Vehicle Reviews

Okay, in my opinion, this is just about the neatest addition to a train set out there. We first saw this at a (...) store and my son just couldn't take his eyes (or his hands!) off of it, so the Easter Bunny brought him a set. Boy, what a great idea that was! These guys go along the track all the time, never stop, and we just can't believe how neat they are. We don't have any trouble with the leaking (although there were some in the store that were dried out...) or with the windows being too dark. I really personally just love this set and its uniqueness. What a great idea!

My son owns almost every Thomas the Train character there is. These are the most durable toys. I picked this one because it is different from all the Thomas toys.

I read review that this toy leaked. My son's hasnt and believe me he has stepped on them, threw them at me, and I have even stepped on this toy.

As for the windows being too dark, this accusation is also false. I love looking at this toy and so does my son.

The only thing that is the problem with this toy is it is very costly.But with how destructive my son is, he hasn't made a dent in any of the 100 Thomas the Trains he owns.

I would recommend this toy to anyone with a child from one years old on. Even if the child is as "curious" (taking everything apart) as mine.

Another great train set! Aquarium cars are cool! Kids love looking at them and bringing them round and round the track. They seem Very Durable also as ours were dropped numerous times, tossed, and even stepped on! The water has never leaked, and is filled to the top just like new! And the creatures float and "bob" up and down as the train goes inside the tank. Great fun.

My son recieved it for his 2nd birthday and a year later still loves it. We keep it as an outside toy where he can dig and load dirt with it. Its nice and chunky for little hands and has a handle you push to make the loading part lift up. I imagine this toy will last forever.

My two boys(5 and 6) have both the loader and dump truck and they have put about 1,000 miles on tires and they keep going. They enjoy playing in the dirt with these toys.. They are kept outside and have lasted along time(3 yrs).. Even when left out in the rain, they have kept together with no problems.

I am a grandmother of a little boy and little twin girls, all 3 years old, and a Little 2 year old girl. All have fun digging in the sand or dirt with the Loader and Dump truck. I own almost all of Little Tikes Cars, Trucks, and "Diggers" and they provide hours of fun, are safe, and last forever. I have found that both boys and girls love digging and driving. It has given me much pleasure to watch them play.

This is a great game. You control a robot, or armored core (AC) via third-perspective in 50 arena levels or 20 single missions. When you win a battle in the arena, you earn money which can be used to upgrade your AC. You can customize your AC with a laundry list of components: shoulder weapons, hand weapons, legs, arms, torso, motor, booster, radar, and head. The hard part is finding the right balance of equipment that your AC can handle, in terms of weight and energy usage

For example, an AC with skinny legs and small body will have extra speed, but can't handle the weight of a bazooka or large motor. Or a heavy AC with giant armored legs and carry a @#%!load of stuff, but handles like a Sherman tank. At first, it's seems a daunting task to just customizing your robot. But after playing the game for a while, you'll develop a knack for balancing out and you'll just have to worry about surviving the missions and arenas. The first 20 or so arenas consist of easy-to-destroy opponents, but once you hit #30, you'd better hope you don't run out of ammo.

AC: Project Phantasma is a game for those who enjoy third-person fighting games, giant robots ala Robotech, or anyone who likes to fiddle and customize their equipment.

This game is the ultimate strategy game ! It is the funnest game i have ever played in my life !!!

I would say this game is the best I have ever seen the grafics are pretty good the lenth is good and the action is good .You start of with a piece of (...)for a core but you can buy weapons and armor to make it better I know you would like this game.

This is too cool to explain.

The lights work, the seat belts work, the horn works, THE RADIO WORKS!

What toy has a Radio??? None that I've heard of.

This toy has everything, buy it for a 9 and up!

I got this for my birthday and it is very cool for kids my age. at the time my aunty payed $70 and now it is $50. It has a radio and other opening things but is it really worth its money? are any toys these days worth there money? If i want a toy i have to earn $5 every 2 weeks to afford $20-$50-$70 toys because my mum has never really bought me much toys so i have to fork out money and by the time i do there will be more better toys at even higher prices. I dont really think any toys are worth there money these days. Should we really pay $30 for a stuffed toy? $80 for some barbie caravan that isnt that great? $50-$70 on this? is it worth it when they will eventually get bored of it? you be the judge!

