Nerf News, Reviews, Related Blaster Products
A user on Instagram posted a Rhino Firing video, check it out here – http://instagram.com/p/qeYUzhlq-b/
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| Nerf N-Strike Elite Rhino Fire. 90′ range. MSRP: $100.00 Available Fall 2014. |
UPDATE: Here’s the full press release straight from Nerf:
NERF N-STRIKE ELITE RHINO-FIRE Blaster
(Ages 8 years & up/Approx. Retail Price: $99.99/Available: Fall 14)
Dominate the competition with the biggest, baddest NERF blaster yet! The N-STRIKE ELITE RHINO-FIRE blaster is the first fully automatic NERF blaster featuring rapid-fire, double barrel blasting, an amazing 50 dart capacity and two N-STRIKE ELITE dart drums, turning ordinary battles into extraordinary ones. The epic RHINO-FIRE blaster sends darts soaring impressive ELITE distances of up to 90 feet, and features both a front handle for mobility and tripod to ensure awesome accuracy. Includes 50 N-STRIKE ELITE darts. Six “D” batteries required, not included. Available exclusively at Walmart.
The story so far:
Available Fall 2014 (most likely around the holidays)
BoomCo Rapid Madness First Thoughts!
(Recorded this late last night while I was putting together the review – I picked the blaster up late at Target, it was a surprise to see it, will update with a better video once I am rested and have better light. In the meantime, here are some pictures:
Hey everyone! So I picked up the BoomCo Rapid Madness last night. Enjoy the gallery –
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| The BoomCo shield is removable, and the pump is double action! |
https://photos.gstatic.com/media/slideshow.swf
Price: $49.99 (!?)
Includes:
Rapid Madness x 1
Darts x 30
Throwable “Round” x 1
Shield x 1
Target board x 1; Instructions x 1
Impressions!
BoomCo is Mattel’s foray into toy blasters. They don’t use foam darts, and the big gimmick is this “sticky technology” on the dart tips that are specially formulated to react and stick to specifically developed targets. It’s a huge line, and coming from one of the top toy makers in the world, is it enough to challenge Nerf, a brand that has become eponymous with toys that shoot darts and other projectiles?
In the past, many other brands have come and go – Light Strike, Max Force, gel shooters, and so on. The difference here is Mattel is much bigger than the other companies trying to broach the blaster market in the past. They have deep pockets for R&D and Marketing which really help getting your brand and toy noticed.
“Sticky” technology, you say? According to Mattel’s techs, they formulated the rubber/polymer/whatever on the darts to only react/stick to the specially designed targets. And they do! It’s amazing! It could theoretically make hit-tracking and scorekeeping much easier depending on what rules/gametype you, the player, devise. And it’s a strong grip, too. Any other surface/material and the darts just bounce.HOWEVER – CAVEAT – the stickiness will fade if not maintained; you have to rinse the darts regularly or use tape to remove debris. Have no fear, the instructions have…. instructions on how to do this. The Round included is entirely composed of the sticky material, which…. gives me some scenario-style ideas. But more on that as the line develops.
The darts themselves are constructed of a thick straw-like plastic, topped with the sticky material. I don’t have a scale to tell you a difference in the weight of these darts vs. foam. If I had to attest to durability, I’d rather take the darts out to a game rather than hypothesize, and see the attrition that way. The foam darts are definitely thicker, and you can find a pretty good overview at UKNERF..
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| The dart was fine! |
Let’s look at the BoomCo Rapid Madness. At $49.99 + tax, I was a little leery about buying it. There are/were numerous blasters of similar function in the past (Magstrike, Powerclip for starters) but they were also pre-Elite and at most were hitting 20-30′, probably. The Rapid Madness outdoes that with 50′ in range (see the video above!). It also comes with a shield, a target, and a throwable projectile (see previous paragraph).
