Toys to Life – What they are and what they cost

Recently a new genre of video games has taken hold, Toys to Life, it’s a simple concept really, you buy real world figures and then can scan them into your game, the concept has been around for a while, but lately it seems that that everyone wants to get in on the action.

Scanning real world items to access content in a digital form is nothing new, QR codes are perhaps the most prevalent method of this in recent times, there was a period where almost every poster around town would have a QR Code to scan, taking you to a website or even giving you a free wallpaper for your phone, but it has been around even longer than that. Nintendo toyed with the idea some years ago with the GameBoy Advance and the e-Reader.  You would purchase a pack of cards and then scan them through a reader that was plugged into the GameBoy Advance to play games or unlock content in Nintendo GameCube titles.

So what we are seeing as new ideas is just something that has been repurposed for the modern audience, but it is this repurposing that things are different. Activision is the giant in this space, with an estimated $3 Billion dollars in sales, which is helped by them selling over 175 million toys since Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure. The game was something new, players would connect a power portal to their console and it would allow them to place any figure released alongside it to play as that character. Being able to swap out any figure for a new one, could change things in the players favour and since the first game, we have been treated to three more additions from that series, each with a special twist.

For the most part, players could experience the entire game with the figures that were contained with the starter kit, but should they want to try new things, they could purchase additional figures, which would give them more content to experience. For the second game in the series, they added larger size figures, called Giants, but did little to change the overall gameplay. It was the third entry, in 2013 that really swapped things around, Skylanders Swap Force allowed players to actually change the physical figure, taking the top from one and matching it with a different bottom, then placing that figure on the portal, it allowed a whole new gameplay experience to emerge. For last year’s effort, Trap Team, players could trap a defeated bad guy into crystals that were placed into the new portal, allowing them to then summon them back to the game, if they wanted.

While the Trap Team game required a brand new portal, due to the traps being used there, it did still offer the biggest benefit for players and parents, in that all of the figures previously released could work in the game, a feature that has been carried over since the second game, meaning that the collection of figures people have, would always work.  As the figures were universal, should a player change consoles, as long as the owned the game they could keep using the figures. Since the first game, Activision have always promised players would experience new things with each entry in the series, living up to it with each game thanks to the figures, which now total over 300 unique characters. For the first two years the series existed, it was unchallenged in the market, but that would not last long.

It was in 2013 that Disney Interactive announced that they were going to enter the market, bringing the some 90+ years of characters to the fray, with the hopes that people would be excited enough to play as their favourite Disney or Pixar characters. Whereas Skylanders was designed based solely around the figures and the story it offered, Disney Infinity added a Toy Box mode, which allowed players to use any combination of characters they wanted. Players could place down a game token that would allow them to play through an adventure as one of the characters from that universe, but should they want to have Jack Sparrow race alongside Lightning McQueen, they only needed to drop into the Toy Box and make their own race course or anything else they wanted.

Each of the figures that Disney released with the first game had a similar appearance, thanks in part to Disney insisting that they were not the actual characters, but toy versions of them, which means when you line up the three figures from the starter pack, Jack Sparrow, Mr Incredible and Sulley, they all have the same style, even though the three movie worlds could not be further apart. What Disney did out of the gate different to Activision, is that they offered up Power discs in two different shapes that would alter the gameplay or unlock new items, should players want to use them. Placing down circular discs would give the characters stat boosts, like more health or dealing more damage, while the Hexagon shaped discs would unlock items for use, vehicles for driving and even new looks for the worlds.

It was in 2014 that Disney added Marvel characters to the mix, letting players loose in stories that told the tale of the Avengers, Spider-Man and even the Guardians of the Galaxy. Alongside these Marvel characters, players were also given new Disney characters like Aladdin and Stitch. The game then allowed players to continue to use their Disney Infinity 1 figures and Power Discs in the new game, like Skylanders had before it. Players were also given the bonus of now being able to customise their characters in game, thanks to a new skill tree system, meaning that no two player would have the exact same character in the game. While there has not been any confirmation yet, that a third game is coming, the team behind the game have placed Star Wars elements in each game, for those that collect all the figures, which is leading a lot of people to hope that the third game is Star Wars focused.

It was last year that Nintendo returned to the world of toys for the first time since the late 70’s with their amiibo line of figures.  The house of Mario, Link and Pikachu promised that amiibo would be different from other games on the market as you would not need to purchase a specific game to have them work, but that they would work in a number of games. The first wave of amiibo figures released alongside Super Smash Bros for Wii U and allowed players to scan them in via the Wii U’s gamepad controller and then train them to fight, giving you someone to fight yourself or sending them to fight for you. But that was not the only game to support amiibo, Mario Kart 8 was updated to add in support and now when you scan one of 10 selected figures, you can unlock costumes for your Mii character.

