NEW TOYS Toys of the future

NEW TOYS

Toys of the Future

By Rossella Arena

What is and will continue to be the most important news coming out of the Toy sector in 2021? Let’s review some of the most recent and anticipated releases this year.

In the first months of 2021, attention has been focused on new products in the Toy sector, partly due to online events such as Spiewalrenmesse Brandnew. The Global Toy Connect event organized by the NPD group welcomed over 55,000 visitors in just the first few days. Toys of the future aim not only to entertain children with every possible play experience, including augmented reality, but also to develop their self-esteem and skills, and engender important values such as sustainability and recycling. New licensed products continue to inspire and entertain children with the presence of their favorite characters. Here is a roundup of companies’ latest and upcoming announcements from around the world.

The global toy company Jazwares and UFC, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization, have embarked on a new collaboration to bring the world of UFC and mixed martial arts into homes around the world with a new line of UFC action figures and role-play collectibles. The new wave of collectible characters includes Conor McGregor, Jorge Masvidal, Amanda Nunes, Francis Ngannou, Israel Adesanya, and Urijah Faber, and have a highly devoted following, making the perfect addition to any UFC collection. The UFC Ultimate Series limited-edition figures by Jazwares are the most detailed, realistic and sophisticated representations of UFC athletes. The articulated figures are great for recreating the thrill of a typical fight night! Each fighter is meticulously detailed and features character-authentic details, including tattoos, weight class body types, and realistic facial expressions. These 6.5inch UFC collectibles come with two sets of removable hands and two removable heads. They also have a fighter-specific flag, a UFC champion belt, or other unique combatant accessories. With 23 points of articulation, each figure is posable and perfect for both play and display. This new collection comes after the first launch with current and former UFC champions including UFC lightweight champion

Khabib The Eagle Nurmagomedov, UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Bones Jones, former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, former featherweight champion Max Holloway and UFC lightweight Donald Cowboy Cerrone.

Moose Toys, a leading and innovative Australian company, is launching a brandnew Octonauts toy line in partnership with Silvergate Media. The collection will support the popular preschool animated television property and the upcoming release of its highly anticipated new spin-off show, Octonauts: Above & Beyond. First launched on screens in 2010, Octonauts has a global broadcast platform spanning multiple territories and huge fanbases in the UK, US, and China. More recently the show has extended its reach by debuting in Latin America and the Middle East. “We are incredibly honored to partner with Silvergate to bring the next chapter of Octonauts to fans around the world. The rich storyline and characters create an incredible sandbox to develop fun and original toys,” said Joe Smith, senior director of global marketing, licensed brands, Moose Toys. “Octonauts is widely regarded as one of the best preschool properties and this partnership further consolidates Moose’s strength and expertise in the preschool aisle”. Under the agreement, Moose Toys will create a full range of Octonauts toys including action figures, vehicles, playsets, soft toys, games, and more.

The brands of the Simba Group also have several interesting innovations. Lucille Interactive is the new functional doll from the Corolle brand, a leading doll manufacturer in France. Designed for children aged two and above, she stands 42cm high and reacts to different actions, with eight functions and twenty sounds. When her left or right foot are squeezed, Lucille laughs or sneezes. When you press her right or left cheek, she even blows a kiss! Summer 2021 will see the launch of a new range of Majorette brand products, which includes realistic construction vehicles, trucks, containers, and a Creatix toy set with a Volvo license for children aged three and above. With its new range, Majorette aims to recreate the elegant Scandinavian look and powerful design of Volvo vehicles.

