A Bigger, Better Portal for Skylanders: Trap Team

For the upcoming fourth installment in the beloved toys-to-game Skylanders franchise, developer Toys for Bob has expanded on the series and created not just another Skylanders game, but an awesome new evolution for the series. Skylanders: Trap Team is much more than it appears to be.

Trap Team takes everything we love about Skylanders, and adds in an awesome and compelling new feature: trapping and collecting enemies. Using Trap tokens, players can capture villains, then bring them back as playable characters to fight alongside the titular Skylanders. This monster-catching mechanic expands the roster substantially, with 40 hilarious and interesting villains.

Take Painyata, for instance: He’s a beastly, roaring piñata that barfs candy at his foes, so you can bring him out to pummel some enemies into submission for a while. Or, if your Skylander needs some healing, maybe you’d call out Broccoli Guy – who is exactly what he sounds like.

The enemies-turned-allies can only join the fight for a short while, before they have to recharge – and each Trap token only holds one enemy. Trapping enemies is a fun experience in itself, further expanding on the series’ Portal system. For those not in-the-know, the Portal is a physical device that attaches to your Xbox console. When a Skylanders figurine is placed on the Portal, you assume control of the character in-game. Newly trapped enemies will talk and shout from inside Trap Team’s new Portal, and each one has a different personality and lines.

There are lots of new Skylanders, too – and the new designs are some of our favorites in the series. Crossbow-wielding gator Snap Shot is suitably rad, and the big shield-bearing lion Wildfire is one of the nicest figures we’ve seen from the series. And, of course, previous Skylanders work as well, so all your old favorites can return.

And on the subject of returning favorites, Skystones (the tile-based game from Skylanders Giants) is back. It’s evolved as well, becoming Skystones Smash… and feeling more like a card game than a board game this time around. It’s the cherry on top of an awesome action-adventure package that’s sure to enthrall all sorts of gamers when Skylanders: Trap Team hits Xbox One and Xbox 360 on October 5.