Beyblade (toy)

Beyblade is a brand name for a line of spinning top toys originally developed and manufactured by Takara Tomy, first released in 2000. The main premise of the series that the Beyblade (sometimes shortened to "Bey" or "Blade") is customizable, with interchangeable parts.

Both the toys and their name were inspired by "Beigoma", a traditional spinning top. The concept is similar to Battling Tops, a board game developed by Ideal Toy Company in 1968. The introduction of the toy corresponded with the broadcast of the Beyblade anime television series of the same name. In 2001, the series was licensed by Korean toy maker Sonokong. In 2002, Hasbro began to sell Beyblade toys internationally (under license from, and produced by, Takara) along with a coordinated country-by-country release of localized versions of the TV series. In August 2008, Takara Tomy released Beyblade: Metal Fusion; the first incarnation of the toy in three and a half years. The series was followed up in 2015 with Beyblade: Burst.

Rules

The game is played with two players. Each player is allowed up to three Beyblades to choose from during a match. Players may use any parts available to them to make their Beyblades as long as they are not restricted (such as in tournament play), but may not switch parts once a match has started. Players may choose from any of the three Beyblades they have with them for any battle in a match. The first player to reach seven points wins.

Points are awarded to the player based on how their Beyblade knocks out the opponent's

In the event of a draw (both Beyblades are knocked out of the ring, stop spinning simultaneously, or burst at the same time), points are awarded to both players. If both players reach seven points as a result of a draw, the first player to definitively win a battle is the winner.

Types of Beyblades

Beyblade type determines play style. The three main types have a rock-paper-scissors style effectiveness, with Attack generally being weak to Defense, Defense to Stamina, and Stamina to Attack. However, due to the high variability of the custom designs, this is not a hard rule. Balance types may be strong or weak to any of the others depending on specific parts.

Stadiums

All Beyblade battles take place in a special arena called a Beystadium. Most stadiums are standard, while others have some form of gimmick such as spinning discs or small recesses that affect gameplay.

Different stadiums were released in different markets. TakaraTomy and Sonokong used Beystadiums similar to those featured in the anime, with open sections in the walls and openings on the sides to launch into, while Hasbro designed new stadiums with high walls and pockets that counted as a ring-out instead.

Common features of a Beystadium include a shallow impression called a cyclone ridge, which allows Attack type Beyblades to move around quickly without accidentally knocking themselves out, and cyclone points, which are recessed disks in the stadium floor that spin freely to add randomness to a battle.

System

The "Basic System" tops are the first generation of Beyblade tops. They are made entirely of plastic, with the exception of Weight Disks and some tips. These Beyblades consist of four basic parts:

Magnacore System (MG)

Introduced with the V-series, the "Magnacore" line of Beyblade toys featured magnetic Spin Gears and Weight Disks to attract or repel blades from each other. Additionally, certain Beystadiums had points to attach magnets, which affected the movement patterns of the Beyblades.

Engine Gear System (EG)

Engine Gear tops were introduced with the G-series, and retain the same major design of a typical Beyblade, including a Bit Piece, an Attack Ring, a Weight Disk, and a Blade Base; Engine Gear tops, however, replace the typical Spin Gear with a more advanced Engine Gear, which affects the movement of the top during the battle. Each Engine Gear includes a Turbo Winder to wind-up the engine core. When in action, the Blade Base releases the Engine Gear determined by the Blade Base's clutch lock system. This series of Beyblades were the last ones to be made of plastic parts with the exception of the weight disks. The later ones were semi-metal or completely metal.

Engine gear types

Blade base types

Hard/Heavy Metal System (HMS)

Beyblade HMS (Hard Metal System) is a line of Beyblade toys released after the Engine Gear line of blades in respect to the anime series. This series, unlike ones in the past, use smaller pieces made mostly of metal. HMS Beyblades have a distinct advantage over previously released Beyblades, that being that their spin velocities are 1.5-2× faster.[1]

These tops are composed of a four-layer part system:

Beyblade Metal System (Pre-HWS)

Hybrid Wheel System (HWS)

This system was released in 2008 in Japan and in 2010 worldwide. Hasbro renamed it the Performance Top System. It introduces new components making the Beyblades more complex, including a wheel made of polycarbonate and a wider variety of bottoms. These kinds of Beyblades were sold under the Beyblade: Metal Fusion brand. All parts of an HWS Beyblade are plastic except for the Fusion Wheel. A Key Tool is used to assemble the Beyblade, locking the Face Bolt and Performance Tip to the Spin Track. The main difference from the earlier Metal System is the replacement of the metal wheel with a combination of a plastic Energy Ring and Metal/Fusion Wheel. This was done to prevent breakage of launcher parts.