The animated series Octonauts - Above & Beyond

Garden House by Smoby Toys - Simba group

The series consists of six 7.5cm long construction vehicles with a metal design and moving parts. These include a Raupenbagger EC 950 E, a Radlader L 350 H and a Knicklenker A 60 H, as well as concrete mixer, dump truck and container lorry base on the Volvo FMX. The vehicles are available individually or as a set of three. There is also a set of four packaged in a premium diorama box, which contains three construction vehicles and an exclusive FMX truck with a long dump truck. The range also includes a 20 cm long Volvo FMX transporter with a trailer and loader, for transporting the vehicles to and from the construction site, as well as an additional version with construction containers. In addition to the construction vehicles, the new die-cast range also includes a three-storey Creatix Construction toy set measuring 77 x 45 x 40 cm - a musthave for all budding young builders! The construction site, with plenty of action possibilities, is guaranteed to entertain children. There is a crane that does the hardest work, while small parts can be transported to the ground via the rubble chute. The set includes five die-cast vehicles and features rotating windows that reveal each stage of the building process, as well as essential construction site accessories such as warning signs and cones. The toy garden house from Smoby Toys provides many exciting opportunities for play, learning, and discovery. The house comes with a small gardeners guide full of tips, plus signs that can be labeled to remind young gardeners where everything was planted. The garden house is the ideal way to teach young children how to care for plants and vegetables, and includes a large plant container and six flower pots. The pots can be attached to the trellis along with a birdhouse. The house is also equipped with garden accessories to fill plant pots, as well as a removable table for completing gardening tasks and storing items. It also features a built-in rainwater tank with a watering can to introduce children to the concept of sustainability. The rainwater is collected via the gutter and stored in the tank. A large screw-on

Swing with scales by BIG - Simba group

Quincy Robot artist by Landzo Toys

valve allows you to transfer water into the watering can. Among other garden games in the group is a seesaw with a fun water jet from the BIG brand, and a Smoby tent suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.

Founded in 2011, Landzo (Jiangsu) Technology Co., Ltd. is one of the leading innovative electronic toy and STEAM companies in China. With continued high investment in product development, the company has maintained its leading role in a very competitive market. Their latest toy, Quincy, is a robot that teaches kids how to draw, unlock their talent, and unleash their full potential from an early age. It creates an optimal visual experience for young artists because of its design style based on British paintings. Quincy also allows you to learn maths and spelling, improve reading and strengthen your vocabulary. It includes 64 reusable QR Cards, just show Quincy a QR code from one of the cards and follow the relevant instructions step by step. As for the language in which the robot communicates, 10 different versions are available: Russian, Arabic, French, Spanish, German, Japanese, Hungarian, Italian, English, and Chinese.

My Squishy Little Dumplings by WowWee WowWee will launch its new product, My Squishy Little Dumplings, in spring 2021 in the UK, and on August 13th in the US, the same week as Licensing Expo in Las Vegas. My Squishy Little Dumplings are four squishy little interactive characters which reveal their personality when someone squeezes their cheeks. These tiny friends fit in the palm of your hand, with a silicone texture that is fun to handle and play with. Each character comes with two mysterious accessories, such as glasses or hats. They have over 50 reactions: they can be dressed up, tickled, shaken and tossed, they light up while being played with and make very cute sounds. A new limited edition with additional characters is planned for the fall.

Flip Boxes - Polly Pocket by Mattel

Mattel has many new features for Polly Pocket, the most famous micro doll in the world. Together with her little friends, she provides great adventures from miniature worlds, all contained within the colorful boxes which have become real vintage icons of the 90s and undoubtedly one of the most beloved toys for girls of all ages. Polly Pocket has adapted to trends over the years, becoming a sweet and kind millennial girl whose adventures have not lost the element of surprise and fun, that have a part of her since she was born. To start Polly Pocket’s year in the best way in the world, a burst of joy has arrived with two new products ... within the confines of the box! The first relates to the pocket playsets which have always accompanied girls and boys on their adventures in the mini-mega world of the loves animals will be pleasantly surprised by these incredible boxes, made in the shape of a sloth, a panda, and fox cubs. A special feature of this collection is the flip technology, which allows the outside of the box to open and rotate to create new settings. Each of them contains a Polly Pocket character accompanied by a micro puppy, with which you can invent different adventures every time!

