Magna Charge and Nitro Magna Charge Upgrade Paths with Attack Damage Numbers Skylanders SWAP Force

Magna Charge Base Upgrades

Nitro Magna Charge Base Upgrades

Magna Charge Attack Damage Numbers

Nitro Magna Charge Magnetic Armaments Upgrade Path (Top)

Magna Charge Magnet Tuner Upgrade Path (Top)

Magna Charge Static Buildup Upgrade Path (Bottom)

Nitro Magna Charge Drag Racer Upgrade Path (Bottom)

Magna Charge has always been a very intriguing character for me...I have mentioned several times how he reminds me of a robotic paintbrush from The Learning Company's Super Solver's Midnight Rescue game...It is an old, Windows 95 educational game that some of you may be familiar with...I remember it, Morty Maxwell the Master of Mischief, and Shady Glenn Elementary School quite vividly...Magna Charge could easily take on the roll of one of Morty's 5 Robotic Paintbrushes...

So, nostalgia aside I just truly like Magna Charge's aesthetics.  I'm also a fan of his unique abilities.

His Base Upgrades are a lot of fun.  You can summon items (or pick up enemies) and slam them into other enemies to do impressive damage.  His Magnet Cannon does overheat fast, but that makes it do more damage and it fires off the small numbers very quick!  Down low you can drag enemies and throw them forwards, or backward to gain a dash forward that also damages enemies.  He is very well rounded and very fast!

Up top, you really can't go wrong.  Magnetic Armaments upgrades the Magnet Cannon and offers up a hard hitting Fireball after you've maxed out and overheated the cannon.  This shoots on command after the 3 second run time of the Magnet Cannon.  This path is probably best for rookie players, or those looking for a simple, yet effective path.  The Soul Gem further enhances all of Magnetic Armaments.

Magnet Tuner is my choice for the top end.  I mentioned you can't pick a bad path up top, and I stand by that statement.  However, to me, Magnet Tuner takes advantage of what is most unique about Magna Charge and capitalizes on it in a bigger fashion.  Magnet Tuner turns out some impressive damage!  I don't want to lean you this direction as Magnetic Armaments has to be taken seriously, despite the lesser numbers, due to the speed at which they fire off...That said, Magnet Tuner is something we've never seen before and I personally have a blast with it.

Down low, I'm a bit disappointed in both paths.  Given how fast he is (he is a Speed Swapper), I would have liked to see an electromagnetic field left behind while dashing that would damage enemies...Even the old Flameslinger idea of "making a circle" that might have ignited a huge electric column would have been welcome in my book.  What we got instead is some overlap on the base upgrades.  Static Buildup doesn't do much with Shock Stop, but Crash Test really amps up the damage output of Shock Stop AND Eject, which turns out to be massive numbers on the forward dash, which the game and strategy guide completely fail to even mention does damage at all...I think Static Buildup is probably best for Story Mode.

Drag Racer is the perfect path for Nitro Magna Charge (assuming you equate "Nitro" with racing).  This one disappointed me more than Static Buildup initially just because of the repetitiveness...Rapid Repel offers no increase in damage and Opposites Repel was marginal...Static Buildup bumping the damage on Eject is really the dividing line in my opinion.

Drag Racer could have bumped the speed slightly to offset the Static Buildup's gain on Eject...That would have been really cool.  Or, another idea I had was a "Burnout."  Down Drag Racer Nitro Magna Charge (or regular) could hold "A" (or the secondary attack button on your console) and do a burnout that fills the screen, or area behind/around him with smoke that damages enemies and he would then dash off and deal damage, or have a proportionate increase in speed to the duration the button was held.

That is just my take anyway...

That said, I think Drag Racer will actually turn out to be great for Arena Challenges.  It may not offer up much in terms of increased damage, but the ability to pickup 2 enemies, throw them out, and keep going will make quick work of large groups of weaker enemies.