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| The Rapid Madness! (Shield is attached and closed up) |
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| The “Round” – both halves stick together when they are pressed, they separate for easy cleaning. |
Functionally speaking, we’ve been there, done that. Pump the blaster (at most) 18 times (a double-action pump no less), pull the trigger, and point where you want to unleash your straw/rubber-sticky doom. The only difference in this instance is the 50′ in range vs. maybe 30′ in earlier blasters. It’s this similarity though that makes me question the price, even with the extras included.
The blaster is fully automatic, so it is definitely a spray and pray kind of experience. I found myself wanting to use a grip with my offhand besides the pump, but there really isn’t another place on the barrel that seemed like a good fit. Aiming from the shoulder also seemed improper because of the nature of the blaster, so I actually found shooting from the waist better, again with the spray and pray idea. The double action nature of the blaster’s pump might make it feel slower to refill with air, and depending on your play style this may or may not be your cup of tea. Once your first salvo is out…. MOVE. However, as you can see in the (newly added) video, doing bursts of darts isn’t too hard with the Rapid Madness.
The shield mounts on the barrel and deploys at the press of a button. Even though there is a sort of iron sight on it I felt like the shield made aiming a bit more difficult, which made shooting from the hip even more preferable. In fact, like the Nerf Stampede shield I felt better just having it off. I also don’t think the blaster is for lefties, since the clip loads from the left of the barrel and has to be inserted that way due to the arrow guides. There was a bit of the blaster near the grip that would dig into my hand as well, whether that is because of the design for kids or a flaw in construction I am not sure.
The blaster itself had a separation in the shell already as well –
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| The shell seemed a bit opened here. |
But it worked and as the video shows, the volley needed some dialing in but otherwise it worked pretty well. When I have some time (and daylight) to update the video outside to check max range, I will. The pump felt durable and sturdy, as did the rest of the blaster (something you can expect when a company like Mattel is doing the building.) My nephew (he’s 11) thought it looked pretty cool, and got a kick out of shooting it.
When it boils down to it, what are we looking at? The Rapid Madness is expensive for a mechanic we’ve already seen elsewhere. It requires stocking up on Yet Another Ammo Type, and even then the BoomCo ammo gimmick may fade out over time and leave you with darts that do little else but bounce like any other darts but at a premium price (for the blasters that launch them, if not the darts themselves.) However the range is on par with the current market of available blasters (at least, until certain 90-100′ blasters hit shelves later this year) and honestly they do look pretty slick and futuristic. The sticky tech sounds like it’ll be a lot of fun to play around with and I’m willing to give the line a chance and see where they go. If you want to try something new maybe give this a look. But with its price maybe check out some of the lower priced blasters before you go with the Rapid Madness. Honestly, of all the blasters in the line, I wish I had found the Twisted Spinner first, based on the uniqueness of the blaster alone.
Thoughts? Questions? Let me know in the comments! NOTE: I moderate comments, so if they don’t show up right away, don’t worry about resubmitting! I will get there and read them. 🙂
Nerf Writeup from the American International Toy Fair in New York City, 2014
Vas The Stampede
Nerf N-Strike Elite, Nerf Rebelle, Nerf Sports, Super Soaker, Zombie Strike, Mega, 3rd party licensed electronics, Oh my!
(update!) Here’s a video of the Nerf Slingfire –
THE GALLERY:
https://photos.gstatic.com/media/slideshow.swf 2014 marked my 4th year attending the American International Toy Fair in New York City. I can’t believe it either, honestly. To walk that floor with all the brands, bigwigs, and toys, there’s almost nothing else like it. FAIR WARNING – I have a LOT to say in this post, so there’s a lot of reading (and some pics!) so more after the break –
This Fall will be a very interesting year for Nerf. The showroom had new entries for Nerf N-Strike Elite, Mega, Zombie Strike, and Rebelle. Information had been released leading up to the show (Nerf Zombie Strike Doublestrike, Nerf Cam ECS-12, Nerf Rebelle Agent Bow – Secrets & Spies, the Nerf Zombie Strke Slingfire, Nerf Demolisher 2 in 1, and Nerf Mega Thunderbow) and while all the speculation, wild chatter, and yea/nay can be fun, I always put the most weight when I have the blaster right in front of me. I already posted some firing videos on the F2A Facebook and Instagram feeds, but rest assured I have some high quality video too and that will go up on youtube shortly. As I stay at Toy Fair the whole time (it’s a lot of fun, seriously. I wouldn’t give it up for the world) there’s a lot to go through.
