Caught in a Web (Wizard #53 - January 1996)

This post isn't related to toys or video games but sometimes I do lean into comic book content a bit. I was looking for something on Spider-Man to tie into the new Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man animated series that debuts today on Disney+. Since I didn't have time to browse all of my video game magazines in search of Spidey game reviews, I turned to Wizard magazine in hopes of finding something related to the web-slinger's 1994 animated series. What I came across was an article covering the super hero's doomed James Cameron film, the then upcoming season three of the aforementioned 1990's cartoon, and brief discussions of past live-action shows in the U.S. and Japan. The article also mentions a Venom film in the works that never happened, at least not in the '90s. Although Spider-Man appears in a number of my blog posts, the only previous post dedicated to the web-head is for the Hot Wheels: Spider-Man's Web of Terror set. There is also a ToyFare article post that features Spider-Man but it's primarily about Toy Biz's marketing.

Year 8: July Update

I've been very slow to get any videos done this year and have been falling behind on blog posts too. Sorry! I rarely talk about my personal life, aside from the past in relation to toys and video games, but that's what will likely keep me from updating very often going forward. There isn't much to say other than I lost my long-time job earlier this year and am starting something new this month that will keep me busy. When I've had free time of late, I've been playing Marvel's Midnight Suns from 2K and Firaxis which was a free game on the Epic Game Store earlier this summer. Although it has tactical combat, it's not like Firaxis' XCOM games that I'm a big fan of. Players control a team of three in battle, drawing and using cards to perform most actions. Outside of battle players control an original character, interact with the Marvel heroes to gain friendship, edit card decks, explore their home and its grounds, and select poolside, casual, and battle outfits.

As I sit here after viewing the numerous digital press events from the past two months, I can't recall anything that stood out. Let's see, the Nintendo Direct announced Mario & Luigi: Brothership, Super Mario Party Jamboree, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, and Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. There are plenty of sequels and updates in development, like Sid Meier's Civilization VII, Gears of War: E-Day, and Age of Mythology: Retold. Unfortunately, my PC is on the old side and I don't have a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X so I probably won't be able to play the games I'd like to try later this year, such as Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Dragon Age: The Veilguard, Star Wars Outlaws, and Assassin's Creed Shadows.

                                        Mario & Luigi: Brothership                                      TMNT: Mutants Unleashed

Rumors appeared online in May about a Total War Star Wars game but there still hasn't been an official announcement. Also, two months ago Outright Games and Mattel unveiled a multi-year deal. The family-friendly game publisher will be releasing at least three titles based on Mattel properties this year: Matchbox Driving Adventures, Monster High: Skulltimate Secrets, and Barbie Project Friendship. Other upcoming games from Outright include Transformers: Galactic Trials, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants Unleashed, and Nick Jr. Party Adventure.

In an unexpected move, Hasbro and Mattel teamed up to create a Hot Wheels Optimus Prime, and it does transform, of course. Optimus is exclusive to Mattel Creations and is currently sold out; I'm not sure if that's final or if more are in production. LEGO always has a lot of cool sets on the way but I'll only highlight a few: Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 from The Legend of Zelda series, the Transformers' Bumblebee, and Star Wars TIE Fighter & X-Wing Mash-up. With the Star Wars set you can create standard TIE Fighter and X-Wing ships or swap the wings between the two iconic starfighters.

Something unexpected occurred in video games as well. Back on May 23rd, Atari announced that it had acquired the Intellivision brand. It now owns the Intellivision name and classic game catalog, not the company Intellivision Entertainment (renamed Amico Entertainment) or its long-in-development console, the Amico which I'd thought dead on more than one occasion. The sale provides Amico Entertainment some much needed financial help but, surprisingly, it isn't ready to give up on the console yet. While it can still release games based on Intellivision properties for Amico, those will be under license from Atari. 

One final note before I sign off. Author Lewis Packwood contacted myself two years ago to ask for permission to use a Captain Power photo from the blog in his then upcoming book. I agreed and while I've not read his book, nor am I benefitting from its sales in any way, I thought it was worth mentioning as the subject matter will likely interest Vault 1541 readers. The title is Curious Video Game Machines: A Compendium of Rare and Unusual Consoles, Computers and Coin-Ops. There is a nearly 40-minute video about it on YouTube with store links in the description.

Thanks for visiting,

Jonathan

Marvel Comics Super-Heroes Card Game

Milton Bradley released a few Marvel Comics-branded games during the '70s, such as The Incredible Hulk board game and this card game. Released in 1978, the Marvel Comics Super-Heroes Card Game features 19 hero cards and one villain, Doctor Doom. It's a simple matching game where players are dealt cards and then pick a new card each turn from the player on their right. The player to get rid of all their cards first wins but play continues until the last player is stuck with the Doom card and finishes in last place. Unfortunately, the box has remnants of a sticker and I don't have the instructions card but I do have all of the characters cards so you can enjoy the artwork. 

