Rant: Nerf Rebelle.. I'm all in:)

"Hi Pocket. I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the new Rebelle line. Do you feel girls really need their own line of blasters branded and designed specifically for them?"

"What do you think about the new Rebelle line? I like the blasters but hate the pink. Why do you think they did that?"

"Are you going to buy the new Rebelle series of blasters from Nerf?"

Ahh, Rebelle. Talk about making a splash! The upcoming Rebelle line from Nerf has quite the buzz and maybe it's good to start shaking things up a little from communities other than those in the Nerf world. I generally prefer to stick to the toys themselves rather than the themes behind it, but for this particular one I thought I'd finally deliver a rant piece, so here's my own thoughts- after the jump:)

Engadget: More on the Rebelle line

Tech blog Engadget gets a closer look at the upcoming Nerf Rebelle line, with much focus on the new cradle tht looks similar to the Lazer Tag ones from the LTAR line (only apparently it works with an iPhone5!) More pics after the jump, and what they have to say on it all:)

Nerf Rebelle hands-on: Engadget

Toy Spy: NYC Toy fair coverage 2013

Pics courtesy of the Toy Spy, but various sources all over the webs are buzzing over news from the NYC Toy fair, offering more info in the upcoming Nerf Rebelle line. It actually looks pretty cool; check more images after the jump as well as the Toy Spy's interview with 'Caitlin' who showcases the new phone app cradle, much like that found in the Lazer Tag Augmented Reality line.

MyLastDart: Hasbro conference news part 1

My Last Dart has grown rapidly over the past few months as a very good source of news for Nerf related stuff. They've been able to reveal much of Hasbro's plans for Nerf for the new year- especially regarding the new Nerf 'Rebelle' line. Collectable darts?:P Check out all the news on their blog.

MyLastDart: Hasbro conference news part 1:

Nerf Rebelle Heartbreaker Bow

It's called the "Rebelle" line, and it comes in nice pinks and purples, and it's called a "Heartbreaker" bow, so we're going to have to make a generalist stab and suggest Nerf is targeting girls in their new series of gear. My intel comes from Jezebel who were kinda scathing at the concept, and I totally get why. Will the new Rebelle range sit next to the N-Strike Elite range, or be located in the 'Girls toys" aisles? I guess at the end of the day, it's all about marketing, so whether you agree or disagree, there's still a distinction between "girls toys" and "boys toys" and it's all about selling as much product as possible.

That all aside, it's pretty cool to see the bow return to the mix, and more importantly, it shoots (albeit pretty pink and green ones) elite darts rather than its own foam arrow.  Feel free to paint it, or feel confident with your own sexuality and fight back against gender bias of colours and just shoot your opponents with a pink bow. A hit, is a hit, regardless of the colour, yes?

Nerf Barrel Break IX-2: How Elite are you REALLY?

Well this was a lil out of nowhere- while the official line from Nerf is that N-Strike has been discontinued, we continue to see odd numbers like this- the N-Strike Barrel Break IX-2 is to be re-released in Elite colours but no sign of Elite performance. I mean it LOOKS cool (I'm a fan of the Elite blue) but no changes to the internals and the N-Strike logo still prominent suggests this IS just a repaint and contradictory to Nerf's official statement of N-Strike being discontinued!

In what seems even weirder, Nerf also continue with their apparent "these days people don't want attachments" trend and this new Barrel break seems to be sans dart holder- which in my view was one of the most useful accessories ever. I'm hoping to be wrong, but the box art has no ammo holder, there's no wording of it on the product description. If you have a look at the original artwork:

Will other N-Strike blasters get the same treatment? Will we see a Elite coloured Spectre without the stock and barrel attachment? Hmmmm....

The 'new' Barrel Break is available for preorder at Toys R Us (US)

2013 Super Soakers: spotted Virginia USA

It may officially still Winter in the US, but apparently the new Super Soaker line is already making it to the shelves. These ones were spotted in a Target in Virginia and sent to us by a reader:

"we have found these water guns at a Target in Virginia, we only bought the Flash Blast, which can be slam-fired. the Switch Shot is capable of four different fire modes due to the rotation of the front of the gun."

A few more pics sent to us after the jump. Thanks Tami!