“Zombie Strike” and “Secrets and Spies” are Nerf’s attempts at telling a narrative, having a backstory to their blasters. These are also attempts to cash in on current pop culture (obviously) trends, but who can blame them? With certain TV shows being so popular and other game types, it was inevitable that Nerf would finally pick up on it and jump in.
Interesting note about the Rebelle for 2014 – compared to the naming schemes for last year, “Pink Crush, “Heartbreaker Bow”, and so on (I think the “Guardian” may have been the main exception) something changed. “Rapid Red”, “Agent Bow” indicate this, although “Diamondista” seems to carry over from last year. “Spylight” could just as easily have fit into the N-Strike line, though maybe as “SpylightFireUltraHyperShot REV-6.”
Word has it research showed girls imagined themselves as spies with last year’s blasters, hence the innovation towards decoders and things. Very retro tech, reminiscent of old sticker collection books I had back in the 80s.(I remember a Super Mario Bros. and Voltron one, specifically. They were awesome.)
If I can highlight some things about the Agent bow…
Nerf N-Strike Elite though, is Nerf’s Flagship (at least in my estimation) line and the heavy hitters out of the gate are the Nerf Cam ECS-12 and the Nerf N-Strike Elite Demolisher 2 in 1.
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The Nerf Cam ECS-12 is probably the most cost-prohibitive of the bunch. The MSRP is at $79.99, requires 8 AA batteries (flywheels + camera power), includes a 4 GB memory card, and is supposed to hit around 90-95′. A lot of Nerf players may already own GoPro cameras or have other arrangements by this point, so is that range bump enough to pour this much money into just one blaster? Especially given the camera is a 0.3 megapixels?
Nerf provided this video of the Cam(era), and it was honestly better than I expected.
But is it enough? We are still months from seeing a final form of this (in fact, all these blasters) so the jury is still out until the Fall release.
As for the Demolisher, the undermount alone is enough for me. Regrettably, it isn’t removable but it’s a step in that direction. It’s just odd that Nerf didn’t do this sooner considering an undermounted removable missile has been available for some time now from another brand. While some folks also hate it is a triggerless system on the Demolisher’s mega missile launcher, I got a decent shot out of it, and the word says it will hit 50′ about. The Demolisher itself will hit approx. 90′.
So, Rebelle gets a makeover and a sweet bow, Elite gets a 90′ increase, that leaves Mega and Zombie Strike.
The Thunderbow is HUGE. About the size of my torso. And it will hit 100′. It primes like the Heartbreaker, actually. You pull back on the string, wait for the indicator to tell you you’ve pulled back enough (the arms pull back as well) and release, firing the Mega dart. You can do this up to 5 times before you are empty. Approximately 100′ out of it. My only complaint at this stage is somebody trying to pull a Legolas may suffer wear and tear on their fingers, as right now there is nothing covering the string where your fingers go.As someone who’s fired a lot of Zing arrows, I hope something gets put there before Fall, as the pull is pretty robust.
The Nerf Zombiestrike Slingfire? My favorite so far, simply because I can do this:
Whew! Alright, that’s the showroom.
ICYMI, 3rd party tech made a huge splash at Toy Fair for Nerf this year –
Tek Strike is a 3rd party game/setup that promises hit tracking, and utilizes bluetooth connectivity and requires players to be more strategic as you need specialized Nerf darts to play. See my initial writeup HERE
Without giving too much away, these folks at Eyespy have a wonderful idea right now, and plenty more wonderful ideas to follow up. I’ll be watching them closely, as I’m genuinely excited about seeing this product and on more than one occasion listening to their pitch I was left speechless. I do have a video that I need to edit as well, so expect that soon.
https://photos.gstatic.com/media/slideshow.swf And Sakar international/Vivitar had a series of cameras, walkie talkies, and more licensed to the Nerf brand… some of which falls in with the Nerf Rebelle Secrets & Spies theme –
https://photos.gstatic.com/media/slideshow.swf My press kit didn’t have much in the way of pricing yet, but I’m in contact with Sakar at the moment trying to get some info. According to the rep I spoke with at Toy Fair, a few of these items (including the hands-free walkie talkies) were pretty new, so the info was lacking. I’ll update this post as necessary! And when I have HQ videos.
