BobO'Link

I decided that since I have 3 Traps for *some* elements I "need" 3 for them all so I went "Trap hunting" this morning. I found 8 new ones but now have *4* for some elements as I found a few really cool ones for elements I already have 3 of. Sigh... plastic crack... (a term normally used around here for HeroClix but it *does* apply somewhat to Skylanders).

dsa_shea

Love Potion Pop Fizz is starting to show up as of today. I ordered him from Best Buy this morning for 8 bucks plus tax with my Gamer's Club discount.

BobO'Link

^He's now OOS for shipping at Best Buy (he also came with free shipping) BUT is at *some* stores (mine shows available for pickup) as well as some Target stores. I ran by Target this morning and picked up a couple (one for me and one for my grandson). I almost ordered them for shipping from BB but decided I'd rather have them in hand now than wait for shipment.

The store here also had *two* of the 2014 Spring Edition Fryno on the shelves but none of the others. Hmmm... looking at the prices for Fryno at Amazon maybe I should have picked one up for my grandson just in case he wants one...

Here's a Target Inventory Checker that might prove useful. You'll need your zip and the stock #207-00-3013:

http://brickseek.com/target-inventory-checker

This morning it showed the store here to have 4 in stock. That's exactly what was on the hangers when I arrived and after my purchase shows 2 in stock. I'd love to use it for other items but getting that inventory number is difficult for stuff that's not on their web site.

I'm just a bit surprised Amazon doesn't have them listed yet. They've been pretty agressive with these "limited" variants with pre-orders before other vendors.

Goldberg74

I know I swore off Trap Team for this go 'round... but with the GCU and a $5 RZ certificate, I couldn't pass up $3 gift for my wife for Valentine's Day*.


* She plays the Skylander Lost Islands game on the iPad.

Decker

That would, without a doubt, be the last Valentines gift I ever gave my wife.

Heads up : Next week (2/8-2/14) Best Buy will be offering single Trap Team figures Buy One, Get One 50% off. That will stack with GCU.

Goldberg74

It's a gag gift to say the least.

Good to know.

wlj

i am going to try the demo for Trap Team on iPad 3. supposed to be identical to the console versions. i am hoping i don't like it as much as Infinity. I really don't need 2 of these types of games hehe. i would be poor

BobO'Link

Thanks! I was thinking of picking up the few new figures I don't yet have but can wait.

BobO'Link

In spite of having the Trap holder from the box, *and* the player's guide, *and* using a resource site for what's available, I just realized today that in several elements there are more traps than villains to trap. That means there are several with 6 villains and 6 traps but several with only 4 villains *but* 6 traps. The Light and Dark elements will have *3* traps each once it's all released but *4* villains each. Magic has only *3* villains to trap but *6* traps (when all are released). I'm back to the "I don't get the point of all the variety in traps needed" mode, especially if you don't "need" one of every trap released to be able to have all the villains ready to go. :/

With the little (actually no) need to use non-Trap Master figures to beat the game and that Kaos Traps are *still* in short supply this one *really* feels like a money grab. While I'm enjoying the game I'm not feeling the "gotta have 'em all" from the earlier games. My grandson and I discussed the "need" for the Eon's Elite figures just this morning. While they are more powerful than any other figure in the game there seems no use for them unless you have a affinity for a particular figure. Even then, the Skylanders chosen are somewhat puzzling.

fujishig

Aren't there mystery villains yet to be revealed? Or did they just cheap out on the box, because there are definitely placeholders.

BobO'Link

^Those spaces are for the Light and Dark Villains. Before you enable the Light or Dark levels they come up with the Villain name but "? Unknown Trap ?" legend when defeated. That's why they're not on the box directly - so you'll not know what element they are.

Here are the Light and Dark villains:

Dark: Eye Scream, Fisticuffs, Nightshade (Doom Raider), Tae Kwon Crow

Light: Blaster-Tron, Eye Five, Lob Goblin (Rebel), Luminous (Doom Raider)

Rebel Lob Goblin comes pre-trapped in the Gamestop exclusive Light Rocket trap. The "Doom Raiders" are the bosses you don't get until the levels are activated.

fujishig

I kind of shudder to think what kind of gimmick they feel they'll need for the next game. Like I said before, Trap Masters as characters/toys seemed like a step back from Swap Force, and invalidated the need for any of the regular skylanders (though I did buy the horse, because it was different).

dsa_shea

After comparing the Trap Masters side-by-side to the plethora of Swap Force figures we have, I have to say that I give the Trap Masters a slight edge in design, moves, and power. I still think that the SF figures and the TM figures are overpriced. They should be 12 bucks max and not 15-17 dollars apiece plus tax. I counted up our figures and we are almost to 210 total.

