#84: Minecraft - Creeper

Thankfully Target restocked their Minecraft figures section, so I was able to pick up the Creeper figure. Of the various Minecraft mobs, it is the most iconic, and the figure I most wanted. It's a fairly simple design, so the figure accurately follows suit and it fairly simple itself. The head rotates and the legs are on swivels.

For accessories, the Creeper comes with a piece of gunpowder, which Creepers are known to leave behind after being killed, and a TNT block. Very appropriate.

#80: Minecraft - Overworld Zombie

I guess Minecraft has finally achieved enough mainstream success that it has a toy line that is available at more than just online outlets. Thanks to the simplistic style of graphics in the game, the zombie is a spot on representation of the game model. Articulation is fairly limited, but that is an accurate representation of how the zombies are able to move in the game. The head, shoulders, and legs are all swviel joints. In fact, I think the toy might have more articulation than in the game: a waist swivel.

Although the zombies in the game aren't armed, preferring hand to hand combat, the figure includes a sword. I think the Steve figure comes with a pickaxe, so this would be useful for arming him against the various mobs of the Minecraft world. In either case, the zombie is fully capable of holding the sword. The hand is shaped perfectly to accommodate the pixelated shape of the sword's hilt, and it fits snugly.

The zombie's other accessory is a block of iron ore.

The Minecraft figures are a bit pricy at ten dollars each, so at least they get a couple accessories each. For fans of the game, these are definitely cool to have.

#38: Minecraft - Foam Sword

Remember a while back when I got the foam pickaxe from Minecraft as a gift from my brother? Well, we are following that up with the foam sword from Minecraft I received as a gift from my brother. It's pretty basic, so what you see is what you get here. It's a pixelated sword that looks straight out of the game, and it's less than an inch thick. I wouldn't want to hit anything too hard with it, but it feels sturdy enough.

Ready to hunt down some zombies and skeletons. And spiders!

#1: Minecraft - Creeper

A while back, I pitched in on my first Kickstarter project. 2 Player Productions aimed to produce a documentary about Minecraft, which I was playing a lot of at the time. One of the possible backer rewards was this wind-up Creeper, which was too much for me to pass on. Now the movie has been released, and the backer rewards have arrived, so the Creeper is my first toy of the year. It's a basic wind-up toy, so you know how it works. Wind the key and the Creeper comes to life, ready to blow up anything in the vicinity. I don't remember the last time I had a wind-up toy, so it's a cool throwback. It may well be the toy in my collection with the most limited production run, which is kind of cool.

#145: Minecraft - Foam Pickaxe

It's all well and good to have a good idea what gifts you'll be receiving for Christmas, but when you get something that's a total surprise it's like being a kid again. This gift is from my brother and I wasn't expecting it at all. It's totally cool.

In case you aren't familiar with Minecraft, it's an independently produced game from Sweden that basically involves wandering around some mysterious landscape mining and building. And watching out for monsters, of course. This video is a nice introduction to the game, so you can go check it out. I'll wait.

Think Geek has a habit of coming up with really cool products (like the Tauntaun sleeping bag for a while back) and this is another great idea. Minecraft has a low-res look to it, and this pickaxe is an accurate reproduction of the in game item. I think I'm going to go mine for some diamonds...