The US company Melissa & Doug will release several Paw Patrol products in Q3 of 2021. For young kids there is a truck and trailer which has three figures and 28 wooden blocks with letters of the alphabet, numbers, and puzzle pieces. For lovers of daily exploration, there is a backpack with lots of accessories inside. It contains a real working whistle and binoculars, and four double-sided cards with directions on the adventures to be undertaken. The 3-in-1 tool lets you see information to solve the mission on the map when its red lens is positioned on it. Another new product is the dashboard steering wheel with three

Paw Patrol Truck by Melissa & Doug

micro doll. To play with the miniature Polly dolls and friends in the set, just open the box. The assortment of pocket playsets has expanded with horse riding, pig & farm, corgi & grand hotel, porcupine & little house themed boxes. The fun also continues with PollyStick technology: just place one of the included stickers on the playset or a smooth surface and the micro doll will adhere to the sticker, wherever it is! Once you have finished playing, the playset closes and can be comfotably transported and used with all the other Polly Pocket boxes and micro dolls anywhere, anytime. The second novelty is the Flip puppy boxes. Anyone who

Puzzle Game of Thrones™ by Clementoni and HBO and puzzle The Witcher™ by Clementoni and Netflix

Peckaboo Water Friends by Clementoni

different “windshield” mission cards which can be used to bring various scenarios to life. And finally there is a floor mat that reproduces the setting of the animated series, Adventure Bay, complete with double-sided wooden figures, buildings, cars, and street signs.

The Italian company Clementoni, has some new Marvel products such as an Iron Man armor kit containing cardboard accessories that transform you into a superhero. The Captain America kit also has everything you need to create a helmet, shield, and breastplate. Then there are 250, 500, and 1000 piece puzzles with images from the most watched HBO series ever, Game of Thrones ™, and the Netflix series The Witcher ™. For unlicensed products, a nice novelty

Racing Bugs by Clementoni

is the Floating Dragon which allows you to explore the scientific principle of tensegrity through an optical illusion that defies gravity, transforming an ordinary object into a floating game. In fixing the character to the base using chains, children experience how tension acts on objects to create structural integrity and therefore balance, giving life to the optical illusion of a dragon suspended in mid-air. For younger kids, there is a new bath line with three different products: the Peekaboo Water Friends and Happy Shower Water Friends, cute puppies that, when lifted out of the water, empty themselves with a fun fountain effect. The Octo-park Water Friends are funny little animals activated by the force of water: for example, water in the octopus makes the turtle moves its legs up and down, and the crab slowly come out of its shell. The Racing Bugs, another new toy, are cute and colorful radio-controlled robot bugs. You can make them move in two modes:

Coding, to program ten sequential moves, and Racing, for real-time challenges. All parts of the original and exclusively designed packaging can be disassembled and reused to create obstacle tracks for the robots.

Re-Cycle-Me STEAM Collection Music by Fun2give

Fun2give, a Dutch company that develops ecological products for children, have created contemporary and colorful recycling sets to help them imagine, create, learn, reuse materials and play while protecting their planet. Among the novelties is the Re-Cycle-Me STEAM Collection Music kit, which teaches children aged four and above to be creative, transforming their disposable household items into musical instruments. Milk cartons, plastic bottles, boxes, or old CDs can be used to bring instruments

Learning Tower by Petinka

to life. A similar kit is the Re-Cycle-Me Jewellery Studio, which allows you to build handcrafted costume jewelry accessories, such as earrings, bracelets, and necklaces. Fun2give offers many other arts & craft kits of the Re-Cycle-Me series, dedicated to the most diverse themes of great interest to children, such as technology, science, and dinosaurs.

Learning Tower by Petinka

Re-cycle-me_Jewellery Studio by Fun2give

Petinka produces The Learning Tower functional children’s furniture in Slovakia, based on Montessori principles. The brand’s learning tower is designed to engage and positively support children at home, especially in the kitchen. It is designed to help kids discover new things and tastes, develop fine motor skills, build their independence, and be actively involved in the cooking process. The various components can always be adapted to the age, needs, or mood of the

Mud Kitchen Playhouse - Wilton Bradley

child. The back wall of the learning tower comes with a ready-to-use whiteboard, which children can use by themselves. The board’s magnetic plate allows kids to add, change, or reattach different Petinka wooden toys and activities to create a different busyboard every day.