Year 5: August Update

As I mentioned last update, I was waiting for a Sega adapter for the Commodore 64 which I did receive shortly after that post and used in The Games: Summer Edition recording. Unfortunately, the adapter does not work with Master System controllers or the rapid fire unit, only Genesis controllers which I hadn't realized when I ordered it. I suppose it doesn't matter too much but I do like using rapid fire for some games. Unfortunately, the Intellivision Amico has suffered yet another delay though it is still expected this year. Intellivision Entertainment also posted a video on YouTube at the end of July that showed games being packaged. While some physical games were expected and I thought on a limited basis, it appears that quite a few titles are getting the physical treatment.

Amico Games

As I write this, Europe's equivalent to E3, Gamescom, is wrapping up its digital show today. Much of the news is for the types of games I don't cover on the blog aside from these brief mentions with no images or links for M-rated titles. Despite the console shortages, Microsoft unveiled a Halo-themed Xbox Series X and a release date for Halo Infinite of December 8th. Sony put a date of February 18, 2022 on Horizon Forbidden West and officially confirmed the game is coming to PlayStation 4 in addition to PlayStation 5. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, which I have discussed a few times in these updates, still doesn't have a set date though Warner Bros. is now saying to expect it in spring 2022. As far as new games, Deep Silver and Volition showed off a Saints Row reboot and 2K announced a Marvel game titled Midnight Suns that is being developed by Firaxis Games and is planned to release next March for Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch, and PC.

Midnight Suns

I love Firaxis' XCOM games and Midnight Suns has tactical combat but it's more role-playing oriented than strategy from what I understand though no gameplay was shown. The game is based on the Midnight Sons (not suns) comic book which revolves around supernatural/magic types of characters (Doctor Strange, Morbius, Ghost Rider, etc.) and plots. However, the game will include some of Marvel's heavy hitters like Iron Man, Captain America, and Wolverine. Another new game announcement is Park Beyond from publisher Bandai Namco Entertainment and developer Limbic Entertainment (Tropico 6). This one is a theme park simulator not unlike Frontier Developments' Planet Coaster and will be available on PC, Xbox Series X, and PlayStation 5 in 2022.

Park Beyond

Something else I talk about here from time-to-time is baseball, mostly in relation to video games though I did make a trading card video as well. I read some news earlier this month that will hurt the Topps company quite a bit as MLB will not be signing a new contract with Topps when the current one expires which is at the end of 2022 with the player's association and 2025 with MLB itself (meaning it can use team logos for a few more years but not player images). Topps has been making baseball cards for 70 years and the new licensing partner isn't even an experienced rival like Upper Deck. Instead, the license is going to Fanatics which has also signed a deal with the NFL player's association that will begin after Panini's contract expires in 2026.

Thanks for visiting,
Jonathan

Photoshoot: Mego Hulk vs. Mego Superman

I set up a mini battle between Mego die-cast action figures of Marvel Comics' The Incredible Hulk and D.C. Comics' Superman. Some of the photos came out good but it was tough to get them in good action poses without the scale looking too far off or just getting them to balance well enough. Hulk is 5.25" while Superman is 5.5" and he also has a broken thumb on his right hand.

You may recognize the background from my Colorforms post and video as I'm using The Amazing Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk Colorforms Play Set along with a couple LEGO street panels for the base. More information on the Mego figures can be found at the Mego Museum website. The colors vary between photos as I chose different settings when editing them.

Superman Arrives

Superman knocks Hulk down who then punches the wall in anger.

Superman should not have landed... Hulk smashes him into the wall! 

(I like the first photo but you can see the table as the background slid backwards.) 

Hulk puts Superman through the wall!

Superman takes the offensive!

An accidental image that kind of makes it look like they are moving...or it's just a terrible photo.

Hulk wins...

...or maybe Superman wins? Most likely the Man of Steel does prevail.

Time for our heroes to shake hands!

[YouTube] Colorforms

https://youtu.be/dGTGypYd7-c

Colorforms were created in 1951 by Harry and Patricia Kislevitz of New York. If you're unfamiliar with Colorforms, they are a toy where users build a scene with plastic pieces that stick to a plastic-coated cardboard background. In 1957 the first set to feature a licensed character was released; that was Popeye and many, many more followed. Colorforms boxes are usually around 8" x 12" while there are some larger deluxe sets and other variations. The Colorforms brand has changed hands a few times and is currently owned by 9 Story Media Group.

All the images below basically show everything you can see in the video so if you just want to see the sets you can skip the video. Also, there are a couple repeats as I've shown The A-Team and Batman Colorforms previously though I did take a new photo of each. One thing I forgot to mention in the video was Presto Magix. Although it is best known for its products where you use a pencil to permanently attach pieces to a scene, it made a similar product to compete with Colorforms. Presto Magix had some great licenses too, like Star Wars and Transformers.

Booklets

Dress-Up & Traditional Sets

Stand-Up Play Set

I do have a few unopened sets from the '90s as well that fit into some of my collections. Ren & Stimpy is a bit odd for myself to own since I've not seen much of the show but I did read a few issues of the comic book. The others are comic book related as I did collect Batman and X-Men things during that decade.