Make sure to join the discussion at the F2A Facebook page and see more firing videos on my instagram feed.
In the meantime, BIG THANK YOU to TrekkieB47 for helping me out at Toy Fair as a second cameraman (and designing those sweet business cards), and to Adult Fans of Nerf, Click Click BAMF, Basic Nerf, and Shining Foam for getting the word out there!
I’m sure there’s plenty I’ve left out, so make sure to leave a comment if there’s something you’re curious about.
ON THAT NOTE: No secret blaster. All the reveals had been done by this Toy Fair, so the Cam was probably the secret blaster at UK Toy Fair. No super secret sizzle video either like when the Hailfire was revealed. No new Nerf Dart Tag and now new Nerf N-Force (unless you want to count the Strikeblade, but that’s under the Zombie Strike brand.) While not outright saying the lines were defunct, there just aren’t any plans right now for either line, and that is indicated by the lack of new product for those lines as of New York Toy Fair.
Nerf Tek Strike! Stormshield & App from Eyespy Toys Uses Bluetooth Tech to score hits, track power ups, and more. First shown at New York Toy Fair!
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Say Hello to… Nerf Tek Strike. A shield/LCD readout attachment for your tactical rail on Nerf blasters to track hits/scoring, and apparently upgrade weapons/darts. I saw this during Day 1 of New York Toy Fair, and I was really intrigued. There was a prototype available, but these folks are on a good track to figuring out a new way to play. More details after the break.
What sorcery is this? RFID signals, bluetooth connectivity (the demo I saw was running off an iPod’s bluetooth) smart darts (darts specific for this game style, a pack of 10 for $9.99 for instance). (edit) However, a smart device is NOT NECESSARY to play. You can also see hits/lives on the LCD readout of the device that faces you.
Have an EXCLUSIVE gallery –
https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf
It’s still in the early stages of functioning, but from what I could see they have some great plans. It incorporates the natural habit of a player to pick up their opponent’s ammo (using the smart darts) and then firing them back. If the darts hit the shield, you score a point. If the opponent tries to be cute and hold their blaster downward, they time out and lose a life (at least that was one measure that is in the works.) To calibrate the darts to your signal, swipe them over your screen to affix them so they hit and score on your opponents.
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| Does not need a device in the cradle to operate. A device is necessary to act as a “base” or home for the game, but it would not have to be placed in the cradle. The model I saw had its base unit kept in a cabinet nearby. |
This system is still very new, but it’s a very intriguing idea. While it would require purchasing new specific darts, I think there’s a definite place for this type of game, especially if it leads to being able to track hits without using velcro. In an FPS, you run forward and around with your barrel pointed forward, right? Maybe the same principle could be conceptualized here. I myself have a lot of nerf darts already, but being able to track hits and have power ups (like increased damage, and… some other settings I can’t mention but they’re thinking of) may just be worth the cost of a few extra darts, and maybe even if my friends and I split a few
packs.
I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the developments of this system, but it is a licensed Nerf (meaning, with their blessing) product, they’re working with Nerf on how it works, and there is some serious thought going into the mechanics. I do have a video of successfully tracking hits using the screen, but I have get home first to edit it (my main computer is at home.)
My blog post and the pictures don’t really do this system justice and it’s really very early to say anything definite, but I’m excited for the promise of what it might mean for playing Nerf Tag and the cool people I met talking about it trying to bring this to fruition. Yes, you need to get new darts. But, it could be for a very good reason 🙂
What do you think? Is the idea of a Nerf-developed app/tag tracking device interesting for you, whether you play stock, modded, or HvZ?
