darkSpyro

i see people calling the skylanders figurines for toys, i think this is wrong. the skylanders are figurine memory cards and not something that you give to your child to take outside and play with in the sandbox. if the figurines have had movable parts and could be plugged of the memory chip that is attached to them, i could agree it was a some sort of a toy, but not as it is.

this.

I apologize for the post.

I do see where you are coming from, wanting to call them figurines to further their legitimacy. However, I will had to disagree with you about this. Arguing about what we are going to call them is really just arguing semantics but I guess it effects how you and others perceive the game.

As a 24 year old (it's actually my birthday today) I find that calling them a figurine and getting mad at those that call them toys feels like you are insecure about what the game is. Of course you personally may be completely secure with it but the 'figurine not toys' argument just appears that you don't want to admit what audience this was originally aimed at.

I personally feel that all video games are just complex forms of entertainment. Complex toys. This does not mean that video games are not an amazing and immersive experience, but we must not forget their purpose.

Activision themselves call them toys. I call them toys because that is what the people that produce the game call them, and I have no problem accepting this as a marketed kids game. I do believe it is much more than just for kids though so if you want to call them figurines, go right ahead.

If you want to talk about what aisle in a store skylanders are in they are actually in the video game section. They are usually listed as a video game on website and merchandise listings. This makes them technically complex video game peripherals. To kids they are toys though. To adults they will probably be figurines that you display. So I believe both are correct and calling toys has no less merit than calling them a video game peripheral or figurine.

i am not insecure about what the game is, i just think it is a figurine and not a toy. i also see it a bit wrong of activision to advertise it only at kids because they alienate older gamers/parents from their product. in this age of gaming, games are for all to enjoy.

...and by the way happy birthday

My kids play with them out side of the game, but I draw the line at the bathtub. Which is where my kids said the water element ones belong.

They're supposed to be look like toys that can be brought to life if they're placed on the Portal of Power. They said that the Skylanders were turned into toys, so they're toys, but has memory card-like qualities.

Thanks Kappa

Yeah I really don't mean to sound harsh about it and don't think that you really are insecure about it. I'm just saying that if the product is advertised as toys then I wouldn't be surprised if people viewed them as such. I also think that viewing them as toys make them no less valid than viewing them as figurines.

they are statues, thus figurines. they are easly breakable, and they have a memorychip. i wouldnt call them ''toys'' at all.

To children, they're toys. To adults, they're figurines and memory cards.

true. then again kids see everything as a toyl

Quote: Aura24

To children, they're toys. To adults, they're figurines and memory cards.

This.

I see them as collectibles and I've even got a display case to put them in.

Wait, they're not toys?!?

I'm must return all of my Skylanders to the store based on this observation.

I do prefer calling them figurines, but they were called "toys" because as a game meant for kids, the word toys sounds cooler than figurines to the kids.

They are glorified flash drives. Live with it.

THEY'RE NOT TOYS

THEY'RE INTERACTION FIGURES

...had to.

I just like to call them figurines. Depends on your preference.

Quote: IsisStormDragon

THEY'RE NOT TOYS

THEY'RE INTERACTION FIGURES

...had to.

I just like to call them figurines. Depends on your preference.

Thats what i was going to say!

Wow, I actually beat someone to it for a change? O__o

I don't see what is wrong with "toy"... In a way video games themselves are toys...

Well, yeah. A toy is, by definition, an object with which you play, and I'm certain the majority of the buyers do play with the Skylanders...

But, of course, they're also figurines. I don't see why some of you think they can't be both...

It doesn't need to move/do anything to be classified as a toy. Rubber animals, balls, blocks, etc.
They've been calling them "interaction figures" quite a bit, but the broadest term would still be "toy."

But then again, if action figures count as toys to children, but moving figures to us, then shouldn't Skylanders be the same thing?

It can be settled that Skylanders are technically 'toys.' Hey, they're multi-purpose items They count as video game figurines to us, but toys to children to play with when they're not playing the video game. I mean, if I was a kid, I would be playing make-believe with them. So they do, to a point, count as toys

I use both terms.

Technically, kids can still play with them without damaging the chip inside, and even Acti refer to them as toys most of the time.

I see it as a toy...

I HAVE NO SHAME.

I'm an adult and they're toys to me. A figure (or figurine) is the sort of thing I pay $70 for that lives on my mantel and is usually made of pewter or glass. If it's made of plastic and meant to be played with (either in or out of a game), it's a toy.

But, just so we're clear, here's what the dictionary says:

toy
noun
1. an object, often a small representation of something familiar, as an animal or person, for children or others to play with; plaything.

figurine
noun
a small ornamental figure of pottery, metal, plastic, etc.; statuette.

Since the Skylanders toys are playthings and not just for ornamentation, the dictionary says they're toys.

Quote: Razz

A figure (or figurine) is the sort of thing I pay $70 for that lives on my mantel

I can't bring myself to admit that they are toys so I say figurine; after all, I am playing a computer game and not really with them as they merely sit temporarily on my tiny plastic mantel (otherwise known as the Portal of Power).

Everyone here is wrong.

The skylanders are obviously dolls.

Wait, I was wrong. According to Activision they're "interaction figures". Which is a fancy way to say "toy".

Kinda sounds like the old debate...GI JOE is an "Action Figure" not a "Doll

None of these.

They are simply their own category, which could be described as a mix of toy (playing with it), figurine (collectible, without PofP just to display), doll (same way as Sims and TF2 are in virtual, they are designed as customizable, and with hats, no less, just SL are part physical), and Flash Drive (at which it all saves). This also explains their price, as there's no, direct concurrence.

But Razz's toy theory is the closest, as it's centered around toy aspect.

Quote: riverhippo

Everyone here is wrong.

The skylanders are obviously dolls.

nah man they're plushies.