This toy is a great addition to any Bratz collection. I am not going to go on and on about how many Bratz i have or any thing of the sort, but this car really tops the list for additional playsets. A GREAT addition if you want to have life-like scenes.

This car comes with: (Only a few features)
- working radio
- working HORN. ha ha ha.
- HUGE trunk
- soda, water and shopping bag
- seat belts
- stearing wheel cover

Once more, this car is awesome and i suggest everyone buy it. It is very durable and the wiring didn't get messed up when i spilled a pitcher of water on it, so it is EXTREMELY durable. This toy isn't all that educational, but it isn't like a bouncy ball or anything. IF YOU ARE A BRATZ FAN, I HIGHLY SUGGEST GETTING THIS TOY FOR YOURSELF OR ANY ONE ELSE YOU KNOW THAT LIKES BRATZ!!! HAVE FUN!

I read all the reviews before purchasing this, and those who liked this toy are correct. I bought this for $9.95 and you can't get a better toy for a 6 year old at this price. My son loves it. He especially likes the challenge of trying to keep the cars on the track--it takes a gentle touch, but no doubt it builds hand eye coordination. My younger daughter (4 years old) is still trying to figured it out--she guns it and the cars fly off the track, making everyone watching laugh and slightly annoying my son because it stops the action. Those who claim the toy is worthless because the cars wont stay on the track apparently don't get the point. Indeed, this toy would be drag if they stayed on the track regardless of the speed. Definitely worth it! I'm thinking about buying three or four of these for my adult friends!

I bought this track for my 6 year old for his birthday. I was looking for a slot car track but did not want to spend a fortune. This was a terrific value and we all love it! It is a little tricky learning how much speed to go to make it around the track w/o derailing, but that is all part of learning and having fun isn't it? My only complaint is that it is that the track should be a bit longer, but at this price, I think we may buy another set and connect them together! We give it a thumbs up as a great starter set for introducing kids (and adults) to to fun of slot car racing!

I bought the set for my 3 1/2 year old son for Christmas and within the first day he was already using both controllers and racing by himself. I think it should come with a bit more track to make it more challenging. Overall it was a great gift for him and it is nice to see him having as much fun as he has playing with this set.

After reading a few of these reviews I just had to put one of my own in. You certainly CAN hook the firestation onto the track. One side has the links that you are familiar with, the other side has tiny tounge and groove type links. The fire station hooks on to the tounge and groove and then the other side to the rest of the track. My son loves this train set at 2 1/2 it is hard to keep his attention on something for any length of time. But this train set keeps him occupied for hours on end!!

My son is in love with fire trucks, and fire stations....and trains.

He recieved this as a christmas gift, and was disapointed that the train does not run thru it. Yes, you can connect the station to the track, but it is only on one side. IF the train were to run thru it, it could NOT continue its way around the track, because the other side (front of the firestation) has no way to lock a piece of track in. I do not understand how the previous reviewer is locking the pieces in so that her son can run his train thru the station, because even the end pieces do not fit.

But just to play with, my son absolutely loves it.

My 3 1/2 year old son got this for Christmas and he just LOVES it! And, contrary to what another reviewer said, you CAN connect the tracks so it runs thru the station, as we do that every time we change the tracks around. These sets are easy for a small child to put together (and they do stay together well) and rather entertaining. I recommend this highly as a first-train for any toddler.

We ordered this item for our son. We had already purchased another one (orange box) and thought this would be a great addition. We were sent the Matchbox Hero-City Town Center 3-Pack instead. I'm going to keep it because my son was very excited when I told him the package was for him when it arrived. It is a cute set, but not little boxes like we wanted.

My 20-mos son is car-mad and we bought this to keep him entertained on an upcoming trip. I worked wonders. It is simple and may not simulate older kids used to extensive track and such, but for our youngster it is just the catalyst he needs to play quietly with his cars while in a restaurant. We like how easily it packs up into a tidy box and can be reassembled with two simple snaps of the ramp. It is not visually exciting nor does it have many features; this is simply a good, basic toy that easily be taken around with you.