BobO'Link

^I agree. I'll add that the regular figures should be $8 max and traps should be no more than $4. I'd also add the expansion pack levels should be unlocked from the get-go with the "magical items" being sold separately. I must say that having the level pack figures available separately is a welcome addition and one that should have been done from the beginning.

darkdaze73

Wish I had seen this earlier in the day. After hearing about the recently released Valentine's Love Potion Pop Fizz I decided to pick one up today at Target. Guess I'll hold on to the receipt and try to pick one up during that sale at Best Buy next week.


I have a couple of questions if you guys don't mind helping me out a bit. I picked up Swap Force and Trap Team over the holidays for my daughter but I don't know the first thing about Skylanders other than it seems pretty popular. I've seen a few videos but I have no first hand experience with them. She just recently started asking about opening one of them and playing it. I was just wondering if it mattered which one we started on first.


Also, since there seems to be a shit ton of characters/traps/etc. for these games, can anyone suggest where to start as far as purchasing some of these? I picked up a few Swap Force figures when Wal-Mart had them for $5 for singles and $15 for 3 packs in late Nov./early Dec. The only Trap Team figures she has are the ones in the starter pack and the one I mentioned above. I tried to avoid the Skylanders universe like the plague since I knew what it would lead to but she started asking for it sometime late last year and I came across a killer deal on both so I said "what the hell". Of course I knew getting the games would be the cheap part, but now I am just looking to see what basic figures beyond the starter pack ones she would need to get going.

BobO'Link

What to get is mostly determined by:

Do you want to explore *every* area of the game or just beat the levels?

You can easily play the games and beat the levels with what's included in the starter packs but you'll miss lots of content. To get 100% completion of the game requires different levels of purchase for each with Swap Force being the more expensive in that regard because of the "ability" requirement to open certain gates.

Swap Force

To get 100% completion with Swap Force requires owning 1 of *every* figure released for the game. While every figure is *not* required to be able to open all the "locked" areas, that one tracks what you put on the portal towards full completion. To be able to just open "locked" areas and get 100% for each level requires fewer purchases. What that means is that even if you complete all the tasks in all the levels for 100% level completion you'll *still* not get 100% *game* completion without owning 1 of every figure released. So... the *least* expensive way is to have *one* Skylander of *each* element and *each* ability (Swap Force introduced "ability" types to open gates) *plus* at least *one* Giant (element doesn't matter but it must be a "Giant" and not a regular Giants figure). Because the ability isn't tied to a element you need a minimum of *7* more figures, a Giant, and the 2 Level Packs to see everything in the single player game. You'll need to add the 2 Battle Packs *if* you want to open all the battle arenas. Those are play areas outside the game proper and add a bit of value to the game once it's been "beaten." My grandson *loves* the Battle Arenas but I generally ignore them.

You get 3 characters with the game with 3 different Elements (Water, Fire, Life) and 2 abilities (Climb, Rocket). "Regular" characters do *not* have abilities so Swappable characters of the 8 abilities are required as well as *one* Giant. Here is *one* figure combination that'll allow you to open all the gates. These are *all* figures with the Swap ability:

Rattle Shake (Undead/Bounce)
Magna Charge (Tech/Speed)
Free Ranger (Air/Spin)
Hoot Loop (Magic/Teleport)
Stink Bomb (Life/Stealth)
Rubble Rouser (Earth/Dig)
Any Giant (makes no difference - pick the one you think is "coolest")

Here's a list of all the swapable characters with their element and ability (Paired by element):
Hoot Loop (Magic/Teleport)
Trap Shadow (Magic/Stealth)
Wash Buckler (Water/Climb) [in starter]
Freeze Blade (Water/Speed)
Rumble Rouser (Earth/Spin)
Doom Stone (Earth/Dig)
Blast Zone (Fire/Rocket) [in starter]
Fire Kraken (Fire/Jump)
Magna Charge (Tech/Speed)
Spy Rise (Tech/Climb)
Night Shift (Undead/Teleport)
Rattle Shake (Undead/Jump)
Free Ranger (Air/Spin)
Boom Jet (Air/Rocket)
Stink Bomb (Life/Stealth)
Grilla Drilla (Life/Dig)

You don't really *need* the "regular" characters but some look cool and have neat game play abilities.

There are *2* level (or "Adventure") packs for Swap Force: Tower of Time and Sheep Wreck Island. They open a additional level and come with a regular character and a couple of "magical" items. The magical items do different things in a level. Unlike Elemental Gate areas you don't "see" these levels, or even know they exist, until the magical item which unlocks the level is placed on the portal. IMHO they are a bit expensive for the little additional game play but they *are* cool. The items which unlock the levels provide magical attacks in Trap Team when placed on the portal (stuff rains from the sky for a limited time to hit and damage enemies). The magical items in these also work in Trap Team in the same manner they work in Swap Force.