GEAR REVIEW: Spy Gear Sonic Distractors – Thanks to Spin Master Toys for the sample! The opinions and thoughts are my own, however.
MSRP: $9.99
Available: Now
Range: As far as you can throw it
Includes:
2 x Sonic Distractor spheres (1 black, 1 grey – 4 different sounds apiece. See the video for the different sounds)
1 x belt clip/holder
This is an interesting little gadget from Spy Gear. Relatively inexpensive (some stores have them on clearance), and in the right scenario/gametype, maybe these would be of some use if you have a particularly sneaky style of play.
2 spheres, and you hold the button down to trigger a timer, and after a few seconds the distractor makes 1 of 4 noises. If you can remember the sequence of the noises on each sphere, you can readily select which one you’re using (birds cawing, a cat yeowling, laser blasts) but in some instances maybe just a sudden noise of any kind would be enough).
Maybe even a game like this:
I didn’t whip these around on concrete (also I would NOT suggest throwing these at people) so I couldn’t tell you how durable they are from a dropped height. I believe ideally you would roll these into position to use them, though rather than throw them around. They are of a hard plastic construction so they would definitely bounce around. Still, the amount of sound effects available, the compact build, included holster, and easy to use button are nice little touches.
You might even find these on clearance at the moment, so if you have the right group and location, these could be a handy fun roleplay (spy vs counterspy, thief vs guard) element for your game types. What do you think? Would you try them?
“Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war…” – Julius Caesar: Act 3, Scene 1, page 13
And Engadget sure did. They posted Yet Another Nerf Exclusive and it was the N-Strike Elite NERF Cam ECS-12 Blaster. No press release, but as discussed on my Facebook page (join the conversation! “Like” me!) here is the story so far:
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| Photo courtesy of engadget. Opted for this one because it’s the real life prototype they used. Final will have a clear magazine and blue trim. |
That being said, let’s get some quick thoughts down:
Holy carp, $75? The biggest complaint I’ve been receiving is that is just too much $$$ for a camera that isn’t even a single megapixel. Furthermore, even if it is for kids (which it is), that’s a lot for an 8 year old’s toy who either has a mobile device of some sort or some other camera in this day and age. Even if it is integrated, that price is so darn high against other tech toys with better resolution. Regardless of the blaster hitting 90′ (the Elite line originally touted 75′ ranges) I can’t see telling anyone to pay for the camera AND blaster when the camera is of such low quality. Engadget’s piece also has a video, and…. well, I hope the camera gets an improvement from this prototype to the final version. The flywheels and camera each require 4 AA batteries, so there’s an additional cost right there.
Also, the proximity of the camera to the motors. The engadget video illustrates it perfectly: “VRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR” is what I heard.
Otherwise, the aesthetics and power boost (hopefully) are the better parts I can see about this blaster. While I can’t advocate strapping an expensive iPhone or iPod Touch to the top of your blaster (personally, I use a GoPro, but that’s me. Yes, maybe the camera will provide a tactical advantage cornering and yes, the camera integrated into the shell is more streamline, but a Rapidstrike is considerably less and full auto. If you need practice with trigger control, then this is more your style unless you would rather get a Stryfe.
So I’m ambivalent about this blaster. I want to love the way it looks, but I don’t know if that’s enough for me. For $75 I could buy a Rapidstrike or Stryfe and extra darts. I can remove whatever camera I’m using to put on other blasters or for a project unrelated to Nerf. But for the Nerf Cam? Thumb middle of the road until the final version. Hopefully this will be available at New York Toy Fair, and I’ll get a better look then.
G’luck in your struggles!
London Toy Fair 2014 – Thoughts on the Nerf overview from UK Nerf
UK NERF was at the London Toy Fair this week, and posted up a report of what Hasbro had on display. Hasbro sent out exclusive release info already on the Nerf Zombie Strike Slingfire, N-Strike Mega Thunderbow, N-Strike Elite Demolisher, and Rebelle Agent Bow.
