s 10 Best Games, Tillywig Laugh Out Load Award, Parents’ Choice Approved.

Dare to discover Forbidden Island! Join a team of fearless adventurers on a do-or-die mission to capture four sacred treasures from the ruins of this perilous paradise. Your team will have to work together and make some pulse-pounding maneuvers, as the island will sink beneath every step! Race to collect the treasures and make a triumphant escape before getting swallowed into the watery abyss. Includes 58 playing cards, 24 island tiles, 6 pawns, 4 treasure figurines, 1 water meter, 1 water level marker, and Rules of play. For 2-4 players.
Awards: 2010 Mensa Select, Creative Child Magazine Game of the Year, FunFare All Star Award, FamilyFun Magazine Toy of the Year Award, Parents’ Choice Recommended.
Launch date: Spring 2010.

One hundred giant elephants are running amok, but one tiny mouse has got their number! Roll the dice and move the mouse around the board, searching high and low for elephants that are either higher or lower than the number on your card. If you spot a mouse hiding on a card, shout “Eeek!” and grab the mouse figurine before it scampers away! You’ll need to have a memory like an elephant and be quick as a mouse to win. Includes 100 elephant cards, 2 custom dice, 1 mouse figurine, Rules of Play, and Instrucciones en Español. For 2-6 players. Launch date: Spring 2010
Awards: 2010 Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award, Major Fun Award, Tillywig Best Family Fun Award, Dr. Toy’s Best New Products Picks, Parents’ Choice Recommended, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award.

Meet the Dweebies™ in the card game with character. These lovably colorful characters are out to capture your heart, but you must capture them first! Round up Dweebies by matching cards on both ends of any row. Seems simple at first... but Dweebies can be tricky, and some will disappear before they've met their match. Collect the most cards and consider yourself the Dweebie-in-Chief. Includes 54 cards, Rules of play and Instrucciones en Español. For 2-6 players.
Awards: Parent's Choice Award 2010, Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award, Dr. Toy’s Best Vacation Products, iParenting Media Award, Major Fun Award, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award, National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Gold.
Launch date: Spring 2010

In Sumo Ham Slam, players step into the fierce and furry world of full-contact Sumo hamster wrestling. Using magnetic force, maneuver a Sumo hamster and try to knock the other player's hamster out of the ring. The player that wins the most rounds claims the title of Sumo Ham Slam Grand Champ. Includes 1 elevated game board, 1 custom die, 1 champion chip, 2 magnetic wands, 4 sumo hamsters, 4 scoring pegs, 60 food tokens, and Rules of play. For 2-4 players. "Sumo Ham Slam is a skill and action game featuring adorable sumo wrestling hamsters!" Gamewright Marketing Coordinator Emily Nichols told TDmonthly.
Awards: 2010 Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award, Tillywig Sterling Fun Award, Major Fun Award, Dr. Toy’s Best New Products Picks

It's rush hour at the Ring-a-Ding Diner and you must hurry to serve a table full of hungry customers. Roll the die to add dishes to your tray. Roll a Free Meal or snag the Special of the Day to help fill your order. And if you roll a bell, it's a mad dash to grab your grub before another player beats you to the lunch! Be the first to complete all your orders and - DING! - you're the winner! Game includes 64 tiles, 16 guest checks, 1 custom die, 1 bell, Rules of play, and Instrucciones en Español. For 2-6 players. Launch date: Spring 2010
Awards: 2010 Dr. Toy’s Best Vacation Products, Creative Child Magazine Game of the Year, iParenting Media Award, Major Fun Award, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award, Parents’ Choice Approved, National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Honors.