From the UK’s Wilton Bradley (Playhouse brand), comes the mud kitchen, an outdoor kitchen designed specifically to play with mud and other natural elements. It is made of high-quality solid FSC

Little Prince statue for its 75th Anniversary by Neamedia

Arty artist by Amek Toys

Canadian Hemlock wood and is already painted. The set includes stainless steel cookware and utensils with a side area for food preparation. It features shelves above and below the sink, with plenty of space to store all ingredients and utensils.

For its 75th anniversary of the publication of The Little Prince the Parisian company Neamedia has produced a PVC figurine of the character, inspired by the watercolors of the author Saint-Exupéry. For this license, Neamedia has also created small sculptures in seven assorted colors. With delicate curves and a brilliant finish, the sculptures combine design and poetry, to create an elegant and charming atmosphere in the home. They are perfect for decorating a child’s bedroom, as a

Lolly Puffs by Amek Toys

birth or Mother’s Day gift, to celebrate a birthday or any special occasion. And from June 2021, 10 to 15 cm resin figures of the characters from the most beloved video games, Bomberman, Pacman and Sonic, will be available.

Amek Toys is a Bulgarian company that produces well-conceived and innovative soft toys like the Lolly Puffs, which will be on the market from May 2021. Available in three different colors and styles, the dolls have a refined look. They are light and easy to carry, ideal for children to keep with them at all times. Also on sale is Arty, a bear that can be decorated with magic markers to become a policeman, a doctor, or an artist! To restart the game,

Whales Musical Fountain Hape -Toynamics

simply iron, wash or dry. Among other new soft toys are some sweet, small dragons, in a variety of bright colors. Super soft to the touch, the dragons provide a sense of protection and friendship in children from an early age.

Rock Ukulele Hape - Toynamics

The German group Toynamics manages several brands, including Hape and Nebulous Stars. Hape’s musical fountain of whales which will be available in Q3 of 2021, is worth mentioning. The whales can be played like the keys of a piano, or become small fountains. Another product is Ukulele Rock for children aged three and above. It plays realistic sounds and, with its practical handle, is easily transportable. It features real strings that can be tuned, and comes with a spare string included. For the very young, the Rainmaker butterfly Rosalie is a good option. The material mix of fabric, wood and plastic is inviting to the touch, and the pearls inside mimic the sound of rain. It can also be used as a rattle, and its wings are removable and washable. It will arrive in large retailers starting in June 2021. The Canadian brand Nebulous Stars is aimed at girls between the ages of six and 10. With gifts, arts & craft products, cosmetics and stationery, as well as books, it promotes not only creativity but also relaxation and self-esteem in girls. Among the new products is the Cosmic Jewelry kit, to create four cosmic jewels with glitter powder and embossed decorations. There are also very colorful, owl-shaped dream catchers which glow in the dark. Aspiring artists will love the paint set, which includes 20 magical luminescent watercolor panels, a metallic color palette and many other accessories.

Nebulous Dream Catcher Stars Toynamics

Among the latest arrivals at American company’s Funko Pop! Animation line are vinyl figures of Boruto Uzumaki, Mitsuki and Sarada Uchiha, that take anime off the screen and into real life! The characters are protagonists in Boruto, from the famous anime and manga Naruto, which tells the story of a Ninja apprentice who, through many adventures in a fantasy world, becomes stronger and more confident by the day. The figurines will be available from May 2021.

The French group Asmodee, with its Green Board Games brand, is about to release the Harry Potter Brain Box, a game of intelligence and memory to share with relatives and friends. The cards contain scenes from all eight Harry Potter films featuring favorite characters, memorable moments, and important quotes. The game will eventually be available in different countries around the world. Another Harry Potter themed concept from Zygomatic is Story Cubes, perfect for telling tales wherever you go. This game helps create endless new stories with your favorite wizards and witches. Other new additions include the second expansion of the popular Exploding Kittens game, Streaking Kittens, featuring 15 cards illustrated by Matthew Inman of

Story Cubes by Harry Potter

The Oatmeal. The cards add many features to the game, including the acquisition of new superpowers for players.