UK Nerf, was able to try them out. Make sure to read the entire report, but here are some choice bits:
About the Slingfire:
“About the same size as the Sledgefire and roughly the same weight. This was designed to be used one handed so the balance is spot on. You can flick it to prime it and it lands neatly in your hand so rapid fire with this technique would be possible with a little practice, keeping the other hand free for a secondary or to reload.”
The Demolisher:
” The Grenade launcher is not detachable, nor can it be without a lot of work (as far as I could see). It is fairly heavily integrated into the shell and I think if it were removable, simply using it would wrench it off the rail anyway.” Word has it the Demolisher may be full auto due to the popularity of the Rapidstrike, so that remains to be seen.
Go read the rest if you want to know more! It sounds promising though, and I am looking forward to getting a turn at these come New York Toy Fair. UK Nerf mentions a total of 10 releases, so it’s bound to be a busy year. No word on N-Force or Dart Tag though, we’ll have to wait and see.
I’d really love to say more and speculate, but honestly there’s not much to say without the blasters. It’s a little weird to see the Thunderbow reliant on the bow arm as part of the priming mech, unlike the Big Bad Bow or BnA, where the bow arms were extraneous. The Demolisher is going to be fun I think, and I really want to know if the diameter of the missile is the same as the Mega darts. I strongly think the Rebelle Agent Bow is going to be the dark horse of the new releases, with the new arrows (tipped something like ball, per UK Nerf). Anyway, have fun with the info! It looks like Hasbro didn’t allow video or photos at all in their showroom hence the lack of images and photos from anybody. UK Nerf does have some new angles though. Thanks to them for taking time out of their lives to make the trip!
Lock and Load.
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| A shot from last year’s New York Toy Fair |
Back the weekened before Thanksgiving, the Chicago Toy & Game Fair (ChiTag) rocked the city with a weekend of toys, games, gift ideas, innovation, invention, and creativity. This year was no exception with a bigger feeling to it, and some of the best brands I’ve come to know and enjoy seeing year after year.
Razor, Spin Master Toys (seriously, the Tenkai Knights building sets they brought were amazing innovations in construction sets), Mayfair Games, Bananagrams, and local favorites like Floppets were all on the show floor, bringing the humor for everyone. That being said, here are my galleries from the weekend.
PlayChic – The fashion show for the weekend, that combines a famous fashion designer’s touch with the inspiration of a toy or game at the show. Joan Severance, inventor of the txTylz game, was on hand even to lend her talent to the show.
Full album is here!
https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf
Aaaaaaand pictures from the ChiTag Show floor 🙂
https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf
How was your Halloween? As you hopefully spent it in costume, let’s look at a toy out there for the costuming/role play/imagination bunch, Skylanders Giants Tree Rex Smash Hands from Mega Bloks!
Based on this guy:
Come these hands (sample provided by Mega Bloks) intended to protect the world.
Approx. $24.99 (based on the availability)
Range: Uhm… what?
Comfy: Totally. Though obviously built for a kid, these will fit on adult hands too.
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| Thanks for the sample, Mega Bloks! |
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| Image originally from Megabloks.com |
You use them as such:
and first things first, they protect your hands! Dress like Tree Rex, minus a lot more external bark on you.
The foam of the hands is thickest and at least a couple of inches thick at the knuckles, so while I don’t recommend using these as boxing gloves or striking people, animals, household plants, or sparring in a mixed martial arts class, they are pretty soft. There is a small strap on the inside to hold onto while wearing the fists. The box is open, so when you see these on shelves you can check for yourself just how soft these hands are.
Skylanders Giants and Mega Bloks offer up a way for youngsters to role play as Trigger Happy and now Tree Rex, taking the action from the video game/construction sets to getting up and imagining themselves as their fave characters. Maybe a play group out there utilizes a melee weapon ruleset, and need something past the Hulk hands of the past. Either way, I do like the look of these toys and hopefully we’ll see more of Skylanders Giants and their role play toys as the franchise continues.
Like it? This is also out – Ignitor’s Flame Sword
Foam From Above 