Up top, you can't go wrong with either path...You either want the simple and effective Magnetic Armaments, or the unique Magnet Tuner Path.  Down below, you can go with the harder hitting Static Buildup, or quicker hitting Drag Racer Path.  I'd suggest Static Buildup if you just have one Magna Charge and enjoy story mode.  If you are done with story mode and just have Bonus Missions and Arena Challenges, consider Drag Racer.

Unboxing McDonald's Skylanders SWAP Force Happy Meal Toys, The CompleteSet

Unboxing the Complete Set of Skylanders SWAP Force Happy Meal Toys

Here is a run down on the figures for you:

#1 Wash Buckler
#2 Eruptor
#3 Free Ranger
#4 Rattle Shake
#5 Magna Charge
#6 Prism Break
#7 Freeze Blade
#8 Chompy

Which one is your favorite?  Cast your vote in the newest poll!  You can find it just under the Twitter Feed on the Right Hand Side of the Blog.

You can check out the original preview video here:

Skylanders SWAP Force Happy Meal Toys Preview

Hey Everyone,

Just one of those videos where I talk fast and try to showcase you what to expect...In this case, it is a preview of the upcoming Skylanders featured in the SWAP Force Happy Meals!

Starting this Friday, March 28th, 2014 you can get these awesome Skylanders in your McDonald's Happy Meals!  The promo will run thru April 24th, 2014 and in addition to the toys you can expect coupons like last time.  One will be for $10 off a SWAP Force Starter Pack and the other was simply stated as "$1 Off a Skylanders Character."  I assume this will work not only with SWAP Force core characters, but LightCore and swappers too.  Similarly, I have no reason to think it wouldn't work with SSA or Giants Skylanders, but we will have to wait and see.

That said, I will get stand alone pics up soon...It is currently 4:30 AM and I am dead tired...the pics will be the same as in the video fyi.

Here is the character rundown for the 8 featured:

Eruptor: Looks to be a light up effect

Prism Break: Also looks to be a light up effect (modeled after Hyper Beam Prism Break)

Free Ranger: Looks to be a top

Freeze Blade: Looks to shoot the chakram

Magna Charge: Looks to be a projectile attack from the Magnet Cannon

Rattle Shake: Looks to be a projectile with Snake's Venom (prob just the snake here)

Wash Buckler: Looks to be one of those quick action turns with the cutlass

Chompy: No clue what he will do, but it'll be nice for displays!

Skylanders SWAP Force Unboxing Target Exclusive Nitro Magna ChargeDouble Pack with Rattle Shake

What: Target Exclusive Double Pack with Nitro Magna Charge and Rattle Shake
Where Did You Get It? Target
What Did It Cost: $29.99 plus tax
What Was Stock Like? Very Limited at my local store, although others report good stock

Unboxing Nitro Magna Charge from the Target Exclusive Double Pack

Nitro Magna Charge sounded really cool, and then pics surfaced online...he didn't look so great.  I was never one of the ones to go in a tumult and swear not to buy him, but I was disappointed.  That all changed when I actually unboxed him!  Even in the packaging he looked a bit lackluster.  Once freed from the plastic coffin, he truly shines.  Nitro Magna Charge is an alt-deco of Magna Charge and really does look good.  He has a light, gold metallic paint complete with a checkered flag look on his shoulder pad and fender.

The real perk of course is just landing an in-game variant.  The other advantage to that position is being able to explore both Body and Legs down each path.

My justification for getting the Nitro Magna Charge & Rattle Shake Double Pack was simple.  I have the 3DS version, which contains both Free Ranger and Rattle Shake.  With TRU having Legendary Free Ranger, that will cover both of his paths on each end.  That leaves Rattle Shake as the logical, and cost effective choice.  If Rattle Shake gets a spin off, we will just have to suck it up and pull the trigger later.

Nitro Magna Charge
Tech Element, SWAP Force, Speed

Slogan: "Attract to Attack!"

SWAP Zone Power: Speed

Card Stats:
-Power: 110/200
Armor: 90/200
Agility: 190/200
Luck: 70/200
Totals: 460/800
--Exact Same as Regular Magna Charge

Rattle Shake
Undead Element, SWAP Force, Bounce

Slogan: "Go Ahead, Snake My Day!"

