Age appropriateness TF Animated Toys

Discussion in 'Transformers Toy Discussion' started by dgoladay, Jul 10, 2008.

  1. dgoladay

    dgoladay Member

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    My son is almost 4, and loves TF animated. I was a huge fan of G1 as a child, so this is a special time for us to enjoy together. For his birthday, I already have Deluxe Prime, Bumblebee and Prowl put away. They said 5+, but he is really good at taking care of his toys (good enough that I trust him to play with my G1 bumblebee once in a while), but I have read on some of the toy sites where reviewers have said they should be for 7, 8 year olds at a minimum. I do not want to give him something that he will get frustrated with. To folks that have them, are they difficult to transform, or easy to break? Again, he is fairly smart for his age, and he is careful...probably handling his toys at a 5 year old level. Thanks for your comments.
     
  2. Paladin

    Paladin Have Zord, Will Travel

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    Those 3 are probably all right for a 4-year old. Biggest concern I could think of might be the small parts on Prowl & Prime.


    You might also consider the Activators subline.
     
  3. Gingerchris

    Gingerchris Telly-headed Tyrant

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    I had intended to give my five-year-old niece a deluxe Animated Bumblebee, but after buying one for myself to check it out I feel it would be too frustrating for her and would probably end up accidentally broken.
    I'll be going the Activators route instead for her I think.
     
  4. Gouka

    Gouka Well-Known Member

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    Prowl has some very small pieces so I wouldn't risk it with him. Prime is ok, and the only problem with bumblebee is the Transformation and the back of the legs which can pop off easily.
     
  5. Draven

    Draven Banned

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    I'd say get him a couple of Activators and see how he gets on with them; if he does okay with them, get him onto the proper Deluxes. You could even make it like he's "graduated" up to the main line; kind of like a reward for looking after his toys and not breaking them. It'd make him feel good about himself, and instill in him to look after the stuff that might one day help put HIS kids through college ;) 
     
  6. ninety

    ninety NERDS!!

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    I passed on Prime, haven't opened my Bee yet (I've had him about 3 weeks now!), and I LOVE Prowl. By the sound of it, your son should be OK with Prowl, but bear in mind that his waist is very thin and could easily be broken. His wheel stars are pretty small, and when extended could get stuck in a throat very easily, also his lightbar pieces are small and detachable.

    After typing the above, I've just had a play with him again, and thinking about it, I don't know any 4 y.o.'s that I'd give him to.

    I'd suggest maybe opening Prowl and checking him out yourself, you could always pose him next to your son's bed for his b/day morning as a surprise gift (he is SOOOOOOOOO poseable).

    As has been suggested, there's always Activators till he gains another couple of years.
     
  7. Rodr-Evil

    Rodr-Evil Anubicron TFW2005 Supporter

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    4 or 5 years old is too young for tf's imo.
     
  8. Ashstar

    Ashstar Liberator of Toys

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    QFT. If I had any proper TFs at that age someone would've gotten hurt, be it myself, the toys or someone else.
     
  9. EvaUnit13

    EvaUnit13 REBUILD

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    I remember when I still lived in the Philippines and my dad was working in the US, he sent me this set of transforming Power Rangers when I was 4. I never got injured(I would probably remember that) and the only bad thing that happened was that there was this piece off of the green ranger that kept coming off and I would lose it and find it a few days later. I would say that he's good to play with them but keep some parts that he might lose, swallow, or hurt himself with like Prowl's shurikens and BB's thrusters
     
  10. Ops_was_a_truck

    Ops_was_a_truck JOOOLIE ANDREWWWWWS!!!!!!

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    Either the bump 'n' go toys or the Fast Action Battlers from the movie line or the Activators from the Animated line - I'd say those are good for first-time TF toys.
     
  11. Sol Fury

    Sol Fury The British Butcher Veteran

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    I think the Activators might be better for now - the Deluxes seem very complicated for the target audience. Bumblebee even threw me at first trying to figure out how he went from one mode to the other.
     
  12. Optimus Sledge

    Optimus Sledge Yar har fiddle di dee

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    Give him a go with with the Activators and see how he gets on. Probably be fine. I was playing with G1 stuff when I was 4-5, and I'm still here to tell the story.
     
  13. dgoladay

    dgoladay Member

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    Yeah, I gave him a few of the CyberSlammers for Easter or something, and he played with them for a little while. After he got a few of the McD's toys this week he gave them all to his 1 1/2 y.o. brother. He told me those were not big boys (what do I know)... I will check out the activators, but I thought they were more like the cyber slammers. I guess I'll keep the deluxe on the shelf...maybe Christmas, or maybe next birthday. I just don't want him to get frustrated with the toys. I always take away the really small pieces anyway. With the activators, I see that they have 3 out now. Plans for more? His favorite is Prowl. He also caught a glimpse of the Marvel ones while I was on the internet last night. He was pretty excited about those. I should get some stock in Hasbro...they will make a bit of money off me over the next few months. Thanks for all the responses, I really appreciate it.
     
  14. shroobmaster

    shroobmaster Well-Known Member

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    Whatever you do, just don't give him Deluxe Soundwave, for some reason I still CAN'T transform that back into vehicle mode, dunno if it's hard or mine just got real tight uhh... "inserting holes".
     
  15. Rodr-Evil

    Rodr-Evil Anubicron TFW2005 Supporter

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    My nephew is 5 years old and for the last christmas he got some movie toys.. now ALL those toys are destroyed! lol I tell you, tf's are not for little kids.
     
  16. Octavius Prime

    Octavius Prime Well-Known Member

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    What? that's when I got most of my original TFs!

    Heck, I let my 13 month old play with some of my TFs under supervision. It depends on the TF, though. Usually the larger, blockier ones with little kibble. Like CD Red Alert with the missile removed, for example. He does have a couple of Movie Cyber Slammers and all of the Animated McTFs. I'm considering getting him one of the Animate battle bumpers, too.

    I'd say that most of the Animated toys are good for 4 and 5 year olds. Again, the ones with fewer, larger parts are usually better for younger kids.
     
  17. dgoladay

    dgoladay Member

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    I went to TRU today and they had the Marvel Crossovers in stock. Only 1 Venom and Spiderman, plenty Hulk and Iron Man. TRU site says 4 and up, but the box says 5 and up (again...this stuff is killing me). They look a bit "bulkier" than some of the animated line, so I am not as worried about them for the little one. I did pick up the 3 activators and will decide later. Are there more waves planned for those?
     
  18. Kingplay

    Kingplay Banned

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    go activators
     
  19. loudstone

    loudstone Artobot

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    Check out this checklist. For Activators, Starscream, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead are the ones out right now (wait, you already got those, so you know :S). September should see Optimus Prime, Ratchet, and Lockdown. October should see Patrol Bumblebee and Thundercracker. I don't know what's planned beyond that.

    I definitely wouldn't recommend the main line for a child that young. The conversions on even the simple ones seem to have tricky parts. I don't have experience with the Marvel Crossovers (Iron Man is the only one our TRU doesn't have, and the only one I want :p ), but they look simpler... and the larger size can really help little hands, even if the difficulty is about the same.
     
  20. dgoladay

    dgoladay Member

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    What about the Transformers Animated Voyager Bulkhead. It is a little more than I wanted to spend, but Bulkhead is his favorite, and it looks fairly sturdy, especially for small hands.