The 90s were a great time for a lot of things. While the '80s kicked things off with a bang in the world of nerd media with some great cartoons, movies, music, and more, it seemed as if the '90s were ready to take things to the next level with more technology and even more risks.
These advancements, of course, extended into the world of toys as well. However, some toylines of this era happen to be the best of the best among the others. This list will be taking a look at ten toylines that fit that category so without further ado, these are the 10 best toylines that debuted in the '90s, ranked.
10 Beanie Babies
How could anyone forget the toyline that was basically the original version of Funko Pops? Beanie Babies took the world by storm in the year 1993 and became the biggest craze that swept the nation. These little guys are a line of stuffed toys full of plastic pellets that the company called "beans."
These plushies differed from others on the market due to their posability. So large was the demand for these that it led to a Beanie Baby economy, with certain plushies costing as much as half a million Dollars. Beanie Babies quickly became the hottest collectible toys on the market ,which led to an oversaturation that ironically resulted in their downfall.
9 Furby
Another toy that took the world by storm on a collectible level was Furby. This creepy little electronic toy was the must-have toy of the era with 1.8 million sold in 1998 and 14 million sold in the following year. What's notable about Furby is that it wasn't just a lucrative toy, but the first successful attempt to produce a domestically aimed robot.
This was one of those toys that parents would be fighting over for Christmas gifts in the year of 1998. They also had a run at McDonald's as Happy Meal toys - something those who survived the years of Furby Fever would clearly remember.
8 Yu-Gi-Oh! Cards
The '90s were a time when a lot of collectibles came into the market. Out were the simple toys showing up to coincide with a cartoon show, and in was the new era of every major toy company there is trying to create the next big collectible toy. Konami's Yu-Gi-Oh! was just that.
This series came out after the initial release of the anime and manga, and kids of all ages ate up every bit of it. These cards even brought about a very strong competitive playing scene that is alive and well even to this day. Is it time to duel? Of course it is!
7 Pokémon
The unbeaten leader of the collectible toy market is, without a doubt, the Pokémon series. Pokémon dropped with a very successful new game series for the Gameboy that was all about catching em all. Of course, this would lead every kid on the block to want to become a real-life Pokémon master.
What better for every wannabe master than some collectible toys of the monsters they're dreaming of catching? Yes, there was a Pokédex to go with the little guys as well. And truth be told, decades later, we still want one!
6 Power Rangers
Power Rangers is a series that made its big appearance in the year 1993 and it was met by children in front of televisions everywhere to an immediate and overwhelmingly positive response. Thankfully, Bandai had a bunch of Japanese toys ready for production from the father series of Power Rangers, Super Sentai.
These toys ranged from the usual action figures to costume sets, to electronic toys, and giant mech toys. The best would have to be the Quick Morph toys that dropped soon after. As Power Rangers continues to live on, expect more toys to come out.
5 Dragon Ball Z
Speaking of Japanese toys, there is no one that can forget the age that Dragon Ball Z hit the scene via the Cartoon Network anime block, Toonami, and took over the world. This series began its journey to become the most recognizable anime quickly during the '90s and the toys had a good part in that.
It's still funny to imagine how many parents were probably confused about which guy with spiky yellow hair to pick up for their kid waiting at home.
4 Beast Wars: Transformers
After Transformers were introduced in the 80s things slowed down for a while. Once 1998 came around technology got a lot better and that leaked into the world of cartoons with Beast Wars: Transformers releasing with all-new animation. Of course, the toy technology was improving as well.
With a new series of robots in disguise, a new lineup of toys was to come out as well. These toys were a lot more complex given their more animal-based designs, which then led to a wave of Transformers with more modes than just vehicles. Basically,Beast Wars changed the world of Transformers toys forever.
3 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Much like the Transformers, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles continued their cartoon run and life on the shelves and kept capturing the hearts of fans everywhere. Instead of a new series, the heroes in a half-shell just kept releasing new creative characters and new versions of the turtles.
Aside from the usual variants and costume updates, the Turtles came with different gimmicks, such as: Trolls, historical, sports, rock n' roll, and pizza tossing. This became the toyline's model to follow for years, and this outlandishness is one of the reasons that this line is still one of the most creative ones there is.
2 Super Soaker
The Super Soaker is one of the most well-loved toy gun series there is. This water gun toy hit the scene in 1990 and was the favorite of kids during the summertime everywhere. Believe it or not, these famous plastic guns have a deep history and actually began their life after being idealized by a NASA and Air Force engineer.
This water gun was originally sold by the company Larami but was afterward bought out by Hasbro and is now being produced under the Nerf brand. This toy was and still is so popular that nowadays just about every water gun toy is called a Super Soaker by a lot of fans.
1 Tamagotchi
Tamagotchi is a handheld digital pet that was released by the famed toy company, Bandai, in the year of 1996. This toy became the new fad of the generation and just about everyone had to have one, from little kids to celebrities. In fact, many once considered the little guys a fashion statement!
These toys are still sold worldwide and actually still bring in quite the profit with over 82 million units being sold as of 2017. They emulate the feeling of having a real pet with the digital animals having life cycles, feeding times, play needs, as well as presenting the owner with potty duty.