Holiday gift tips: Fantastic toys and where to find them

According to Byrne, this 800 piece Lego set promises to be one of the more popular pieces by the plastic brick company.
“Toy Guy” Chris Byrne said the integration of physical toys with a video game is an exciting concept. Starlink: Battle for Atlas was released by gaming company Ubisoft on Oct. 16, 2018 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch consoles.
Byrne said that Hairdorable toys are on track to have a strong run this holiday season.
Go! Go! Smart Wheels Mickey Magical Wonderland may be a bit of a mouthful to say, but Byrne said it’s a great toy for kids ages one through five.
Yeti, Set, Go! is a board game by PlayMonster that Byrne said has potential. You play as a yeti. You kick meatballs up a mountain. Because that’s what yeti do.
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Herring's office said in a statement Wednesday that the company was Hearts 2 Heroes based out of Bunker Hill, West Virginia. It did business as Active Duty Support Services and sold care packages door-to-door.(Getty Images/iStockphoto/kobeza)

WASHINGTON — With Thanksgiving and Black Friday getting closer and closer, it’s about that time of year to finalize Christmas wishlists and figure out what to get for the kids in your life. And that’s not always easy.

Chris Byrne, aka “the Toy Guy“, told WTOP that all too often, people try to guess what their kids want and forget to use a very important life skill that they learned when they were children: communicate.

“I basically think — talk to your kids,” Byrne said. “Every child is different — their play style is different; what they want to engage with is different. Think about the things that your kids like to spend time with. There are construction kids; there are vehicle kids; there are action figure kids; and every child is very unique.”

As for big ticket items this year, Byrne said that following trends is not always the best way to find a gift because what’s popular with many is by no means popular with all.

Byrne said that entertainment-based games, such as a Harry Potter-themed Lego set, typically perform well during the holiday seasons.

Most of all, don’t wait to pull the trigger on something that you believe your kids will enjoy. Items can always be returned but missing the opportunity to buy them in the first place may lead to some unnecessary holiday stress.

Zeke Hartner

Zeke Hartner is a digital writer/editor who has been with WTOP since 2017. He is a graduate of North Carolina State University’s Political Science program and an avid news junkie.

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