A new twist to Gamewright's earlier Can You See What I See? game. Players take turns calling out objects and marking paths between them in this clever game of links. Every board has the same pictures but found in different places. Be the first to link two sides together and Bingo! You've won the game! Includes 4 game boards, 80 plastic markers, Rules of play, and Instrucciones en Español. For 2-4 players.
Awards: Parent's Choice Award 2010, Dr. Toy’s Best Vacation Products, Creative Child Magazine Seal of Excellence Award, iParenting Media Award, Tillywig Toy Award, National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA) Gold.
Launch date: Spring 2010

In this sweet game of shapes, shakes, and cupcakes, a batch of yummy cupcakes is fresh out of the oven and it's time to decorate! Shake the sprinkle shaker and see what colorful shapes pour out. If any match a cupcake, add them to the card. Collect the most cards and winning is a piece of cake. Includes 32 wooden shapes, 16 cupcake cards, 1 sprinkle shaker, 1 custom die, Rules of play, and Instrucciones en Español. For 2-4 players. Awards: Parent's Choice Award 2010, Creative Child Magazine Preferred Choice Award, Dr. Toy’s Best Vacation Products, National Parenting Center Seal of Approval, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award, Tillywig Toy Award.
Launch date: Spring 2010

Eco-dough is a molding dough handmade with flour, salt, cream of tartar, organic rosemary oil, vitamin E oil, soybean oil, coconut oil, potassium sorbate, citric acid, natural and organic fruit, plant and vegetable extracts from beets, spinach, paprika, carrots, purple sweet potato, red cabbage, blueberries and tomatoes. Also available in a Gluten-free version. Watch Eco-Dough: Top-5 Video, Toy Fair 2010

These books each feature a 8” x 8” inch fold-out backdrop for the story, a 26-page book and flashlight. In each story, the flashlight is used to cast shadows on the die-cut pages with images of ordinary objects, the resulting shadow looks a little scary! Through storytelling and fun examples, the child learns that the shadows need not be feared. Comes in “Camping Out,” “Forest Fairies” and “Time for Bed.”

— Baby Loving Mama’s Emilie loved being able to show her children that shadows are not frightening. She warned that the cut outs may need a table or other flat surface to remain stable and create shadows properly.
— Renee of What Mommies Need reviewed the Camping Out book from the Shadow Books series. She applauded the book for teaching “that storytime is better when you use your imagination” and enhanced the experience for her son by reading the story inside a blanket tent. Renee also noted that the set’s flashlight includes batteries so it is ready to go right out of the package.

In this interactive party game, players must quickly come up with the most unique answers pertaining to fun and entertaining topics, in order to earn more points and be the first to reach the center of the gameboard. There are hundreds of options on the included 150 cards (with 450 categories), and it comes with a one-minute timer.

This t-shirt allows one to strum and make music with pre-recorded major chords. It comes with a magnetic pick and a mini amp with sound adjustment.
— "Geeks are our customer base!" said John MacDougall, owner of Golden Apple Learning Store in Pleasanton, Calif., at Toy Fair 2010.

Encouraging kids to reuse, recycle and be creative, makedo kits include connectors that help fashion masterpieces out of cardboard and other objects. The Kit for One houses 69 pieces, including 30 pins, 30 clips, eight hinges, a construction tool and an inspiration poster. Watch makedo: Top-5 Video, Toy Fair 2010
— John MacDougall, owner of Golden Apple Learning Store in Pleasanton, Calif., thought the makedo line "clever" at Toy Fair 2010.
— Susan Stephenson, The Book Chook, called Makedo “beautifully thought out.” Although she found the cutting tool less effective than scissors, she loved the value and limitless possibilities of a set that uses what would otherwise be junk.
— Makedo was a Readers’ Choice Winner for TreeHugger’s Best of Green Awards.

The FlexForce™ Big Talkin’™ figures combine real Superstar phrases with their jaw-dropping signature moves! Just pull the FlexForce™ figure’s arms or legs back to recreate a Superstar move then listen as it delivers one of the Superstar’s signature phrases! Whether it’s “time to play the game” with Triple H®, or if you think “luck is for losers” like CM Punk™, you’ll love recreating the action and sounds from the main event! Launch date: Fall 2010

Collectors and WWE® fans alike can rekindle their passion for some of the most famous Superstars in WWE® history with the WWE® Legends assortment. Featuring classic Superstars and all-time greats, the line offers extreme articulation, unparalleled detail and amazing accuracy while capturing WWE®'s rich and exciting heritage!