WE ordered this for our 7yr old son. It was supposed to be put up for Christmas but you know how that goes. Anyway he has not put it down. He loves the little sets. Each one came with its own car and contains it within the set once closed up. This makes mommy happy b/c I am not stepping on cars all the time. They are easily transported from place to place. Very conveinient. He has taken it with us everywhere. He always has something to do. And of course the firesatation has to put out the fire at the service station and the one car needs repairs, etc thoruhg his imagination he has been busy for hours with this toy. I will definetely order more for Christmas gifts for friends' children once they are back in stock.

As previous reviewers mentioned, this item comes in three pieces. My son loves it but was getting extremely frustrated because it kept falling apart with the slightest bump. The small pegs that hold the top of the bridge on are just not enough stablility. Take a tad bit of wood glue, glue the top on the pegs and simply make it one piece. Do it right out of the box and save yourself some trouble. Once you do that it will provide lasting entertainment for your little one!

When I bought the Arched Stone Bridge I did not buy it seperatly, I bought it with the Stop N' Go Figure 8 Set. It is a wonderful bridge although it is no good without existing track. If you buy this buy it in a set. When I bought the Stop N' Go figure 8 Set it came with existing track as well as the bridge. I even priced everything that came with the set and it came up to [price] (if everything was purchased seperatly), and I paid [price] !! Can't beat that!!!

This is a great product. Highly durable, fun and great for all ages. My son and husband put the track together to make new figurations and can play for hours. My son recieved the Barrel Load Set for his 3rd birthday and I dont think he could have waited another day. The track is easy to put together and offers hours of open ended play. It is a bit more than you would pay for some other trains however the quality is well worth it and the fact that there are so expansion packs and adds ons makes it a toy that keeps changing to meet your childs needs. I would highly recommend this toy for a child as it meets all the kid and parent requirements for a great fun. We also bought the Thomas The Tank Express Engine (battery operated, Arched Stone Bridge and extra 3 1/2 inch track so we could put in the bridge. The battery opereated Thomas is nice because they get the feel for a train going on its on but dont be fooled there is still lots for the child to do. My son still has to "help" it along the track and really enjoys it.

i have this toy and i think it's fun!. i Like the way the barrells roll there are corn flour and molasses barrells.

We bought the Barrel Loader for our 2-year-old son for Christmas and it has easily become a staple in our track creations. While he still has more fun just putting every single one of his engines together and racing them around the track, every once in a while he does like to stop and use the barrel loader. This piece is great because it is independent of the tracks and it has the added bonus of teaching a little bit about cause-and-effect (you push down on the read lever and the barrel rolls out).

The Thomas train sets are great modern versions of the classic indestructible wooden train sets. Simple enough to avoid the toddler age frustrations of getting the cars to run on the track yet complex enough to engage a wide range of ages (up to and including Grandpas). All the stories help with the imagination part....the books & videos provide an endless source of adventures that can be acted out, although most kids are perfectly capable of inventing their own episodes.

Here is my advice, if you are trying to work your way through the maze of start-up options:

First of all, you can spend a fortune on a huge set....even if you can afford it, I would start with something small and give the child the joy of receiving a chain of small but intriguing presents over a long period of time. It fosters the joy of giving/receiving and helps teach them to come back again and again to the same toy...watching it grow, asking for specific items from the stories they hear, etc.

I suggest the Figure 8 set (the most popular one) or if you want to spend a little bit more, the Conductors Figure 8 set. Both are complex enough to be interesting, but simple enough to give lots of room for growth. Almost immediately I would add a new present of one of the inexpensive engines (you can ask the child which story they like best and get that engine for them....or buy the engine to go with the video or book in the same gift)....these would be Percy The Small Engine, Bill The Yellow Engine, Treavor, (or a bit more $ for:) The Lady Engine, James The Red Engine, Gordon The Express Engine (he's one of the best stories, I think), or Henry The Green Engine.

Now for the good stuff! Give it a month or so, and then reward the child with something really cool like the Barrel Loader or Rusty the Construction 3 Car Set.

I honestly can't see the point in the huge multi hundred dollar system sets. If you want to impress the neighbors or something, go for it, but I'm telling you.....most kids will enjoy a large number of small thoughtful gifts, not a "keep-up-with-the-Jones" effort on your part.

Good behavior can be rewarded with a pick-your-own trip to the store (...)

By the way, the Thomas stories are based on a real restored engine that runs in England in southeast Kent around Canterbury.