SWAP Zone Power: Bounce

Card Stats:
Power: 85/200
Armor 100/200
Agility: 145/200
Luck: 130/200
Totals: 460/800

Skylanders SWAP Force Unboxing Magna Charge

What: Magna Charge, Tech Element SWAP Force, Speed Ability
Where Did it Cost: $14.99 plus tax
What Was Stock Like: Well Stocked

Unboxing Magna Charge

Magna Charge looks like a really fun character.  I like his look and he reminds me of the robots of Morty Maxwell, the Master of Mischief on Super Solver's Midnight Rescue from The Learning Company.  That probably means nothing to you, but I grew up with the game and still remember it.

Magna Charge
Tech Element, SWAP Force, Speed

Slogan: "Attract to Attack!"

Card Stats:

Power: 110/200
Armor: 90/200
Agility: 190/200
Luck: 70/200
Totals: 460/800

Unboxing Skylanders SWAP Force Nintendo Wii U Starter Pack

What: Skylanders SWAP Force Starter Pack for Nintendo Wii U
What Does It Cost? $74.99 plus tax
What is Included?  Video Game, Collector Poster, New Portal of Power, Stat Cards, Sticker Sheet with Web Codes
-Characters: Blast Zone, Wash Buckler, Ninja Stealth Elf

Kind of a bitter sweet moment realizing that it is probably a better option to pick the game up on the Wii U than the trust old Wii.  It is kind of like the transition point.  I have several Wii U games, but they are primarily launch titles, or system exclusives...SWAP Force marks a transition point for me.  I guess you might as well go big, right?

The Wii U Starter Pack for SWAP Force is very nicely packaged.  I can not tell you how slick the New Portal is!  The detail on it is immaculate (hence why I picked it as the featured screen shot for the video).  It really is a step up...It has a new, lean build, but is noticeably wider an features a corded power supply (yeah for saving on batteries!).

You can't go wrong with Ninja Stealth Elf being a Starter Pack character as she will bring familiarity and good balance to veterans, and a well rounded "regular" Skylander for new comers to the series.

Wash Buckler and Blast Zone seem to be opposites, but that is why they are perfect for SWAP Force...Their "Swapping" has that nice, memorable contrast to really highlight the newest selling point of the series.

That said, here is the video, enjoy:

Once my internet connection gets the ball moving you can find the Nintendo Wii U Skylanders SWAP Force Starter Pack unboxing here: http://youtu.be/aHhdTVNSSQg

Skylanders SWAP Force not only impresses out of the box, it will provide hours of family fun entertainment.  The play options are almost limitless and your new power truly is choice!

Nitro Magna Charge Double Packs Exclusive to Target for Skylanders SWAP Force

I had speculated on this some time back, and now the answers have emerged...

While we had GameStop boasting the Dark Edition Starter Pack, we recently saw Walmart land Enchanted Hoot Loop.  We already know Toys'R'Us is getting the Legendaries once more, so that left Target...

The cycle did not disappoint as BOTH SWAP Force Double Packs featuring Nitro Magna Charge will appear at the retailer!  It remains to be seen if these will be as limited as Granite Crusher, a bit more lenient like Jade Flashwing, or easy picking like most Walmart specials...My advice, as usual, is get it while you can and avoid being caught an issue where you can't obtain it for retail.

The Nitro Magna Charge Double Pack Retails for $29.99 and comes in two flavors:

Nitro Magna Charge and Rattle Shake

Nitro Magna Charge and Free Ranger

Note the placement of the "Only at Target" designation...This follows suit with what we have seen recently where labels have been printed with the packaging.

The cool thing here is that Nitro Magna Charge remains the same...So, you can simply pick which character you want.

This was obviously set up for those that buy a console starter pack.  Why?  The console starter packs include Wash Buckler and Magna Charge...That means you can literally add this Double Pack and be in business.

However, if you plan to pick up the 3DS Version, you will likely be disappointed as it features none other than Free Ranger and Rattle Shake.  

