Bey Blades are back. The game was popular about eight or so years ago then it drifted into the massive trash heap of trendy fads that outlived our children’s interest span. But somehow, someway Bey Blades are making a comeback.
The new Bey Blades haven’t evolved very far from their earlier counterparts. The blades are small tops powered by a zip cord. The game is played by pitting two spinning tops against one another. The last top standing is the winner.
The Bey Blades themselves range in price from about seven to fifteen dollars. There is a wide array of styles with distinctions available. Some are purely superficial, such as flashing lights or ‘battle action’ sounds. Others offer competitive advantages like a reverse spin or a rubber tip for extra balance.
The battles generally take place in a battle arena, a plastic bowl designed to contain the whirring Bey Blade as they crash and bang together. In my house, battles routinely take place on the living room floor.
Similar to Pokemon or Bakugan, Bey Blades are featured on their own TV show, which appears to be little more than an extended commercial hawking the toys. The show is awful, but the toys themselves are pretty fun. Unlike Pokemon and the hoard of similar collectable card games, Bey Blades has clear and easily understandable rules. Launch your blade and hope it knocks the other guy out of the playing area. That’s about it. In truth, once you drop the top into the battle area, there is nothing left to do but cheer it on. Because there is little to no strategy involved once the game begins the little ones can play with the older children on a level playing field.
From a parent’s perspective, I appreciate Bey Blades because a match can be completed in less than a minute. It takes longer than that to just set up the playing area for most collectable games. Bey Blades also scores over other collectable games in that it can be played with just one piece per players and requires fewer accessories.