August 2010 Notable Toys — All

These colorful boxes can be used to stack and create scenes. The boxes can be stacked vertically up to 35" tall or laid horizontally. This product is made with recycled paperboard and printed with soy ink and water-based varnish. Awards: Dr. Toy Best Green Toy Award 2010

Tri-Cross is a game that requires strategy before the first game piece is even placed. It evolves from poker-like play (reading your opponent) into total strategy (much like chess). Play takes less than 20 minutes, and the more times one plays, the more challenging the game becomes. There are no ties or draws, and beginners should not be totally intimidated, since they still have an outside chance to win against the pros. The game is for two to four players and features five variations of play. This version is made from wood and is designed to be eco-friendly. Awards: Dr. Toy Best Green Toy Award 2010

This special edition Monopoly game for two to six players features the video game characters Mario, Donkey Kong, Zelda, Luigi, Ganon, Link and Kirby. Each is represented by a collectible pewter game token.

The classic game of chess takes a wacky turn with the Super Mario Brothers video game characters. This set features 32 highly-detailed authentic chess pieces and a themed chess board. Everything comes packed in a collector's tin.

Designed for viewing solid or three dimensional objects rather than glass slides at 20X magnification. Binocular head allows comfortable viewing with both eyes (no more squinting) and built in light illuminates all specimens for premium viewing every time. Real glass optics provide high quality images and battery power makes it portable for outdoor use to explore nature. Also ideal for collectors: view stamps, coins, gems & rocks, etc. Uses 2 AA Batteries (not included).

Kids can count from one to ten with this musical group in "Knick Knack Paddy Whack," sung by children's performer SteveSongs.

This set of 24 crayons comes in a convenient tuck-box and features educator-preferred color selection
— As of 8.03.2010, this product had 5 out of 5 stars from 4 reviews on Amazon.com and was #34 in the top 100 best-selling toys and games. PROS: Durable, with a variety of colors. CONS: None listed.

Designed to help kids understand the concept of behavior and rewards, this magnetic activities board features a combination of magnets and wood. The set includes a 16" x 12" dry-erase board and 134 magnets depicting behaviors and rewards. The set measures 16" x 24" when opened.
— As of 8.03.2010, this product had 4.5 out of 5 stars from 97 reviews on Amazon.com and was #38 in the top 100 best-selling toys and games. PROS: Helpful, educational, entertaining and well-priced. CONS: Magnets can fall off; can easily become messy.

This set includes a teapot, two pretty cups, three tasty treats and plenty of songs, sounds and fun phrases. It is designed to introduce children to pretend play while they learn about counting, shapes, opposites, manners and more. Open the lid for magical interaction and a peek-a-boo pal inside, or press the teabag to hear a song. Two AA batteries are required.
— As of 8.03.2010, this product had 5 out of 5 stars from 72 reviews on Amazon.com and was #47 in the top 100 best-selling toys and games. PROS: Cute, clean, educational and durable. CONS: Electronic component can include defects.

The Maverick blaster features a six-dart rotating barrel with easy flip loading, rapid launching action, a pullback mechanism and an auto-advancing barrel. The Maverick is a part of the N-Strike team, so it can snap onto the NERF Unity Power System. Six darts and instructions are included.
— As of 05/21/2012 this product had 4.4 out of 5 stars from 302 reviews on Amazon.com. PROS: Well-priced, easy to assemble and use, darts fly far. CONS: Darts lack durability.

This pacifier closes when dropped, to prevent it from getting dirty. The closing shields are attached to the pacifier, so the cover does not get lost. The pacifier comes in a variety of colors and characters.

This pacifier closes when dropped, to prevent it from getting dirty. The closing shields are attached to the pacifier, so the cover does not get lost. The pacifier comes in a variety of colors and characters.

This pacifier closes when dropped, to prevent it from getting dirty. The closing shields are attached to the pacifier, so the cover does not get lost. The pacifier comes in a variety of colors and characters.

This hands-free teether is made from silicone, with stimulating multi-textures designed to soothe while baby plays. The teether is non-toxic and BPA free.

This hands-free teether is made from silicone, with stimulating multi-textures designed to soothe while baby plays. The teether is non-toxic and BPA free.