But, remaining optimistic, those of us getting the console and 3DS versions, can take solstice in this...

Free Ranger has a Legendary form coming at some point, and with Rattle Shake's potential alter ego, or variant form unknown (or simply not happening), we can use this Double Pack to land a 2nd Rattle Shake, as opposed to winding up with 3 Free Rangers...That is my plan anyway.

The price of $29.99 doesn't do a lot given SWAP Force Skylanders will retail for $14.99, but it is hard to complain with a special figure included.

I am left wondering if Amazon will have anything "special" here right off the bat...I guess we will have to wait and see.

Brand New Skylanders SWAP Force Gameplay Footage

The epic overflow continues!  While at work today I got an e-mail with brand new Skylanders SWAP Force Gameplay!  The good folks that are Activision's PR sent over about 4 minutes of footage and some new screen shots!

The gameplay clip is awesome, super fast paced, and you can catch something you missed every time you watch it.  That said, it had over 40 small, short clips in it...My initial plan was to break them down with title slides, introduce the clips, commentate them, and call it good.  The short length of each individual clip made that tough, but I ultimately felt it would have taken away from the action and excitement.  As deliver, you have 4 minutes of non-stop action that keeps you glued to the screen...I didn't want to take away from that, so I opted for something different:



I took screen caps from each of the 42 (by my count) scenes and spanned them for 10 seconds...This allowed me to highlight the character, scene, more, enemy, or item etc and prepare you for the frenzy that is the 4 minute highlight reel...I think it turned out pretty well given the options.  This lets you take in the still shot from the clip, learn what to look for, and then see the action just like I saw it as a straight, continuous clip.  With that said, let's take a look:

We've got tons of SWAP Force combinations on hand, some SF Newlanders, and an incredible amount of detail to take in...

That said, I did mention we had some Official Screen Shots as well...let's check them out:

Skylanders SWAP Force Starter Packs: Final Renderings:

Nintendo 3DS Screen Shots

Grilla Drilla and Inventory 

Grilla Bomb (Grilla Drilla + Stink Bomb)

Night Shift

Zoo Lou

Free Ranger's Vortex Move + Rattle Jet

Grilla Shift (Grilla Drilla + Night Shift)

Night Loop (Night Shift + Hoot Loop)

Stink Charge (Stink Bomb + Magna Charge)

Hoot Bomb (Hoot Loop + Stink Bomb) and Stink Loop (Stink Bomb + Hoot Loop)

in Survival Mode

Roller Brawl and Zoo Lou in Survival Mode

Skylanders Swap Force New Character Art and Gameplay: Fryno, Rattle Shake, Night Shift, Magna Charge, Free Ranger

Late last week I got access to some BRAND NEW, NEVER BEFORE SEEN Skylanders Swap Force content!  This ranged from a quick Swap Force Fact Sheet (copied at the bottom), to brand new screen shots, all the way up to a 4 minute or so clip of never before seen gameplay!

As of Noon CST Monday, July 29th, 2013, you should be seeing this!  We got some great shots of Free Ranger, Magna Charge, Night Shift, and Rattle Shake (in various different formats).

Then, the folks at Activision treated us to some brand new gameplay footage.  If you scroll down below you can see the stand alone pictures as well as some of my thoughts on things...I'll end off with the attached Skylander Swap Force fact sheet straight from Activison.  Here is the video:

Leave a comment to let me know what you thought about this reveal.  What character looked the best?  Which powers caught your eye?  How do you feel about the voice acting, characters in general, and enemies?  How about the graphics....can you tell how much better they are?

We start off with Fryno ("Crash and Burn") a brand new, Fire Element Skylander.  He is shown taking down a few enemies with bralwer punches (36) and a hot rod dash (40).

Free Ranger ("Whip up a Storm") an Air Element Swap Force character then came into view and took out several enemies with some powers ranging from punches (45), some sort of finishing move (78), a projectile lightning bolt (13), and then some sort of a tornado like move that not only damaged the enemy (20), but disoriented AND moved him!