Now your favorite WWE® action figures can deliver match-ending finishing moves! Just pull your FlexForce™ figure’s arms or legs back and release to execute a famously devastating signature move. Come out of nowhere to take down your opponent with John Cena’sPower Slam, CM Punk’s Elbow Strike, ReyMysterio’s 619 and more! Reenact these moves and more with FlexForce™ action figures!

The Touch Learning System comes with a side QWERTY keyboard. It is based on self-education mostly, with Mom and Dad interface that puts the kids in these roles as they go through specially designed educational applications. The screen lets them tap, flick, pat or drag and drop. According to the apps' requirements, children will be using the MobiGo through the QWERTY keyboard, just like their parents. These should also check online on the official website as VTech offers progress reports and reading certificates.

The 3-in-1 Learning Zebra Scooter grows with your child and is ideal for little ones on the go. It easily converts from riding to pushing and scooting as your infant begins to walk so the fun keeps on rolling. Lights and music entertain as infants learn colors, numbers and sounds with this versatile toy that keeps going and growing.

This flying toy flings soft foam rings hundreds of feet accurately. The rings are soft enough that even if you hit someone with them, it won't hurt.
— "I first saw this toy while watching David Letterman's holiday toy segment this past December. After Dave literally and figuratively destroyed several toys, he really seemed to like the Zyclone. We tried it at Toy Fair and suspect it will be a breakout springtime toy this year," Joe Mitchell, owner of YoYo Joe's Toys & Fun, told TDmonthly at Toy Fair 2010.

Discover the Stirling engine, a simple, clean and efficient energy technology that is quickly becoming a viable source of electricity as the availability of fossil fuels declines. The Stirling engine in this kit uses renewable energy from the sun to drive a generator, which charges a rechargeable battery to power an electric car. Named after its inventor, Robert Stirling, the original Stirling engine dates back almost 200 years. Today, high-tech Stirling engines are being used in arrays of giant mirrored solar collectors and common applications like compact generators.
— "This set will be shipping in the fall and, like all of Thames & Kosmos products, is a wonderful scientific learning tool," Joe Mitchell, owner of YoYo Joe's Toys & Fun, told TDmonthly at Toy Fair 2010.

JAWBONES® is The Buildable Art System™ with construction pieces that swivel, ratchet and snap together in countless ways. The precision pieces in the four Jawbones sets will provide many hours of enjoyment for any budding artist, architect, sculpter, designer engineer or builder.
— "We liked that most of the sets include a storage jar for the pieces," Joe Mitchell, owner of YoYo Joe's Toys & Fun, told TDmonthly at Toy Fair 2010.

Fisher Price classic toy re-creations by Basic Fun are high quality preschool toys from days past that are every bit as appealing as toys for toddlers and preschool children today. From the classic toy look to their classic toy operation, these toys mirror the Fisher Price toy classics.
— "Basic Fun is recreating some of the toys that I grew up with, including the Chatter Telephone, the Teaching Clock and the Change A Record Music Box. We've found our customers love buying toys for their kids (or grand kids) that they had when they were little. These are moderately priced (all under $40 retail) and look identical to the old Fisher Price toys," Joe Mitchell, owner of YoYo Joe's Toys & Fun, told TDmonthly at Toy Fair 2010.

The Musical Fun Choo Choo provides more opportunities for fun as children take a whimsical ride complete with three instrument-playing characters, buttons and shapes for more combinations of exciting learning opportunities. The light-up smokestack adds fun play and an optional pull cord stores in the battery compartment.

The jewelry and tool boxes offer more interactive opportunities for learning shapes, colors and numbers in a portable way.  Perfect for a little lady to accessorize or a fix up in the kitchen, these toys also encourage more imaginative development with role play.