Wonder 'bots

Perhaps it is because there's nothing equivalent in the real world. Robots can take any shape, don't get sick and typically possess superhuman strength. Why wouldn't kids marvel at them?

These mechanical wonders are often the source of "unlimited creativity and imagination," says Colleen Nuskey. One of Saturday morning television's highly rated shows, Cubix , was born at 4Kids Entertainment, where Nuskey serves as director of marketing. In a futuristic city, robots are not Frankensteinian misfits, but integral to everyday life. As such, says Nuskey, there is an emotional connection between the human characters and their mechanical counterparts.

And just as there is human diversity, there is robot diversity as well.

Comedy Central took a different tack with its robotic entertainment. Battlebots, says Tiger's Senior Vice President of Marketing Marc Rosenberg, "define what kids want: build it and bash it." On TV, robots fight to the death; Tiger's toys knock off easily reattachable pieces from their opponents. In this sense, Trendmasters' Vice President of Boys' Toys, Brian Weinstock, sees robots as "three-dimensional realizations of the video game aesthetic." The company's Rumble Robots are boosted by collectible Power Cards prior to battle. The chief difference is the look of the line. "Others are industrialized, galvanized, metallic door stops," Weinstock says, "Rumble Robots have more personality."

Bandai, meanwhile, hopes the added value of including a transforming feature to its Deluxe Quantasaurus Rex Megazord from Power Rangers: Time Force will separate it from the pack. "It's not just a robot," says Director of Marketing Colleen Sherfey, "it's something more."

Some robots are simpler than their electronic kin. Schylling and Rocket USA offer metallic, wind-up 'bots with nostalgic faces such as Gort and Robbie the Robot or the modern equivalent such as Bender (from Futurama) and Hasbro's Transformers.

Robots' appeal may be as simple as what Sid Kaufman calls the " 'What if' element." Kaufman, Nelvana's executive vice president of worldwide merchandising, has a hit on his hands with Medabot, a Japanese import. Essentially a robot-oriented version of Pokémon, the show, about a boy and his robot who compete in a world in which everyone has a 'bot, fits squarely in the 6- to 11-year-old boys market. Hasbro figures hit shelves in January.

The sweet spot for these products tends to fall in the 6-to-11 or 8-to-12 age ranges. And the end users are usually male, up to 70 or 80 percent of total consumers say manufacturers.

There is, however, some dissent.

MGA CEO Isaac Larian sees the girls market as an opportunity, not an obstacle. "There's room to grow the girl side," he says, stressing the necessity of building in a female play pattern into robots. MGA's soft robots such as Bow Wow Buddies (plush dogs with voice recognition technology) and Palm Puppies (interactive plush dogs) have crossed the gender line because they give girls "something to nurture and cuddle." Tiger bridged a similar gender gap with handheld games. The prevailing sentiment, says Tiger's Rosenberg, was that girls weren't interested. "Then we did a Little Mermaid handheld and found the category was really 50/50," he adds. With robots, "Nobody's found the real girl application yet."

Bob DelPrincipe, Manley Toy Quest's vice president of research and development, says the idea that robots are boys' toys is a misnomer. "We tracked boys and girls on our Web site, and it came out about 50/50." All children like pets (Manley has the robotic kind in spades). Girls, he adds, migrate to nurturing play patterns. The company's Dinkie 'bots were developed towards this end. "We asked, 'What's the next generation of dolls? Instead of a fashion doll, can we create a doll that responds back to us?'" DelPrincipe says. "We could've put it into a Diva Star format," he adds, "but we wanted to break the mold."

If retailers are right that this will be the year for classic toys, manufacturers such as Schylling and Rocket USA may find themselves ahead of the pack. "It's an interesting season for companies like us. Now everybody wants to create that 1950s feel for the kids," says Rocket USA President Michael Perry. The under-$10 market is very healthy at the moment, he adds, given the current economy. Jakks Pacific's Director of Marketing, Stacey Pauly, agrees. "There're other robots out there—and they're great—but not everybody has that money to spend." The top-end item in the Malibu, Calif.-based company's BattleBots line, Deluxe Battle Box, is under $40.

Rosenberg adds family-oriented products will be successful. Tiger, he says, is positioning i-Cybie as a family pet. Tiger isn't alone. "Suppose you can't have a real frog for whatever reason," posits Manley's DelPrincipe. "But you can have a robot frog."

Some manufacturers hope a child's nagging will sway parents on the more expensive items. "Not everyone can afford a $100 toy," says MGA head Isaac Larian, "but, if you have a good toy, the one's who can buy it will."

Ultimately, DelPrincipe says, parents will make value-based choices. "They look for value when they buy food and gas. Why should it be any different with toys?"

After this holiday season, technology will continue its steady progress. "There's no limit," predicts DelPrincipe.

Capabilities for electronic robots in the future, says Rosenberg, are likely to include the ability to handle stairs, reaction to heat, better sound recognition and more realistic skins (as opposed to the metallic plastics of many current SKUs). To be sure, technology is becoming less expensive every year, but DelPrincipe forecasts a not-too-distant future when "we won't call them robots. They'll be entities; you'll call it 'Sam.'"