The toy industry’s best toys, games, and individuals were honored at the 16th Annual Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards and Toy Industry Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Hosted by the Toy Industry Association, the award ceremony serves as the official kick-off to the 113th North American International Toy Fair. David Muir, anchor of ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, acted as the master of ceremonies.
Just Play’s Doc McStuffins Pet Vet Checkup Center won the overall “Toy of the Year” award prize and the “Preschool Toy of the Year.” Click here to see the full list of category winners.
The awards presentation also had a special tribute to the Toy Industry Foundation, which contributed brand-new toys to more than 1 million children last year. The event also marked the induction of Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO of the Walt Disney Company, into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame.
TOTY Award winners were selected with the input of consumers, mass and specialty retailers, media, and members of the toy industry. The five ballots were weighted and used to determine the category winners, with the exception of the “People’s Choice” award, which was selected exclusively by consumers.
The full list of category winners is as follows:
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that inspires creative play through various forms of activity, the Activity Toy of the Year was presented to Bunchems (Spin Master Corp.)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for boys of any age, the Boy Toy of the Year was presented to LEGO® Star Wars: The Force Awakens Millenium Falcon (The LEGO Group)
- Recognizing an app-cessory or other physical toy that interacts with a smartphone, tablet or gaming device, the e-Connected Toy of the Year was presented to Disney Infinity 3.0 Edition (Disney)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that helps children develop special skills and knowledge through play, the Educational Toy of the Year was presented to Vex Robotics Robotic Arm (Hexbug)
- Recognizing an outstanding children’s board, card, CD-ROM or electronic game, the Game of the Year was presented to Pie Face Game (Hasbro, Inc.)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for girls of any age, the Girl Toy of the Year was presented to Shopkins™ Scoops Ice Cream Truck (Moose Toys)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for infants and toddlers up to 36 months, the Infant/Toddler Toy of the Year was presented to Bright Beats Dance & Move BeatBo (Fisher-Price)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that combines innovation and play value, the Innovative Toy of the Year was presented toMeccanoid G15 (Spin Master Corp.)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that is designed for outdoor play, the Outdoor Toy of the Year was presented to Razor GFD Fury (Razor USA LLC)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy developed for preschool-aged children (ages 3-5), the Preschool Toy of the Year was presented to Doc McStuffins Pet Vet Checkup Center (Just Play)
- Recognizing a property that has had the greatest success spreading its brand throughout the industry, the Property of the Year was presented to Star Wars (Disney / Lucasfilm Licensing)
- Recognizing an outstanding toy that is distributed primarily through specialty toy retailers, the Specialty Toy of the Yearwas presented to Tumble Trax™ Magnetic Marble Run (Learning Resources)
- The overall Toy of the Year was presented to Doc McStuffins Pet Vet Checkup Center (Just Play)
- As voted exclusively by consumers, the People’s Choice Award was presented to The Uptown Espresso Kitchen (KidKraft LLC)