Then there are 2 "Battle Packs" which each unlock a Battle Arena. Those are Fiery Forge and Arkeyan Crossbow. The items which unlock the Battle Arena also provide a limited time magical attack in the game which makes them somewhat useful in battles. The time limit is level based and does *not* reset if the item is removed from the portal while in use but they can be used multiple times per level up to the time limit.

Trap Team

To fully complete this one you need a Trap Master from each element and 1 trap for each element. The regular figures are *not* needed at all as only Trap Masters can open Elemental Gates this time out. My grandson says there are some levels which have stuff only a Giant can do but I've not yet encountered this or it's not required for 100% level completion. The 1 Trap Master/Trap per element is a bit deceiving as they introduced 2 new elements this time out making for 10 elements. If you purchased the regular starter you get 1 Trap Master (Water) and 2 traps (Life, Water) so you'd need at least 9 more Trap Masters and 9 Traps to open everything and be able to trap and use all the villains.

**EDIT**
The following sentence about needing a Trapped Villain may not be true as I found while playing the Nightmare Express level expansion you *must* have a Light Trap to trap Lob Goblin, perform his "quest," and get a Hat reward for 100% level completion.

Trapping villains is *not* a requirement to get 100% completion (at least I don't think it is as I've bypassed this if I didn't want to immediately use the villain and still got all the level checks) so you can actually get by without the traps but you miss some fun parts of the game.
**END EDIT**

There are a couple of trap 3 packs that'll get you the 6 of the elemental traps needed leaving only light, dark, and Kaos traps.

Currently you have to purchase the 2 expansion packs, Sunscraper Spire and Midnight Museum, to get the Light and Dark characters. I've read that the characters from these expansions will be released as single characters in Wave 4 (supposedly sometime in mid-March) which, if true, means you could wait for these releases and avoid the expense of the full expansion. You'd also need (want?) a light and dark trap to use the light and dark villains in game play. Currently only a Light Trap is available as a separate purchase and is exclusive to Game Stop. They are in rather short supply (as are those expansion packs) but you can look them up on their site to see if they are in stock and avoid a wasted trip to the store if not.

To capture Kaos you *must* have a Kaos Trap. Those are currently rare finds. I've not seen *any* in the stores but my grandson stumbled upon a couple at BB a week or so back. If you didn't purchase a Dark Starter, which comes with the "Ultimate" Kaos Trap, you'll have a hunt on your hands or will have to be willing to support scalpers (I'd just hunt as I consider those people to be vermin and a plague on the game).

General

IMHO the "Adventure" or expansion packs are somewhat overpriced for what you get. The levels are generally uninspired and play quickly. The Trap Team ones are a bit better than those in the first two games (I've still not opened the ones for Swap Force) but still feel like they're over rather quickly.

Every character from any earlier game works in later games so you can safely purchase any figure available and use it in Trap Team. Swap Force can use anything released up to that game but *not* stuff from Trap Team. Basically, nothing is *backward* compatible (unless it's a "repose" and then it works back to the game in which the character was introduced) but everything is *forward* compatible (at least for now). While the Adventure/Level packs from the first 2 games do *not* open a new level in either Swap Force or Trap Team they *do* provide magical abilities and a attack item (the item which opens the level in the earlier game). Yeah... it can get complicated.

It makes absolutely no difference as to which one you play first. They are fully stand-alone and the story is inconsequential to game play with the story being fairly self-contained for each expansion. Based on my experience I'd say it's a toss-up as to which offers the better game play. Levels feel longer in Swap Force and, IIRC, the the Elemental gates actually open larger parts of the game. In Trap Team I've yet to encounter a Elemental gate that opened much more than a simple puzzle, at best, to get a Treasure Chest, Hat, or other item needed for 100% level completion.

I have a Wii, my grandson has a X-Box. I was rather unimpressed with Swap Force on the Wii but that's because Vicarious Visions, rather than Toys for Bob, designed that game and the way character information is presented on the screen is not done as well as the first two games - it's difficult to read - and certain sounds are not the same (the sound a character makes when health is very low) making it more of a challenge. It's not bad enough to make it unplayable but it *is* distracting. That may not hold true for other platforms but it's bad enough on the Wii that Swap Force is not my first choice when selecting a Skylanders game to play. My grandson beat the game (i.e. played all the levels and beat all the bosses but doesn't have 100% completion) and hasn't really gone back to it. I think I'm about half way through. I also have tons of characters we've not opened because we don't play that one as much. In contrast we've played both Spyro's Adventures and Giants several times since getting Swap Force and own all the characters for both games with all being opened and played with fairly regularly. We actually started a *new* game on Spiro's Adventures with a goal of not moving to the next level until the one we're playing has 100% completion. I purchased a copy of Swap Force for his X-Box but haven't given it to him yet so I have no idea if it'll look/play better on that platform.

