amiibo
© 2014 Nintendo of America
4/23/2015 update: Just received two of the new amiibo characters released in March in the Super Mario series - Bowser and Toad. 1/15/2015 update: Just received three of the new amiibo characters released in December - Zelda, Little Mac and Diddy Kong. First there were the Skylander collectibles; then Disney Infinty. Now, Nintendo has joined the game, with a set of 12 plastic characters with embedded RFID sensors, called "amiibo" figures. Each is a popular character from a Nintendo game that you can touch to your Wii U GamePad controller to interact with compatible games. So no portal is required. Different games will work with amiibo figures in different ways, and a single amiibo figure may unlock features in multiple amiibo-compatible games. In Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, you can tap your amiibo to register it to your Mii and save your game data. As you play, your amiibo can evolve. Some games, like Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, will save data to the amiibo, while other games, like Mario Kart 8 and Hyrule Warriors, will give you bonus content for tapping an amiibo to the GamePad. There’s no extra hardware needed. The first round of amiibo launched on Nov. 21. There were 12 characters: Mario, Peach, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Link, Fox, Samus, Wii Fit Trainer, Villager, Pikachu, Kirby and Marth. Zelda, Luigi, Diddy Kong, Little Mac, Pit and Captain Falcon amiibo will be released in December, with additional figures launching throughout 2015. Individual amiibo can be used across multiple compatible games, a first for the toys-to-life category. For example, players who own a Link amiibo can use it as a fighting partner in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, to get a fun racing suit for their Mii characters in Mario Kart 8 and to access a special weapon in Hyrule Warriors. For more information about amiibo compatibility, visit http://www.amiibo.com.
$14, Wii U
Teaches: logic, memory, Nintendo characters