Toys-to-life
Toys-to-life refers to toys and action figures that can be used in connection with a computer game or that provide special functions in a computer game. They thus represent a mixture of toys and computer games and thus also an augmented reality . A German term for the English term has not been established. Toys-to-life are to be distinguished from smart toys , which can interact with the player but do not serve as the basis for a computer game.
technology
The toys can usually be connected to a computer , game console or smartphone via NFC , RFID , Bluetooth , WLAN , cable connection. Toys-to-life are used, among other things, to unlock special functions in a computer game, such as a special character that corresponds to the action figure. They can also be used as data storage devices to transport game data. Another approach is to use the toy as an input or output device for a computer game (e.g. Nintendo Labo ). Often, however, a large part of the toy is just a visual gimmick without any particular influence on the game. For example, collectors' figures from large series of computer games or films are often used.
history
The term toys-to-life was first coined with the launch of the Skylanders series in 2011. Toys-to-life have been popular since the mid-2010s and development was driven by well-known publishers with licensed fictional universes such as Nintendo , Disney and Lego .
Economical meaning
Toys-to-life products generated over $ 4 billion in revenue. The Skylanders series took up three quarters of this . It is the most successful Toys-to-Life series with sales of over 3 billion US dollars .
Toys-to-life are mostly popular with collectors and children. They are often expensive compared to the features they offer in the game and often make use of popular licensed fictional universes. Toy-to-life are usually intended to encourage further purchases of toys, as these unlock new functions that are often not unimportant for the player. However, if the series shows little innovation and requires too much expense without offering adequate consideration, consumers will become saturated and bored and sales will decline. For this reason, some series have already been discontinued or are showing strong sales declines.
Well-known examples
| Game series | Publisher | Published |
|---|---|---|
| Amiibo | Nintendo | Since 2014 |
| Skylanders | Activision | Since 2011 |
| Lego Dimensions | Lego | 2015-2017 |
| Disney Infinity | Disney | 2013-2016 |
| Pokémon Rumble U | Nintendo | 2013 |
| Nintendo Labo | Nintendo | Since 2018 |
| Starlink: Battle for Atlas | Ubisoft | Since 2018 |
| Lightseekers: Awakening | Jagex | Since 2017 |
Individual evidence
- ^ Arielle Pardes: How Augmented Reality Is Shaping the Future of Play . In: Wired . February 17, 2018, ISSN 1059-1028 ( wired.com [accessed August 22, 2019]).
- ^ Andy Robertson: Skylanders, Disney Infinity, Lego Dimensions: toys-to-life buyer's guide . In: Wired UK . August 20, 2015, ISSN 1357-0978 ( wired.co.uk [accessed August 22, 2019]).
- ↑ Björn Rohwer: From Disney to Nintendo: Toys-to-Life: Success doesn't need hype | shz.de. Retrieved August 22, 2019 .
- ↑ Why game makers are entering the billion dollar toys to life market. Retrieved on August 22, 2019 .
- ↑ Stephan Freundorfer: "Toys to Life" figures: video game heroes for screens and collectors' cases . In: Spiegel Online . August 3, 2015 ( spiegel.de [accessed August 22, 2019]).
- ↑ "The problem with toys-to-life is not satiety, but boredom". In: game. Retrieved August 22, 2019 .
- ↑ Toys to Life - NRW game guide. Retrieved August 22, 2019 .