So... even though I feel Swap Force is not quite as good as the other games in the franchise, mainly because of character information presentation on screen, it's *still* a fun game to play. You'll not go wrong no matter which one you chose.

SunMonkey

When we started, we got a lot of use out of the secondary market, specifically Second & Charles. There are a lot of used figures out there.

dsa_shea

Holy cow! You just took us to Skylands and back. This is well thought out and took quite a bit of effort, I am guessing. Good job!

wlj

i have a question, i am having issues finding the answer on google. I am not real interested in jumping head first into the Skylanders. Since I have a large collection of Infinity statues my wife said "Hell no!" to getting into Skylanders. On iOS, you can download Trap Team for free. You can play the first level with one of the skylanders. At the end of the demo it says you can buy these digital packs. However, I can't find anywhere that tells me what is included in these packs. I am thinking that pack 1 may have the digital figures in the physical starter pack. My question is, can I play the entire game with this pack or only part of the game. I know there are certain areas you have to have certain figures. Nobody here probably plays the iPad version

BobO'Link

Thanks! It's what happens when you wake up early in the morning... In re-reading it I can see places for improvement but it gets the job done.

Decker

Slacker!

darkdaze73

Sorry I am just getting back to you on this. But I want to thank you for this long and (very)informative write up on this. Considering it'll be my daughter playing it most of the time, provided I don't get hooked on it, getting 100% completion won't be of importance. But being able to open various parts of the game would be. Of the ones I picked up only one is actually Swapable(Hoot Loop). I went in blind buying the ones I got, but I thought a couple of them did look cool. At least now I know not to just go out and buy up every one of the figures I run across. At least not yet. Considering Best Buy has the Giants starter packs on clearance, I am guessing I would be just as well off picking that up for a Giant figure for starters and maybe picking up another variation down the road.

We'll probably crack open Swap Force this weekend and save Trap Team for later. I will probably take advantage of the Best Buy sale next week to knock out some of the Trap Team Elements so I'll have them when she does start to play it.

BobO'Link

Glad to help! It can get quite confusing and complicated this late in the Skylanders game for those just jumping in.

I fixed a part in Swap Force about needing a Giant for completion. It kind of read like it could be any figure from Giants (either a Giant *or* regular figure) so I reworded it so as to better indicate it had to be one of the 8 Giant figures and *not* just a regular figure from the game.

Picking up a Giants starter is a *great* and possibly inexpensive way to get that figure, but the regular starter is typically the better bargain as it comes with a additional pair of regular figures for just a few more $$. Of course you then open the door to having to purchase figures for *that* one too, assuming you purchase the starter that works on your platform. Here's your main warning: It requires a Giant from each element to be able to open all the gates. Other than 5 "Alt Deco" there were only 8 Giants created. 4 of the "Alt Deco" Giant figures have slightly different in-game statistics with 1 (Pumpkin Eye Brawl) being nothing more than a different head and paint job. Most Giants move rather slowly so it's good to have a few faster regular figures for that one to be able to get through areas quickly for the "time limit" check. Just keep in mind that regular figures have to be those introduced in either Spyro's Adventures *or* Giants. Figures from Swap Force and Trap Team will not work in Giants unless they are reposes of figures introduced in those first two games.

BobO'Link

You know... in typing all that up it occurred to me that Giants had *lots* of returning (i.e. reposes) figures which seemed to generate complaints of "nothing really new" figure wise (only 16 new figures introduced with 24 reposes and 8 Lightcore, 4 of which were Spyro's Adventure reposes). Even the game felt somewhat shorter and easier to beat. Swap Force had *fewer* returning with 32 *new* figures and 16 reposes with only 3 of the 8 Lightcore figures being reposes from the first two games. Trap Team has only *5* returning figures (not counting 8 of the minis which were somewhat difficult to obtain and *6* if you count Love Potion Pop Fizz) with 36 new figures, 52 if you count the 16 mini figures plus 55 Traps (56 if you count the "Ultimate" Kaos Trap). None of those figures include the in-game Variants, Legendary, Dark, or "Alt Deco" figures. That makes me think the next iteration of the game will not be as backward compatible and that Trap Team or Swap Force might be the new starting point for figure compatibility. If that's the case I'm not sure how I feel about that...

And *that* made me realize just how many of these things we have!

dsa_shea

My last count had us at 212 figures.