Descent was one of the most innovative games of its time. To this day, there has been nothing else quite like it. The general gameplay of Descent meshes an interior engine like Doom with a space combat simulator control scheme. The end result is a game where you can fly anywhere, even upside-down, through the levels.

You are Material Defender 1032, a mercenary hired by the Post-Terran Mining Corporation to douse a robotic rebellion in their intergalactic mines. It seems that a mysterious alien virus has overtaken control of the robots and is coercing them to attack Earth. Thus, you are sent to purge the PTMC mines by destroying their fusion Reactors.

The objectives of each level are fairly simple. Find the appropriate colored keys to open the proper doors in order to find the Reactor. Upon finding the Reactor, you can destroy it setting off a countdown sequence during which you must race to the exit as fast as possible. It is a compelling formula that never grows old.

The Playstation version of Descent is a worthy port of its PC counterpart. It offers new features including:

- An awesome new Redbook soundtrack. Some of the tunes come from the PC version of Descent 2, but most are actually remixes of the MIDI music found in the original PC Descent game.

- New movies. The game is marked by several CG-animated movies, including lengthy renderings of the introduction sequence and the ending sequence in full-motion.

- Colored lighting. During countdown sequences, the entire mine turns red and the lights pulsate. Weapons also have a colorful hue about them when they hit walls or other objects.

Still, the Playstation version is inferior in some respects. The most obvious is the framerate. It can be rather choppy at times and I would guesstimate it hovers around 15-20 fps. Moreover, it would have been cool if the multiplayer modes were split-screen instead of requiring two televisions, two Playstations, and two copies of Descent.

Needless to say, though, if you've never played Descent here's a good place to start. One of the more remarkable aspects of this port is how well the PSX controller was used. Anyone who has played Descent on the PC knows there are a ton of controls. Yet, somehow, Parallax simplified it all to fit on a PSX controller in a very intuitive, natural fashion.

Because the editorial review does not explain much i thought I should put in some more information. Here is the story line as i uderstand it. Descent is set in the future. By now mankind has become very advanced, especially in space travel. Colonies have been set up through out the solar system. Very important minerals have ben found on many of the planets and moons, mines were set up on these planets(and moons). But an unknown race of aliens has sent in some sort of computer virus to cuase the androids in the mines to mauthfunction and turn against humanity. You are a soldier working for p.t.m.c. and you have been assinged to stop the invasion. Each mine has a main reactor wich p.t.m.c. would normally be able to self destruct from space stations, but all radio connection has been lost, and evan if they could, there could still be human survivers in the mines. Now you have to go in and destroy the reactor yourself. Your mission is to enter the mines in a small battle spaceship, save any survivors, destroy as many robots as possible and than get to the main reactor and destroy it. Once the reactor has been destroyed you have 50 seconds to get to the emergency exit and escape. you win when you defeat all the levels, however when you win p.t.m.c. won't let you return because they fear that your ship has been infested with something(i don't understand what). You are armed with 10 weapons, the simple laser, or the plasma cannon witch shoots balls of super shocked slime or the muchine gun like vulcan cannon, the atomic mega missle or the homing missle wich seeks enamys out and blast them(or when it is fired by enamys, seeks you out and could probably follow you through the whole level). And you are up against more than 20 different enamy robots as you attempt to defeat 27 levels PLUS 3 or 4 secret levels. It also has great music(i like level 4's music the best). Graphics are great( I wish i could play it with some kind of virtual Reality mask). If you are thinking of getting descent, Trust me, the money is worth it.

With all of the Descent games out there, its seems like this one was kind of left in the dust. But in my opinion its probably the best and my favorite of them all. While Descent II expanded more with new features and Descent 3 totally changed the whole mission, this game is probably the most original of the three. So maybe its considered too basic, but that's acutally what I like about it. It has the coolest robots, the coolest levels, and the best soundtrack I've heard ever! I get immersed in this game and the gameplay does it. Granted the graphics are really pixelly, but who cares? The music and the levels keep me playing. While Descent II divided the levels up into different solar systems and kept recycling the music over and over again, not Descent. With 21 different musical compositions and 30 partially unique levels, this ones gives more variety. Also the surprises at the end of levels 7 and 27 were nice. In closing, this game is great. I grit my teeth and prepare to obliterate hoards of nasty mechanical nighmares every time. Get it if you can, they should re-release it. DESCENT RULES!!