Names of Beyblades can now be determined by their parts. For example, Storm Pegasus 105RF has a 'Pegasus' Energy Ring/Clear Wheel, 'Storm' Fusion Wheel/Metal Wheel, '105(10.5mm)' Spin Track/Track, and a 'RF (Rubber Flat)' Bottom/Performance Tip.

4D System

4D system Beyblades were introduced in March 2011. It is an expansion of the Hybrid Wheel System which introduced new parts including the 4D Fusion Wheel and 4D Bottom. Additionally, the plastic parts of the wheels are made of a heavier, stronger material.[2]

The 4D Fusion Wheel replaces the standard Fusion Wheel. It is made of multiple parts, including the PC Frame, Metal Frame, and Core. Some omit a standard frame and core design, such as L-Drago Destroy which has an upper metal frame to replace the Energy Ring and a lower PC core with rubber inserts to replace the Fusion Wheel, essentially flipping the common construction of most tops from this system.

The 4D Bottom replaces the Spin Track and includes a built-in gimmick involving the tip, such as being quickly changed between battles without disassembly, changing performance based on stamina, or spinning freely on a bearing.

Zero G/Shogun Steel System

The Zero G System continues the trend of the Hybrid Wheel System by using compatible parts. In uses the same engineering for the Spin Track and Performance Tip while introducing parts that can be used in place of others. The Crystal Wheel and Warrior/Chrome Wheel replace the Fusion Wheel and Energy Ring, while a similar but slightly longer Face Bolt is used due to the extra thickness of the new wheels. Stadiums for this system have rounded bottoms that cause them to pivot, which changes the movement patterns of the battling Beyblades. Additionally, the Crystal Wheel may be replaced with a second Warrior Wheel to create a heavier Synchrome Beyblade.

Burst System

The Beyblades fall apart after a heavy hit, which creates a burst gimmick due to a spring in the Performance Tip. The Burst System consists of 3 parts:

Other systems

Beyblade: XTS (Xtreme Top System) is a system of Beyblades by Hasbro released in Beyblade: Metal Masters. They are separated into four groups, "Tornado Battlers" (taller, all plastic), "Electro Battlers" (light and sound effects), "IR Spin Control Beyblades" (remote controlled), and ¨Stealth Battlers¨ (hidden weapons released by centripetal force). None of these can be customized.

Beyblade Burst Micro is a miniature scale version of the main Beyblade Burst series. Because of their small size, the tops cannot be customized.

Accessories

In addition to standard accessories such as launchers or assembly tools, extras such as launcher grips and point trackers are available. For example, the Beypointer is used to keep track of wins and losses for the Hybrid Wheel System, and the Beylogger performs a similar function for Burst. Other accessories include more powerful launchers, carrying cases, and launch sights.

Differences between international releases

Beyblade toys released in different regions may have differences due to being produced by different manufacturers. While all are based on TakaraTomy's designs, Hasbro typically makes changes either for marketability or to meet differing safety standards. Names of products have been changed for more defensible trademarks (Valkyrie to Valtyek), to avoid controversy (Hell Kerberos to Hades Kerbecs), or prevent confusion (Fusion to Fusefire, since Fusion Wheel is the generic name for the part type). They have also introduced simplified versions with gimmicks removed for various reasons. For Beyblade Burst, the parts are all-new molds based on TakaraTomy's designs but with some differences, such as slightly smaller measurements and the omission of grooves on Layer parts. Sonokong, the licensee in South Korea, typically uses direct copies of the molds used by TakaraTomy but changes names based on regional customs.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Heavy Metal System" (MediaWiki). article at Beywiki.
  2. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-02-22. Retrieved 2011-03-24. (in Japanese)
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