Hoot Loop ("Let's Ruffle Some Feathers") a Magic Element Swap Force Skylander then appeared (briefly) and cast some attack that dealt damage (24) and then seemed to chain off into three separate and smaller attacks (8).  The main feature shown was his teleport ability...It served very well to help eliminate the enemies.  If you look close, you will see a Gillman right as Hoot Loop appears and walks forward.  You will also notice that the area is called "Gobblepod Sanctuary."

The next feature went to Rattle Shake ("Go Ahead, Snake My Day") one of the Undead Element Swap Force Skylanders.  He is shown winning a Swap Force Zone challenge that had him use the bouncing ability to pop 3 Kaos Balloons.  This kind of reminded me of the structure of "elemental zones" found in the 3DS version of SSA.

We then saw a combo of Free Ranger and Rattle Shake in the form of...Free Shake!  This is, of course, Free Ranger's top end with Rattle Shake's bottom.  The voice and powers (ie base, secondary, tertiary, and upgraded attacks) all remain Free Ranger...What changes is the bottom half and the subsequent ability.  With "Shake" down below, Free Ranger transforms into Free Shake and can utilize the bouncing ability of Rattle Shake to gather some loot and clear an area.  We also hear one of his lines "For my nest egg!"

The next feature went back to a new, non-Swap Force Skylander in the Undead Element's Roller Brawl.  She looked pretty impressive!  She was against a tough enemy and used her roller skating to circle and speed around an enemy (think Ghost Roaster's Skull Master, or Cynder's Dash).  Once the enemy dropped his guard, she unloaded with a melee of hits, the first dealing 51 damage and subsequent blows landing 34-44.  We then saw her seemingly roll her roller skates, which are a lot like blade gears, toward the enemy...after taking care of all the enemies she used the line "Down and Derby."

Our last highlight came in the form of Swap Force Skylander Freeze Blade.  Actually, the first we saw of him he was Freeze Zone.  Freeze utilized Blast Zone's lower half to blast quickly down a path and to an enemey platform.  It was soon after used to blast thru an enemy on the platform, lol.

The next cut scene brought us to full on Freeze Blade and another Swap Force Zone...This time, it was the speed (?) zone and Freeze Blade was racing against the clock to get to the finish line.  This was eerily similar to what I remember as a kid with Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles as I attempted to attain Chaos Emeralds. 

And that was that...all too soon the video came to an end.  That said, we saw a lot of cool stuff, got a feel for some of the character's personalities and powers, and saw a few more enemies and game locations.  If you pay careful attention you will see some Elemental Gates and other Swap Force Zones around the areas in the clips.

Skylanders Swap Force: New Character Illustrations and Screen Shots from Activison

Free Ranger, Air Element Swap Force

Official Character Illustration

Free Ranger Screen Shot

Free Ranger vs Chompies

Magna Charge, Tech Element Swap Force

Official Character Illustration

Magna Charge vs Frigid Chompies

Night Shift, Undead Element Swap Force

Official Character Illustration

Rattle Shake, Undead Element Swap Force

Official Character Illustration

Rattle Shake Screen Shot

Rattle Charge (Rattle Shake + Magna Charge)

Rattle Shift (Rattle Shake + Night Shift)

Skylanders Swap Force Official Fact Sheet (Direct Copy)

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:

Skylanders is “mixing it up” with the newest game in the award-winning, top-selling franchise.   Skylanders SWAP Force builds upon the success of the franchise’s signature gameplay and collectible toy experience, adding an all-new dimension to the “toys to life” innovation.  The game introduces a compelling play pattern -- dynamic swapability -- that lets gamers transform 16 SWAP Force inter-action figures into more than 250 unique characters by swapping the top and bottom halves of the toys.  Now, Portal Masters can mix and match characters’ powers and moves and experience an unprecedented level of choice than ever before seen in a Skylanders game.   Fans also can play Skylanders SWAP Force with their entire collection of 100+ characters from Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure^® and Skylanders Giants^TM.