Other games have also been given support via patches, such as Hyrule Warriors, which allows you to scan any amiibo for in game bonuses, but if you scan any Legend of Zelda series character you get even more things to enjoy.  Captain Toad Treasure Tracker was another game that was updated to allow support for amiibo, if players scan a Toad amiibo on the stage selection screen they unlock a hide and seek challenge for that stage, with other amiibo granting bonus lives. Since then, almost every Nintendo made title released, post the amiibo release, has been given amiibo support, with the New Nintendo 3DS having NFC built in, to allow amiibo support for the platform. Nintendo has since announced that a new title will be made available for download on the Wii U titled, amiibo Tap & Play Nintendo Classics Highlights, will allow players to scan in their amiibo to unlock timed demos of classic Nintendo title, with the same character unlocking different content for different people, players will need to scan more to unlock as much as they can.

From the outset, the amiibo figures sported the Super Smash Bros look for the characters, which pleased some people and not others, who preferred the classic designs. Since then, Nintendo has released the Super Mario series of amiibo that does support that classic look and they have also announced new amiibo from the upcoming Splatoon game, as well as two brand new looks for amiibo. For the upcoming release of Yoshi’s Woolly World, Nintendo will be releasing yarn styled amiibo, which is the first time that any toy to life figure has not been hard plastic, but they also announced for Nintendo 3DS that Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer will use traditional paper playing cards that contain amiibo functionality.

But it is in the last week that the latest newcomer joined the fray, with Warner Bros Interactive and Lego teaming up to release an all new toys to life game titled, Lego Dimensions, which will allow players to use Lego figures, allowing combinations like Batman and Gandalf to explore the Yellow Brick road. While we have no confirmation on exactly the gameplay will be, we know how the game will function. Players will be able to place down 7, yes 7 figures at a time, allowing multiple players and vehicles to be in the game world at once. We know that DC Comics, The Lego Movie, Lord of the Rings, The Wizard of Oz, Back to the Future and Ninjago characters will all be available with WildStyle, Batman and Gandalf appearing in the Starer Pack.

For those that want to add more to their game, they can purchase one of three different style of add ones, Level Packs, Team Packs and Fun Packs. Level packs, will do just as the name suggests, by giving players more levels and challenges, Team Packs are doubles that will give players new characters, with Fun packs giving characters and items for use. While the full breakdown of what is coming down the line is scarce, we know that as its Lego, the options are quite infinite. The biggest difference here is that the figures are not sculpted figures, they are Lego, which allows the character figures to be removed from their bases, and used with existing real world Lego sets, which of course means you will need to actually build them as well.

So it stands to reason with 4 different toys to life products, players are not lacking for choice anymore, but with all those options, investing in any of them can be costly. Currently Skylanders is the leader of the pack, with Disney Infinity in second and amiibo coming in third and while each offers something different for players to experience, both in terms of gameplay and characters, deciding which one to go with can be swayed by the overall cost involved. Over the years, prices have changed, but think of it this way, with Skylanders, if you bought each of the starter packs, plus every figure individually and now the traps you would have spent around $5000. Disney Infinity fares better due to its age, but players can easily spend around $1500, thanks to the blind packs that power discs come in. amiibo also fairs the same, due to its infancy, with the average figure costing $18, the current total would be around $630, assuming you did not pay more on ebay for them, but with the additional 23 figures coming you can expect to add another $400 to that price.

But of course, the most costly is going to be Lego Dimensions, not because it is newer, but because we pay a lot in Australia for Lego as whole. The same Lego set on Target.com, lists at $89 US and Target.com.au at $129 AUD and the prices for Lego Dimensions are going to run up the same cost difference it seems, with the starter pack alone priced at $169 here, with the additional packs coming between $50 and $25 each, if you get one starter pack and all the currently announced packs, you will spend over $580 and Warner Bros Interactive have stated that more will come, so expect that cost to rise.

Of course, those prices are averages, with double packs, sales and lower than RRP, but does show that getting into the Toys to Life gaming area can be costly, not to mention once you add the cost of the console into the mix as well. While I never got into Skylanders and Lego Dimensions is to unknown for me, I have dived to Disney Infinity and amiibo and having all of them, means I have spent quite a lot of money, but it is worth it to me. So while a fourth Toys to Life series may impact my wallet more than most, the level of enjoyment I get from playing the games and collecting the figures is worth it.

Of course not all will partake in collecting everything as I have and that is ok, because at the end of the day, no matter if you get a single starter pack, or everything possible or a combination of the above, the toys to life category offers up something that a lot of games can and that is pure fun for everyone. Kids love the figures and seeing them appear in the game when they place them down is enough to generate the biggest smile and for parents being able to play a game with their kids that is not childish is a rare thing. So while we now have a 4-way battle, it seems that everyone wins in some form, as long as you remember that games are about having fun.