Category: Cool Toys

I’ve never been able to solve a Rubik’s cube; the most I can do is “solve” one of the faces. I’m also not good at platformers, nor do I enjoy playing them (but I am really interested in playing Ratchet & Clank).

MAKE magazine fan/artist/inventor/sculptor/prototyper/modern da Vinci Ron Kissinger built an air-powered gun that turns ping pong balls into balls of fury. The gun has a magazine that can fire up to 14 shots. It takes a few seconds to load the ammo – i.e.

Give your robot a hand (or two) with these incredibly complex mechanical digits from Japan’s Crafthouse. Instead of the typical grippers you might find on a hobby robot, Crafthouse’s servo-controlled GOD HANDs give miniature robots a set of flexible digits that work much like their human masters’ appendages.

Someone over at Square Enix must be a fan of Transformers. I say this because for some reason, all Final Fantasy’s classic “summons” now have alternate vehicle modes in Final Fantasy XIII. For example, Shiva is now summoned as two ladies who combine to form some sort of lesbian motorcycle.

Cuter than a bowl of kittens covered in marshmallows and sprinkles, these little electronic playthings are enough to make me want to puke a rainbow. Each of TakaraTomy’s Micropets-i miniature desktop robo-playthings has a tiny little mind of its own.

Once upon a time, making a toy was as simple as whittling a rough shape in a piece of wood, or tying a few rags together. Today? You’ve got to have LEDs and microchips up in that business.

Anyone who’s played Street Fighter IV knows the only way to actually play the game is with an arcade-style fightstick. Trouble is, if you’re not handy with a soldering iron and have some spare wood and wires lying around, you’re left with just one option, and that’s to pony up.

We already featured Jon Jandran aka Hailrazer’s awesome Dreamcast portable mod, the dreamtrooper. He originally wanted to paint the dreamtrooper’s case black and call it the DarthCast, but he decided to stick with the original console’s white color.

Toad is probably the cutest character from the Mario ‘verse (Mario in various boots and outfits aside), but he doesn’t show up as often as many of the other characters in crafts outside of cosplay, which is why I was so thrilled to see this adorable knitted version.

Hey kids! Meet T-Rex. He may be small – 6″ x 2.5″ x 6″ – for a dinosaur, but he’s willing to protect your files. And with those big claws and teeth, not even Swiper will risk the wrath of T-Rex!

Aliens: not just for bursting out of your chest anymore. Now they’re in your LEGOs! The titular aliens from the Alien films are, in my opinion, right at the top of the scariness chart, which means I never, ever thought I’d say anything based on their design was at all cute.

Puzzlemasters – if you’ve already figured out how to solve Rubik’s cube in under 9 seconds flat, you’re probably in need of a new challenge. Well here something that should keep you busy for at least 30 seconds.

Video game crafter Big J.W. handmakes these incredibly precise miniature arcade cabinet reproductions of some of my favorite retro arcade machines of all time.

“First aid here!” And by here, I potentially mean in your house, stashed somewhere convenient for grabbing in the event of zombie apocalypse. Left 4 Dead fans are pretty industrious, but replica first aid kits is definitely on the more creative end of the crafty spectrum.

If I saw this giant creepy spider scurrying across my ceiling in the middle of the night, I’d be on the phone to Orkin faster than you can say “spiderpig”. Now you too can freak the hell out of your significant other with this oversize remote-controlled spider with glowing LED eyeballs.

A robot that turns into a microcassette player seems like an awfully dumb idea – once it transforms it’s so small that even a 10-year old can smash it to bits – but Takara & Hasbro have pulled it off.