WMTW.com
December 13 , 2005

Special Report: Toy Test

By Marnie MacLean
News 8 WMTW

With less than two weeks to go before Christmas, Santa has a big pile of holiday wish lists to look through. He might be interested to know that children here in Maine have a lot to do with choosing which toys make those lists.

Every year, Family Fun magazine publishes its list of the hot toys for the holidays. It’s always one of the publications’ most popular issues.

For the past 14 years, Digital Research Inc., based in Kennebunk, has enlisted the help of southern Maine children to find out what the magazine’s top toys will be.

More than 100 kids spent weeks playing with more than 500 toys to determine which ones would make the cut. It’s a job any kid would love to have.

Digital Research Vice President Jane Mount said, "The Maine kids are very important. They are the ones who cull down 500 toys to the 63 finalists that get put in the magazine."

During the testing, researchers explain the toys, then stand back and watch.

Ian liked Alfredo’s Food Fight, and he liked knowing that his opinion will help determine what kids across the country will be playing with this Christmas.

So what did the Maine kids choose as some of the best toys this year? A big favorite was 3-D Pool. A realistic-looking cell phone that works like a walkie-talkie was also a hit.

But the toy of the year, according to the Maine kids, was the Knight’s Empire Castle. The magazine this year has a new category: Best Family-Friendly Video Games. Nintendo came up with the big winner this year.

Special Projects Manager Fred Abarona said, "The No. 1 game is Nintendogs -- that is such a hot title. It's taking care of your own dogs."