This hands-free teether is made from silicone, with stimulating multi-textures designed to soothe while baby plays. The teether is non-toxic and BPA free.

Eco Collage Kits contain a variety of eco-friendly, recycled, and recyclable collage items. Each item has been carefully sourced to make sure that they are earth friendly. Each Eco Collage Kit includes recycled Kraft cardstock and paper bags, multi-colored recycled tissue paper “shred,” "Green Glue" made from plants and natural ingredients, biodegradeable natural wood shreds, grosgrain ribbon made from recycled plastic bottles, fiber ribbon-made from 65-percent reclaimed cotton and 35-percent recycled plastic bottles, four Eco-Tree colored pencils, green craft felt and recycled designer tissue paper.

Eco Dough cutters are biodegradable and are made in the USA from 100-percent recycled corn (PLA). This set of four includes teddy bear, heart, star and house shapes.

These eco-friendly pencils are made from from sustainable Tamarind Trees, which are farmed for their fruit in Southeast Asia. Each set comes with 10 colored pencils.

From before "Toy Story" to beyond "Up!," this one-of-a-kind encyclopedia captures all the films, shorts, characters, history and information of Pixar Studios. Thousands of photographs and illustrations combine with behind-the-scenes information to form the  300-page Pixarpedia.

Packed in a gift box, the model is approximately 3" and consist of 25 pieces. Museum quality, finely detailed sculpturing and hand painted.

Lemming Mafia - a leap of a game by Michael Rieneck. Leap into the wild world of Lemming mafia! Bet on lemmings as they race to be the first to Jump. But yours more than a mere wager. Lemming bosses give you missions. You must slow some lemmings, or stop them altogether by putting them in concrete shoes. You must guide your favored lemmings, using jackhammers to cut off any concrete and limos to speed them along. Pick the right mission, and the swiftest Lemming, and you win! Laughingly Larcenous Leaping Lemmings.

Contains 1 Game Board, 6 Mafia-Lemmings, 36 betting cards, 18 mission cards, 2 Lemming Dice, 1 Regular die, 12 concrete markers, Rules.

For 3-6 Players

Conflict of Heroes merges the elegance of streamlined Eurogame rules with deep strategic wargames. The series is designed to create a tense and highly interactive game play experience. You must manage multiple command resources to move, attack, and take other actions with your units. This gives you great flexibility in executing your battle plans, but makes constant caution necessary as unit activations on either side can happen at any time. Price of Honor is an expansion and requires ownership of either Rise of Hero or Storms of Steel to play.

Price of Honour includes 2 new Polish landscape mounted boards, 2 Sheets of early war Polish, German and Russian tanks, airplanes and other units, 1 Sheet including all Awakening the Bear upgraded counters with new artwork and updated stats, 16 firefights. 10 playable with the AtB base game and 10 playable with the SoS base game, New summary sheets summarizing terrain and unit data for all of the Eastern Front games, Rule sheet adendum covering cavalry charges and other new unit data.

For 2 Players.

Las Vegas. The Strip. To the untrained eye, it's a sleepy desert crossroads. A wasteland of cheap hotels, gas stations, and dust. But to you, it is Paradise. Your brilliant plan? You will construct a magnificent chain of casinos and fill them with light. You will manufacture the ultimate dream of easy money and impossible luxury. You will sell-basically-nothing. You are not alone in this plan. In Lords of Vegas, you and your friends play rival developers, building on the Las Vegas Strip. You can get ahead by building the glitziest, most glamorous, and most popular casinos. But you can fall behind by letting your enemy become your boss. Lords of Vegas is a clever strategy game with all the thrills, risks, and rewards of the casino business. You start out with empty lots, build small casinos, and expand them as your bankroll grows. Your rivals can build next door, and they just might take you over with a clever paint job or a lucky roll of the dice. Buy, sell, trade, and gamble your way to the top as you build your empire along the storied Strip. So come on, roll the dice, and build your piece of Paradise!

For 2-4 Players.

Contains Snazzy game board, 4 turn summaries, 55 cards, 40 chips in 4 colors, 48 dice in 4 colors, 4 poker chips, Money, 45 casino blocks, Rules