Sunday, January 26, 2014

Toy Fair 2014: Hex Bug Battles, Climbs the Walls & Gets Zombified

It's often hard to tell which direction the toy industry will go. Last year saw the "dumbing down" of several action figure lines in favor of a marginally lower price point and a company most known for robotics trying their hand at princess dolls. Amid all these shifts, our universal constant will always be Hex Bug! This crew seems to sit around all day thinking of new ways you can play with micro-robotics on a level that won't decimate a parent's budget. Here's this year's UK Toy Fair showing...


Tagamoto (exclusive to Target stores in the states): Tagamoto motorized vehicles with lights and/or sound read and react to codes placed on the roads with lights and movement, making each driving experience different. These high-tech cars have working headlights and taillights that are activated by codes placed strategically on the road. Slightly higher price point cars include more than 15 different sounds including engine revving, car horns and sirens. Codes sold separately with the road sets. 12 cars with lights (MSRP $5.99) and 8 cars with lights and sound (MSRP $7.99) kick off the line.

The Tagamoto™ Road Set is perfect for any first time driver, or seasoned collector looking to enhance an existing set. Each Road Set comes with 1 collectible vehicle with lights & sounds that reacts to codes on the road, more than 10 bar-codes, and over 20 easy-to-connect pieces. (MSRP $14.99)

Each driving experience can be different with the Tagamoto™ City Road Set. The City Road Set comes with one collectible vehicle with lights & sound that reacts to codes on the road, more than 20 bar-codes, and over 40 easy-to-connect pieces.(MSRP $19.99) I believe the lot is in stores now.







Aquabot: The robotic fish that really swims! Water brings it to life! HEXBUG Aquabot provides kids with the fun experience of having a pet fish, without all the messy clean-up. HEXBUG Aquabot is available in two styles, the Shark and the Clownfish, and ten translucent colors. (MSRP $9.99) for a single fish orrrrr you can get one in a fish bowl for (MSRP $14.99).




This year, THE ZOMBIES START TAKING OVER HEX BUGS!!! Yes, even our little robotic friends aren't immune to the zombie plague. Amid the happy lil robo-fishes, we spotted a zombie robot fish with a glowing skeleton. Pretty damn inventive...if we must have zombies everywhere..always..and we do. It seems zombies will be infecting the Larva and Scarabs at some point as well.





Warriors were released last year, but stands often show older items they are still selling. Warriors are the battling robots that you customize for competition! These battery powered robots have intelligent battle sensors inside that register damage as the fight rages on. Each HEXBUG Warrior comes with configurable armor and weapons that when collected with other Warriors can be changed into hundreds of combinations. With four teams to choose from and over twenty Warriors to collect the possibilities are endless!





**Further information removed by request**

Battle Spiders join the ever growing line of cyber-creepy crawlies along with the bulky Strandbeast, an 8 legged bot.

HEXBUG Battling Spiders are the exciting next generation of the popular HEXBUG Spider. With a two-channel infrared remote control, these sci-fi battling robots are fuelled with a futuristic voice, sound effects and hi-tech infrared battling capabilities. Featuring a unique battle-hardened deco, the Battling Spiders have a hi-tech life-sensor that measures each hit, alongside a realistic recoil and physical response when hit or shooting for the ultimate battle experience. Suitable for ages 8 and up. Available exclusively at Red 5 from April.




The brand new addition to the micro robotic range, HEXBUG Strandbeast, is a complex robot that features a mesmerising eight-legged walking mechanism that makes this mystifying creature more organic than robotic. Its two-channel infrared remote control can be used to operate each side of
the Strandbeast’s legs independently, resulting in full-control of forward, backward and turning motions, and even to control two Strandbeasts independently or multiple Strandbeasts in unison. The HEXBUG Strandbeast is available in five translucent colours, exposing the electronics and mechanisms to the naked eye, to get kids thinking about the science inside the robot. Suitable for ages 8 and up. Launching in Autumn/Winter 2014.

Pocket-lint got some hands on time with each robot...





Also unveiled were HEXBUG VEX Robotics:
For the slightly bigger kids, HEXBUG is introducing a robotics revolution with VEX Robotics. Kids can connect with the VEX phenomenon through insanely fun, imaginative robot-building play. This collection of high-tech, tool-less robotic kits allows HEXBUG fans to build and program their favourite jumbo-sized HEXBUG micro robotic creature complete with motors and sensors.

HEXBUG VEX robots can run in autonomous mode or driver controlled mode. It challenges kids’
creative thinking and problem-solving capabilities through the activity of building a robot, and each
robot can be disassembled and rebuilt in different configurations. If you can think of it, you can
build it! Suitable for ages 8 and up. Launching in Autumn/Winter 2014

Rounding out the lines was Nano V2, which you've probably seen on the toy shelves this holiday season past. The Nano V2 product line features an evolved Nano, sporting a new look, with three rubber spines on its back, as well as a new system of tubular tracks that highlight the Nano V2’s unique multi-level climbing abilities.


Photography by H and K Photography UK - http://www.handkphotography.co.uk

Keep watching for more Toy Fair reports as there is still a ton of stuff to get through.
Check in on our Flickr Galleries regularly for extra images from these sets and more!

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1 comment :

  1. Am I the only one who noticed that new Nano vs Hive "lunchbox" in the background and wants more info on it? Similarly, I just saw a press release about Hasbro and Innovation First donig Transformers Hexbugs in both the Nano and Warriors lines...

    ReplyDelete