Skylanders SWAP Force features new abilities – such as flying, climbing, digging, bouncing, or teleporting – which can be used in previously unexplored areas of Skylands centered on these play mechanics.  Additionally, the game features 16 new core characters, eight new LightCore™ characters and 16 new versions of fan favorite Skylanders from previous games.  Now kids will have more than 100 characters from which to choose. The game’s high-resolution graphics brings detailed characters and richer environments to life, immersing players in the game like never before.

In Skylanders SWAP Force, Portal Masters embark on an all new adventure in the mysterious Cloudbreak Islands, home to a mystical volcano that erupts every hundred years to replenish the magic in Skylands.  During an epic battle, a brave group of Skylanders were caught in the volcano’s eruption, which blasted them apart and sent them to earth.  But, the magic of the volcano gave these heroes a remarkable new power -- the ability to swap halves – turning them into a special team known as the SWAP Force.  Meanwhile, Kaos is back with a new evil plan.  And now, Portal Masters everywhere must reassemble the SWAP Force -- in their original form or in new combinations -- and send them back to Cloudbreak to save Skylands!

KEY FEATURES:

o   Vast Possibilities for Play – Skylanders SWAP Force features 16 new SWAP Force inter-action figures with new powers and a fresh play pattern – dynamic swapability – that lets kids create more than 250 unique character combinations, giving them more choice than ever before over how they fight and move in the game.  With each new addition to their Skylanders SWAP Force collection, Portal Masters unlock an exciting world of possibilities.  

o   More Play Options – Skylanders SWAP Force delivers a diverse and dynamic, story-driven gameplay experience, filled with adventure, combat, puzzles, mini games, and drop-in/drop-out co-op play -- all set within compelling environments.  With each new addition to their Skylanders SWAP Force collection, Portal Masters unlock exciting new possibilities.  Seasoned fans can play Skylanders SWAP Force with their entire collection of 100+ forward compatible characters from Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure and Skylanders Giants.  Plus, the level cap has been raised to 20 for all Skylanders characters, including legacy characters.  Additionally, based on fan demand, all Skylanders now have the ability to jump.

o   All-New Characters – More than 50 collectible characters including 32 never-before-seen Skylanders heroes each with unique powers and personalities::

•       16 new SWAP Force characters

•       16 new Core Skylanders characters

•       8 LightCore™ Skylanders characters

•       16 new versions of fan-favorite Skylanders from the previous games, each featuring an all new “Wow Pow” upgrade power

o   Exciting Adventure – Portal Masters will embark on a brand new adventure, encountering never-before-seen enemies and challenges, as well as meeting memorable non-playable characters who can help the Skylanders defeat Kaos and his minions in the Cloudbreak Islands.

o   Unique Swap Force Zones – Skylanders SWAP Force characters feature new abilities – such as flying, climbing, digging, bouncing, or teleporting – each of which can be explored in new areas of Skylands.

o   Enhanced Graphics Quality – Skylanders SWAP Force high-resolution graphics bring to life amazingly detailed characters and richer environments to deliver a high level of visual fidelity that immerse players in the game like never before.

Publisher:                  Activision Publishing, Inc.

Developers:               Vicarious Visions (Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4)

                                    Beenox (Wii)

                                    n-Space (3DS)

Platforms:                  Nintendo Wii™, Wii U™, 3DS™

Xbox 360™ and Xbox One™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft

PlayStation®3 and PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system

SRP:                            $74.99 - Skylanders SWAP Force starter pack

                                    $14.99 - individual Skylanders SWAP Force action figure

                                    $9.99 - individual core Skylanders action figure

Release Date:                        Oct. 13, 2013 - North America; Oct.16, 2013 - Australia; Oct. 18 - Europe

ESRB Rating:             Rating Pending

Skylanders Swap Force Slogans

Bonus Content: New Swap Force Banner w NEW Skylanders!

Wash Buckler "Eight Legs and No Pegs!"

MagnaCharge "Attract to Attack!"

Blast Zone "Blast and Furious"