Ninjago Spinners from Lego
Old-fashioned Lego bricks just aren’t exciting enough for today’s kids, which is why the successful toy company is always coming up with new ways to make their products more fun for 21st century children. Their latest assault on the lucrative toy market is the “Ninjago Spinners”, Lego characters that can actually fight each other with Lego weapons. Children control one member of the two teams, either the Ninjas or the evil Skeleton Army, in a bid to become a master in the art of Spinjitzu.
If that all sounds like nonsense to adults, to kids it is the latest playground obsession. As well as the game and the figures themselves, players can also collect character cards and weapons to help them become better players.
The game starts when two players from the opposing sides place their characters on the Ninjago Spinner and choose a weapon for them to fight with. The Spinner, as the name suggests, spins the two pieces towards each other and the winner is the last man standing.
Whoever wins each round doesn’t just get the glory, though; they also get to take their opponents character and weapon to add to their own army. Although the rules of Ninjago Spinners are very clear in stating that once a contest has been finished, all pieces should be handed back to their original owner!
Should both pieces fall off their Spinner at the same time, the game is a tie and both players can try again. On the other hand if both survive the initial spin, both players simply try again with their original pieces.
Each contest lasts for a previously agreed number of rounds, or when one contestant has managed to take all their opponents’ figures and weapons. The battle cards that come with each character can add more detail to the contest, although at the beginning younger children may want to just concentrate on operating the Ninjago Spinner itself, before making the game more complex.
