August 2010

Games & Puzzles: Tailten’s Purrfect

Tailten Games & Puzzles, Ltd. premieres a new brand, Purrfect Games & Puzzles. The puzzles in the brand feature international artwork, religious architecture photography, and Irish Celtic images. Initial Purrfect Puzzles include images from Celtic artist Rachel Arbuckle, as well as Jim Fitzgerald, known for his mythological Irish art.

Purrfect Puzzles will also feature the work of architectural photographer Achim Bednorz, and a series of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, in cooperation with the British Tate Gallery. The company will launch its Purrfect Games selection with the abstract strategy board game, Tara.

Check out The Toy Book‘s July/August issue for more games and puzzles!

Games & Puzzles: Find 5 Fast

Find 5 Fast is a game featuring “magical discs of common things.” In the game by International Playthings, players shuffle the discs and try to find the common object on all five discs. Whoever finds it first marks the object with a colored coin and then flips over a disc of his or her choosing. The magic is that there will always be one common object on all five discs no matter which disc is turned over during the game.

For more challenging game play, there’s a version that uses six magical discs and has more objects on each one. Included in Find 5 Fast is five magical double-sided discs, six magical double-sided discs for advanced play, 16 scoring chips, a built-in scoring board, and rules in English and French.

Check out The Toy Book‘s July/August issue for more games and puzzles!

Games & Puzzles: New Mentirosa Sets

As a part of a deal with Yuca Productions, the company that owns the rights to the Mentirosa game brand, MBR Industries has signed a North American deal to manufacture the Mentirosa Professional Set and the Mentirosa Travel Set.

Mentirosa is a version of liar’s dice that is played with Spanish poker dice and Mentirosa player tubes instead of traditional dice cups. The advantage is that with Mentirosa tubes players can see their hand without lifting a closed dice cup, reducing the possibility of opponents seeing their hand. Each six-player game includes Mentirosa player tubes, casino-grade Spanish poker dice, “loser chips,” and instructions in English and Spanish.

Check out The Toy Book‘s July/August issue for more games and puzzles!

Chicago Toy and Game Fair Announced

The eighth annual Chicago Toy and Game Fair (ChiTAG) is coming to Chicago’s Navy Pier this November. ChiTAG is the largest public toy and game fair in the country and features new toy and game announcements as well as talks by up-and-coming toy makers.

This year’s event features guest appearances by Jenga inventor Leslie Scott, TMX Elmo inventor Bruce Lund, and inventor and author Peggy Brown, among others. ChiTAG also features a Star Wars breakfast, Monopoly tournaments, chess tournaments, the Mascot Madness toy drive, the Mommy Blogger Brunch, an Illinois Accredited Educator Conference for teachers, and more to be announced. The third annual Toy and Game Inventor Awards Dinner will also take place November 19. Those wishing to attend should contact Mary Couzin at 847-677-8277.

The event runs from November 20 – 21 starting at 10 a.m. Admission is $10 per adult and $5 per child. Children under 3, Scouts in uniform, military in uniform, librarians, and teachers are admitted free of charge. Parking discounts are available.

P. Graham Dunn Voluntary Rattle Recall

P. Graham Dunn and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) have announced a voluntary recall for the company’s wooden toy rattles. If the wooden dowel on the toy is installed incorrectly, the metal rattle can become exposed, causing a potential choking hazard.

Four reports of this exposure have been confirmed, although no incidents of harm occurred in any of the cases. The recalled toy rattle is light brown and contains eight wooden dowels and a gold-colored metal rattle inside. The toy rattle is circular in shape, measuring 2 3/4 inches by 2 inches. Approximately 500 of the recalled rattles were sold in gift stores and book retailers in June and July for around $6.

Consumers should stop using the product and contact P. Graham Dunn for a refund. Contact information is available after the jump.

Photo Credit: P. Graham Dunn Read More…

Games & Puzzles: Sumo Ham Slam

Kids can step into the fierce and furry world of full-contact Sumo hamster wrestling, with Gamewright’s new game, Sumo Ham Slam. Using magnetic force, kids maneuver their Sumo hamster and try to knock their opponent out of the ring. The game is a competition of brawn and bulk, so feeding the hamster at every chance is a must. The game includes an elevated game board, a custom die, two magnetic wands, four Sumo hamsters, four scoring pegs, 60 food tokens, and rules in English and Spanish.

Check out The Toy Book‘s July/August issue for more games and puzzles!

THQ Announces Costume Quest for XBLA, PSN

THQ has teamed with developer Double Fine Productions, Inc. for a new video game, Costume Quest. The game puts players in the role of a brother and sister who move to a new town just before Halloween. Players take control of one avatar as other members of the party follow behind a la Grandia and Evolution.

As players visit houses to trick-or-treat, they collect candy corn, costume pieces, and special cards to be used later in the game. The version I saw last month featured several costumes for each of the four characters. One costume was a robot that (when activated during the game’s turn-based RPG-style battles) transforms the player into a robot warrior much like the mecha (the giant robots) from Robotech. Read More…

Harry Potter: The Exhibition Hits the West Coast

As the planned final stop on this national tour, Seattle is set to receive the Harry Potter: The Exhibition experiential exhibit. The Pacific Science Center will house the event, which features props and costumes from the Harry Potter films.

Warner Bros. Consumer Products partnered with Global Experience Specialists, Inc., to create the 10,000 square foot exhibit. Featuring hundreds of items from all of the previous films, as well as new items from the upcoming two-part finale, The Deathly Hallows, The Exhibition runs from October 23 to Jan. 30, 2011. Tickets go on sale August 14. Museum members can pre-order tickets from now until Saturday.

The exhibit will open daily at 10 a.m. The museum also plans to show part one of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in its IMAX theater when the film releases November 19.

Games & Puzzles: Animal Planet Cahooties

Cahootie, LLC, the maker of a modern-day version of the “cootie-catcher” and “fortune-teller” games, has partnered with Animal Planet to develop Animal Planet Cahooties. The products––made of pre-folded, rip-resistant laminated paper––teach users fun facts about their favorite animals and new species. The packaging includes interchangeable stickers for four animal themes: Dogs Rule!, Cats Rule!, Sea Creatures, and Endangered Creatures.

Check out The Toy Book‘s July/August issue for more games and puzzles!

Mega Launches Dragons Universe

Mega Brands has announced the international launch of its new construction toy line, Dragons Universe. The story of Dragons Universe follows the Alliance soldiers who are being attacked by the Predavors, an alien race of warlike dragons. The Prevadors are looking for the Cores, which are glowing and powerful spheres.

The new Dragons Universe product line includes the Small Dragon Eggs and Alliance Pods, an assortment of buildable Prevador Dragons or Alliance Speeders; Dragon Universe playsets, with each one featuring characters, dragons, and buildable vehicles for battle scenes; the Rapid Fire Dragon fighter, featuring a ‘Flight Controller’ for aerial maneuvers, a working weapon, and Alliance and Prevador characters; and more.