2008 International Tokyo Toy Fair

This weekend, the island of Odaiba, off the coast of Tokyo, Japan was home to the annual 2008 International Toy Fair, one of the most important toy exhibitions in the world. The event was attended by thousand of people, both young and old, all drooling over the latest toy innovations.

As is the case every year, this is the place where the cool and not so cool toys are first introduced. This year was no exception and the not so cool items included E.M.A (Eternal Maiden Actualization), a robot girlfriend and a potted plant called Peekopa, which comes with a chip that is programmed to listen and nod at you at the appropriate time!

However, there were some really cool toys too, including the one pictured above - A talking cash register featuring Anpanman, a famous Japanese cartoon character. The toy won the overall grand prize, because it teaches young kids mathematics and can be played by children with disabilities.

The award for the most unique and popular toy (pictured above) went to a keychain called Mugen Putiputi, which means 'pop pop' in Japanese. As it's name indicates, this toy allows for endless bubble popping - think of it as a never-ending sheet of bubble wrap!

The prize for the best basic toy was awarded to a car track circuit called Byun Byun, which enhances the fun by providing realistic car sounds.

All in all, it sounded like a fun weekend with thousands of new toys to choose from. While it is tough to show all of them, the two videos below will give you some idea of what else the kids in Japan will be playing with soon.

Source:Tokyotraveller.com, Crunchgear.com