TOY FAIR 2012: Obos Arrive On Earth… at Toy Fair!

One of my favorite things about Toy Fair is discovering cool new properties that are just getting started, and as far as I’m concerned the coolest new project I saw on the floor was OBOS by Really Brothers! OBOS is a wild new line of customizable creatures that are as friendly to designer toys as they are to the environment… since they are 100% plastic free! Check out the Obos right here…

Obos is an original concept from Really Brothers, featuring a whole cast of cube-shaped creatures from the planet OBO, each belonging to their own unique ecosystem. The Obos all sport some wild designs, and include swappable parts such as legs, arms, horns, tongues and accessories– each cube-shaped critter’s parts (about eight per figure) are also swappable between Obos, giving you the freedom to completely customize each one! The first series of Obos includes six unique figures: Burr is the ice-based Obo, Oshi is a sea creature, Munti is aerial with a set of bat wings, Zard breathes fire, Fofo is a forest-based creature and finally Guba is a green guy who proudly touts “Fruit grows on my head!” New waves of Obos are planned to follow every three to four months.

As fresh and fun as the designs are, the other thing that’s really impressive about these toys is how eco-friendly they are– right from the start, the Obos have no real packaging– the “box” that contains the Obo is actually the creature’s cube-shaped body, wrapped in an outer wrapper which unfolds to reveal the instruction sheet. Inside the container/ body you will find the legs, arms, and other parts that can be added to your Obo. These figurines contain absolutely no plastic, but for those of you who are concerned this means the Obos won’t be durable, don’t worry– they’re made of certified recyclable paperboard, which is much sturdier and more resistant to wear that cardboard, so the figures will hold up just fine, even if you swap their parts as often as I plan to.

Series 1 will release in May, but there is a great pre-sale offer going on now at Kickstarter.com– with fun and funky designs and a real sense of environmental consciousness, it’s impossible not to love these little guys. CLICK HERE to preorder your OBOS today!