In March 2021 Lego and Universal Music Group (UMG) are releasing the first range of Lego Vidiyo products, an innovative music video-making play experience designed to celebrate and expand children’s creativity through play, music, and augmented reality. It is aimed at children aged seven to 10 and includes the release of BeatBox and Bandmates, that come with special BeatBits functions. The functions are activated on the incredible new Lego Vidiyo app BeatBits, where physical and digital play come together, and audiovisual effects and minifigures inspired by the music scene integrate and come to life through augmented reality. Fans can discover six unique BeatBoxes, each containing a minifigure representing a musical genre, a stage to scan, and 16 BeatBits, including two exclusive ones. Lego Vidiyo

Unicorn Dj - Lego Vidiyo Beatbox - Hip hop robot

Among these first sets of Vidiyo products, there are also 12 Bandmates: a fun range of minifigures contained in collectible and music-inspired Mystery Boxes. The minifigures with the related six Beatboxes are Candy Pop, in the Candy Mermaid BeatBox for the Pop genre; Pirate Punk, in the Punk Pirate Beatbox for the Punk genre; Robot Break-dancer, in the HipHop Robot BeatBox for Hip Hop; Unicorn DJ, in the Unicorn DJ BeatBox for K-pop; Alien DJ, in the Extra Terrestrial Dance Music BeatBox for Electronics, Techno, Dance; Party Llama, in the Party Llama BeatBox for the Tropicon genre. The 12 Bandmates are Red Panda Dancer, Cotton Candy Cheerleader, Shark Singer, Bunny Dancer, Discowboy Singer, Genie Dancer, Samurapper, DJ Cheetah, Ice Cream Saxophonist, Alien Keytarist, Banshee Singer, and Werewolf Drumme. With BeatBits, children can have fun and learn about every kind of music. UMG label Astralwerks has also hired an artist from the Lego stable: a flesh and blood version of the Tropicon BeatBox DJ Llama minifigure. The artist is called L.L.A.M.A and will experiment with various musical genres, without being tied to a specific expressive choice. Fans will be able to stay connected with him and his crazy projects through his @musicbyllama social channels. Lego is also working to bring to life the brick version of SEGA’s legendary speedster, Sonic the Hedgehog, thanks to

Characters Lego Vidiyo 2020 and was one of the finalists at Toty 2021. It has a green screen and over twenty animated backgrounds where you can be chased by a T-Rex, go into space or suddenly disappear into thin air! Use the tabletop tripod/selfie stick and built-in microphone for easy shooting, while also taking advantage of the simple on-screen editing tools for creative photos and timelapse videos.

Vtech also produces toys related to the Go! Go! Cory Carson preschool animated series broadcast on Netflix and starring the adorable little homonymous car. The latest toy released features Cory as a fireman’s apprentice. When the illuminated windshield is pressed it plays phrases and songs in Cory’s real voice, and makes fun sound affects when the car is rolled around. And when the fire hose is placed on top of Cory, you can hear firemen training to fight fires, and learn new firefighting facts.

a concept design created by Vin Grannell, a 24-year-old british girl, superfan of the company. Also very passionate about Sonicfan, Viv presented her project to the Lego Ideas initiative, which welcomes new ideas invented by and voted on by fans to turn them into a reality. Viv’s design was inspired by SEGA Sonic Mania’s acclaimed 2017 platforming experience and features iconic characters and environments from the game’s Green Hill Zone level. The clothing collection that Lego created in collaboration with Adidas has been available from March 2021, with a variety of elegant colors and designs inspired by the Lego Dots and Lego Ninjago lines.

Kidizoom Creator Cam by VTech

The Chinese company Vtech is a world leader in electronic learning products for children, based on the stages of developmental learning at different ages. Their Kidizoom camera is suitable for younger kids and takes real digital photographs. The latest model is the Kidizoom creator Cam, for five to 10 year olds. It is a high-definition camcorder and camera with an exceptional kit of accessories. It won the Good Housekeeping award for the best toy of