Yesterday I went up into the attic and saw boxes and boxes of stuff. Most of it probably being toys that I loved at one point or another and then put down when the next fad came along. That's the problem with having ADHD... as soon as your surge of obsession ends, you're probably obsessed with something else and that last thing gets put to the side. I feel kind of awful for leaving them in those boxes collecting dust. Maybe I'll pass them on to some kid who will play with them and be happy. Anyway, here's some toys I'd probably still play with and in some cases, still do, despite being twenty.
Pokémon Cards
Technically not a 'toy' as such, but still awesome. Probably the best and most remembered franchise of the 90s, as well as the games that went with it. What is a shame is that when I used to collect these cards (of which I always got the crap ones of, all my friends got the shiny and rare ones...) I never played the card game seriously. I played the Pokémon trading card game Game Boy Color game recently and realised how fun the card game was and how I missed out. Unfortunately all the cards have changed now and no one will play the game with me. Now that sucks. Also, when I was a kid, some scruffy dick head scammed me into trading my shiny Machamp for a Gastly.
Beyblades
Probably the second most awesome trend after Pokémon cards... and to think it all started with a Japanese guy who made a manga. That's too cool and the anime was way too good when I was younger, and still stands up today. I had tonnes of Beyblades, as well as the 'Beystadium' (aka a flimsy cheap bit of shaped plastic sold at a ridiculous price), a spring loaded launcher and a third-party stadium that was absolutely huge. When they first came out, you couldn't find them anywhere, so getting your hands on one was like finding a trophy. My personal favourite and the first one that I owned was Metal Draciel, and for some reason, the kids at school seemed to regard it as 'the best Beyblade' which I just went with... okay then. What was funny was these things got banned from our school, and the rumour was people were doing 'tree battles' (where you launch your Beyblade into the branches of a tree and the first one to land on the ground loses) and someone got screwed in the eye... ouch. Anyway, I'd still play with these anyday and I'd still have battles with my friends. Not even embarrassed.
Tech Decks
I still collect and play with these. No joke. There's nothing better than bringing a Tech Deck with you to mess around with when you're bored. If you practice flipping them enough, you eventually get quite good. I didn't buy any for a while, but then recently I bought a Half Pipe that you can turn into a ramp and stair set (I stuck an Alt:Mag sticker on it!). I love it. I think I probably own over 35 Tech Decks, of all different graphics (see above). When I was in secondary school and these toys were popular (they were perfect to mess around with behind your pencil case in lessons, as the teacher couldn't see) I had just began to start Skateboarding (as in the real sport, not minature!) myself and eventually I realised that what I loved most about the culture was the artwork of the decks themselves, particularly the brands Hook-Ups (anime!) and Flip. Collecting real decks was expensive, they are like, 50 quid a pop, so Tech Decks, which used real authentic skateboard graphics and brand names were a way of collecting these fantastic works of art on the cheap, and they were fun to mess around with too! I remember they were impossible to find for a while, because I think they went a huge brand overhaul at one point and fixed up the crappy parts (older Tech Deck parts break easily, hence why I have some decks without trucks or wheels) but I found a huge stock clearance in Woolworths and got a tonne of Tech Decks for like 50 to 90 pence. It was like finding a gold mine. Now they are everywhere and are easy to pick up, so that means it is easy to fuel my addiction.
Anime-related toys or figures (particularly old school anime)
I have a lot of anime figurines in my room. I know it says that they are 'not a toy' on the packaging, but they still look nice on display and I think they deserve a place on this list. At Expo last Saturday I found this haul of three collectable figures and a keyring (see the picture above). The guy had these tucked away in a plastic container and apparently they are hard to come across, as the series is quite old nowadays. So I had a good find there then, and don't worry, I didn't spend that much money on them. I also have a few other larger figures from anime and game series like Dead Or Alive, The Melancholy Of Haruhi Suzumiya, Gunbuster, To Heart and K-On! I would love to find some more Kanon figures, as well as Ranma 1/2, Gundam, Virtual On and Sailor Moon. I'm not really sure what the big deal is that I have with them, I guess they just look cool on display.
Lego System
I used to have a lot of Lego, I loved it! But you know what sucked about Lego? You'd have a fantastic set, lose the instructions, accidentally break the set, then not know how to put it back together. This would result in Mum putting it in a big Lego box, which I have now realised is actually like, a graveyard for broken Lego sets. Once those bits get mixed together, you have no chance of putting the sets back together. My favourite Lego series were the Star Wars, Harry Potter, Lego City and Fright Knights ones. I am particularly fond of the older 'Lego System' sets. What was better about older Lego sets is that they were simplistic and bright, and so it left more up to the imagination, nowadays everything Lego does involves a licence of some sort or just doesn't appeal to me. The blind bags are cool though. I have bought a few of those recently, my favourite figures being the punk rocker man and the punk rocker woman.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Zords
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was one of the coolest television shows when I was a kid, and it still remains awesome to this day (as in the original few series, not the crap new ones). I loved the zords and the way they all transformed together and kicked ass. I had a few of the toys, except I lost a lot of the parts for them. If I had some today, I would put them on display in my bedroom and feel proud to have grown up in the 90s.
Small Soldiers action figures
There was this movie called Small Soldiers, it was awesome, like, really awesome. There were figures you could buy. Got into the film after they stopped selling the figures. Sad for eternity. Would put them on display in my bedroom also. This list is getting too long.
So there you have it, these are some toys that I'd probably still play with, and then there are some that I still do play with. What toys would you still play with or collect? Let's all reminisce in general about the 90s too in the comments section below or by our Facebook or Twitter page.
