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As the site’s resident toy expert — I’m the “Toy Store” writer for strategy and gifts for all ages — I get an early look at the latest and greatest new toys, often before they hit store shelves. There are dozens of new releases every month, so with the holiday season right around the corner, I’ll be releasing a gaming-focused version of Don’t Dillydally. Here are the launches I’m particularly excited about right now, including a Star Wars marble ride, chapter books for the Toniebox audio player, and a spooky new version of Exploding Kittens.
The Moana sequel will be released over Thanksgiving, and there are plenty of action figure dolls, dress-up toys, and playsets on the way — including an American Girl Moana doll available now for pre-sale. Of everything currently ready to ship, I’m most excited for the Mattel Moana doll singing a snippet of the new song “We’re Back”; This LEGO set comes with everything you need to build Moana’s raft and a transforming island holding the heart of Te Fiti; And the Squishmallow version of Heihei’s chicken boyfriend.
This new addition to the Exploding Kittens universe features a brand new set of cards, including zombie kitten cards that allow previously exploded players to respawn. But even dead players can continue playing to torture living players from the grave.
Gravitrax, the maker of complex marbles we’ve recommended for years, has released its first-ever licensed game. The action set, modeled after the Battle of Yavin from Star Wars, features a Death Star-shaped base plate; Marble printed with the faces of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Darth Vader; and X-Wing Fighter and TIE Fighter characters to incorporate into the track.
The new Wondery line of STEM toys is inspired by the popular children’s podcast Wow in the World and created by strategy-approved toy brand Thames and Kosmos. Each group explores different scientific concepts such as phosphorescence, geology, and physics. In the box you’ll find printed instructions and access to step-by-step audio guides recorded by podcast hosts Guy Raz and Mindy Thomas.
The third and final Bratz x Mean Girls collaborative dolls — a two-pack of Gretchen and Karen — will launch this week on Halloween at 11 a.m. ET. Each figure in the set comes packaged in a Burn Book-style box with their daytime outfits and exciting Halloween costumes from the movie. Compared to most of the toys I write about, the Y2K nostalgia dolls are geared more toward adult collectors than actual kids. And while I’m not a doll collector, if I were to buy any of the Mean Girls Bratz dolls, it would be this pair, as they are the comedic backbone of the original film. Like Regina and Cady before them, they are expected to sell out within minutes.
And for even more nostalgia, Little Tikes have just released a set of Fraggle Rock storybooks for use with the very popular Story Dream Machine – a retro-looking projector and audio player. My almost 2 year old loves his Story Dream Machine, and it was a nice step toward allowing him to watch TV that doesn’t actually count as screen time. I love the weirdness of the Fraggle Rock characters and I can still sing most of the theme song, so this is big news for me.
Finally, a big launch for the Toniebox audio player aimed at older kids: Chapters from the books include Captain Underpants, Ramona Quimby, Big Nate, the Questioneers, aka Rosie Revere, Ada Twist and their crew. Each set includes four complete chapter books in the form of real books rather than game forms.
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