And the first game getting sick new action figures is…wait for it…Switchblade. 

So, here is the situation happening here. A brand new company called ‘Toyetico’ has purchased the rights to Piko Interactive (old video game developer) and the IPs to the games under that umbrella. Through this Kickstarter and crowdfunding effort, Toyetico will be creating toys from the Piko Interactive licenses.

And this, my friends, is brilliant. 

Creating merchandise is exactly what you’re supposed to do when you’ve won the rights to a classic IP. I see so many people scratching their heads after they buy the rights to a classic IP (Tower Records and KayBee Toys, looking at you), trying to figure out how to build brand awareness and reopen stores.

How about you go after the people who know the IP and give them “I remember that!” merchandise to sell?

Toyetico is nailing it by taking the brands under the Piko Interactive and off the bat, they’re creating action figures. The 80s was a funny time in terms of video game merchandise, and this is the perfect opportunity to remedy that. We got together with our buddies over at Piko Interactive, and today, Toy Wizards is super excited to show you what they’re doing over there. If you loved Switchblade back in the day, consider supporting this Kickstarter that will end June 27th, 2019!

You can also follow Toyetico on Facebook.

About The Project (In Toyetico’s Own Words):

Switchblade was a game originally developed by Core Design (Tomb Raider, Rick Dangerous, Wolfchild, etc), and published by Gremlin Interactive (Top Gear, Body Harvest, Zool). With this Kickstarter, we will launch a new brand called “Toyetico” that will be the pin point for toy merchandise based on video games Piko Interactive has the rights to.

Switchblade Game Backstory

On the cyber world of Thraxx, Havok has returned. After 10.000 years of peace, the Fireblade, source of power for the ancient Bladeknights, has shattered.The night burned red, and the people of the Undercity fell beneath the onslaught of Havok’s nightmare creations. Helpless, the Bladeknights died alongside their people. Only one of their order survived.You play Hiro, the last of the Bladeknights, a hi-tech warrior armed with stealth, cunning and a powerful re-programmable cyber-arm. You must enter the Undercity and reassemble the sixteen fragments of the shattered Fireblade. Only then will you be able to take on Havok and average the death of your people.

Switchblade Characters and Enemies (Original Concept art from 1989)

Producing Brand

Toyetico will be a subsidiary that will concentrate producing fun and exciting toys based on video game properties owned by Piko Interactive.

State of the Project

Currently we have already designed and produced a prototype of the action figure. We just need to make the order to open a tooling and start the production run. It would take 3-5 months to finish the tooling, produce the figures, and get them to our door. We need to produce at least 1000 units of the same figure as the factory has placed that minimum quantity. This is why we have come to Kickstarter. At this time, we only need 8,000 USD to get the mold ready and finish the first production run.

One of the main reasons why we are doing this is because we believe there is a great lack of indie toy makers. Indie video games is now a great part of the video game industry, but toys has stayed behind in terms of indie productions. We hope this project is appealing enough to collectors and action figure enthusiasts as our selves, to get it funded and kickstart a long line of indie action figures based on beloved retro video game characters.

How to Make an Action Figure

The process to develop an action figure is quite straight forward: We design the character’s action figure in 2D drawing> Reproduce the 2D Drawing into a 3D Render> Sculpture produces prototype based on 3D Render (we are here)> Use approved prototype to produce final mold > Mold is ready for production and production starts!

We have also prepared other figures based on Switchblade’s characters. These are Hiro’s Enemies that you encounter during the game. Here is a 2D design of ManSnake/Cybersnake.

For this particular figure, we have picked a body style that resembles the Marvel action figures of the 80s and 90s. There are 3 popular action figure lines that have impacted our lives through our childhood memories. They are Toybiz’s Marvel figures ,Playmates’ Ninja Turtles, and Hasbro’s 3.75″ GI. Joe. We will base our line’s designs on these body types and figure styles.

Extra Goodies and Stretch Goals

We have also developed retro video game version of Switchblade, based on the Amiga port. These will be available as rewards for those that want the whole old school toys experience.

      Switchblade Atari Jaguar                                                           Switchblade Sega Genesis

Stretch Goals

• If we reach 25,000 we will produce ManSnake’s figure
• If we reach 45,000 we will produce Cresthed’s Figure
• If we reach 63,000 we will produce Reptilon’s Figure
• If we reach 80,000 we will produce Flamehog’s Figure
• If we reach 100,000 we will produce an unreleased enemy figure (picked by the backers as there are a few).
• If we reach 140,000 we will produce a Tiger electronic’s style handheld for the Switchblade Video Game.

If Stretch Goals are met, new items produced will be available separately. However backers who pick rewards that include multiple copies of figures will be able to pick figures from the rewards met.

Risks and challenges

There are no risks in regards of the video games rewards as those have been already finished 100%. However since it is our first time doing action figures, the only risk we foresee would be delays due to this being our very first action figure line. If funded, this project will deliver no matter what.

 

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