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Prepare yourself for Titanic, MTV, Princess Bride, and other wholesome games and toys
Welcome back to Important Toy News, the SYFY WIRE column that shows you a week's worth of amazing new playthings, collectibles, shelf candy, and tokens of joy.
Join me, your resident toy journalist, as we start our geeky toy-hunting journey by slowing it down a bit so we can do things together as a family. Because in this current climate of continued lockdown, it’s important to appreciate the people around you. And what better way to do that than by giving your board game collection a little bit of a refresher? This week’s issue of Important Toy News is the perfect place to check out some brand-new board games hitting shelves this year, and then we'll top it off with some heartwarming wholesome toys before wrapping things up in a cozy nightlight sort of way.
HELLO, MY NAME IS INIGO MONTOYA, YOU KILLED MY FATHER, PREPARE TO (ROLL THE) DIE
Everyone’s favorite nerd movie (and source for the famed Inigo Montoya quote that every nerd at the card shop spouted at you) is coming your way in board game form. Ravensburger is bringing fans The Princess Bride Adventure Book Game, and it differs from traditional board games. Players interact with different game boards within the “book” and will become immersed in the story as they complete each chapter and navigate their way through locations found in the 1987 film The Princess Bride. The game costs $24.99 and will be available to purchase at Target come Oct. 4, 2020.
I WANT MY MTVTTRPG
Do you remember the time when MTV played music? Yeah, neither do I, which makes it even more wholesome and wonderful that Big Potato Games is taking us back to the past with a game that will challenge your inner music trivia lover. It’s called MTV The Throwback Music Party game and it’s everything I need in my life. I bet you know more lyrics from Backstreet Boys’ “Larger Than Life” than you even realize. The game is filled with all the biggest hits from the '80s, '90s, and '00s, which means high school radio and mixtapes never died, I tells ya. The aim of the game is to be the first team to collect at least one Artist Card from all eight MTV Challenge categories: Award-Winning Videos, Best of Unplugged, Pop Anthems, Headbangers, Teenage Angst, Hip Hop Hips, Queens of MTV, and Across the Pond. It costs $19.99 and is available for purchase today from Target online (not available in stores).
I WANT YOU TO PLAY ME LIKE ONE OF YOUR FRENCH GAMES
Speaking of '90s nostalgia, get ready for this one, because, holy ship… we’re sinking! Some serious nostalgia is in action here as you play as Jack, Rose, and other passengers of the Titanic in this awesome party game using cunning and strategy. It’s up to you to save as many passengers as possible from the sinking Titanic over the course of nine rounds. Gather life rafts and supplies. Getting on a lifeboat won’t win you the game, however. Just as in the movie, you’ll have to be heroic to come out on top! The game even has its own PS1 style website that captures the ship's journey from “everything is fine” to “WE’RE GOING DOWN!” Titanic: The Board Game costs $24.99 and is available for purchase today at Target.
POKÉMON, BUT NOT AS CHARIZ-HARD
Are you terrible at CCG-style card games like me but enjoy cool things like Pokémon? Then you’re in luck, because finally (like hella finally after twentysomething years of pop culture infiltration) Pokémon is becoming a family-friendly board game! Per The Pokémon Company, this game is “designed for Trainers of all types, including parents and children who may be new to the Pokémon TCG, Battle Academy reimagines strategic Pokémon TCG gameplay as an easy-to-learn and fun-to-play experience for the whole family that comes in a classic board-game format.” Everything a Trainer needs to master the basics of the Pokémon TCG is included in each Battle Academy box. It comes with a two-player game board, three 60-card decks, tutorial guides, gameplay accessories, and a code card for the free-to-play Pokémon Trading Card Game Online on iOS, Android, and Pokemon.com.
A BADVENT CALENDARE
Sure, horror movies aren’t totally wholesome on most days, but do you know what are? Holidays! And with holidays comes … yes! Advent calendars! So, what happens when you mix the two together? Let Funko show you the way! I absolutely adore this product. It’s charming, it’s exciting, it brings out the blind box loving baby in all of us… and my goodness, are Pocket Pop!s just precious. Now you can count down the days to Halloween with 13 days of spooky surprises! This horror-themed advent calendar includes 13 days of surprise mini-figures measuring approximately 1 1/2 inches tall. The calendar includes favorites such as Freddy Krueger, Beetlejuice, Jack Torrance from The Shining, and Regan from The Exorcist. Funko’s Spooky Countdown 13-Day Advent Calendar costs $29.99 and is ready to ship today.
A FUNKO PUP
If this isn’t the cutest toy I’ve seen today, then I don’t know what is. How absolutely charming! For me, Funko has done it again by tapping into not only one of my favorite comic franchises, but also a sweet and beautiful character moment in Peanuts lore. Snoopy and Woodstock are bonding at their usual spot! This iconic Peanuts Snoopy on Doghouse Deluxe Pop! Vinyl Figure measures approximately 4 1/2 inches wide by 5 1/2 inches tall. It comes packaged in a window display box. The Peanuts Snoopy on Doghouse Deluxe Pop! Vinyl Figure costs $24.99, ships November 2020, and is available for preorder now. And speaking of Snoopy and November — if Funko wants to make a Pop! figure of Snoopy fighting the folding chair from the Thanksgiving special, please know you have at least one customer.
A HAPPY TOY
If I were to say, “Give me a television personality who is soothing, calming, and just wants to help you learn,” where would your brain go? Right, probably to Mr. Rogers or Bob Ross, and today we are discussing the latter. The Toony Classics from NECA give fans a fun take on beloved characters from film and television. This stylized figure of Bob Ross comes with his happy little animal friend, Peapod the squirrel. Bob Ross stands approximately 6 inches tall, is non-poseable, and comes with Peapod hanging around his favorite spot, Bob’s shirt pocket. You can purchase him today for $14.99 and this little cutie is getting ready to ship this month.
THIS DUMPSTER'S ON FIRE
We’ve hit the end, my toy-collecting friends, but we can’t wrap up an article about wholesome playthings without getting cozy-cozy and ready for bed. Relax in your soft, yielding blanket nest as your room illuminates with the warm, glowing, warming glow of a … dumpster fire? Three cheers, because it’s here and he’s back! The Dumpster Fire from 100%soft is the toy that keeps on giving. You saw him last year, you saw him with a mask this year, and now he’s back to help light up your room. And he shall be my nightlight. Because I preordered one. I will hug him and kiss him and cuddle him and love him forever. Nothing will comfort your garbage life like a soothing, flickering Dumpster Fire night light, so be sure to order yours now! The Dumpster Fire Nightlight costs $28, ships January 2021, and is available for preorder today.
