The National Toy Hall of Fame is filled with more than toys bought in the store.  Currently visitors can find the blanket, sand, the simple cardboard box and even the stick as members of the Hall of Fame.

Among the list of nominees for this year’s inductees is an element of nature…SNOW!  That fluffy white stuff that gives parents nightmares going to work but kids pray it will deposit enough to get them a day off from school; spending the day throwing it around and building people.

Other nominees include the game of battleship, Trivial Pursuit, cornhole, the scooter, slime, the lightsaber, and Tickle Me Elmo.

Vice president for collections and chief curator Christopher Bensch spoke on the Toy Hall nominees saying, “this year’s contenders present some playful matchups.  Along with a slate of board games and tactile materials like snow and slime. There’s also Tickle Me Elmo and Furby — two technological icons of the 90s toy world — battling it out.”

He added, “I’m always excited to see where the judges and public come out in their votes.  At the end of the day, the playful debates just go to show how much personal and cultural relevance these toys have for us all.”

The public has an opportunity to weigh in on their choices by casting their votes for their choice of Hall of Fame inductees. 

The top three choices will be added as the “Players Choice” and will count as one vote to join the panel of experts including historians and educators.

The winners will be announced in November.

The National Toy Hall of Fame is located in Rochester, New York as a part of The Strong Museum of Play.

The toys nominated for the Hall of Fame must be iconic, inspire multiple generations, foster creativity, and spawn innovation.

Currently there are 87 toys housed on the second floor of The Strong Museum in the National Toy Hall of Fame.

Meet the 2025 National Toy Hall of Fame nominees…

The game of Battleship was first introduced in 1967 and immediately became a hit and has gone on to sell over 100 million games.  Cries of “you sunk my battleship” could be heard in homes all over the world.

Originally known as Settler of Catan, the board game Catan was created in Germany in 1995 and has gone on to sell over 45 million copies in 40 languages.  Along with the spinoffs, the game has inspired a cookbook.

Connect Four goes beyond the traditional paper game of X’s and O’s.  Players drop discs into the vertical “board” in hopes of getting four in a row.  Along with the small games found in homes, there are large versions of the game for outdoor play.

A time honoured tailgate game, cornhole involves a board with a hole in it where players toss bean bags hoping to sink it in the hole.

The robotic character known as a Furby hit the market in 1998 and sold 40 million units in the first three years.  Furby got an update in 2023.

It is not unusual in summer to see young ones zipping up the down the streets in bicycles and scooters.  These days the scooters are now electric and power operated.

Ooey gooey slime was introduced in 1976.  Today it has not only invaded homes but Kids Awards shows.  And with a little imagination, slime fans can make their very own at home.

White, fluffy, wet, and very versatile SNOW has been a plaything for children and adults since the beginning of humanity.  Like sand, the stick, and the cardboard box; snow is one of the “back to basics” toys.

Spirograph, an artistic toy that allowed drawers to make endless circles with a variety of plastic discs.  In the past 60 years, millions of winding endless spirals have been drawn.

The original “Star Wars” film appeared in theaters in 1977.  The following year Kenner released the lightsaber to the thrill of fledgling Jedi nights everywhere.  Over the years they have evolved to include lights and sound for more “realistic” play.

In 1996 parents swarmed toy departments that evolved into aggressive negotiations in a fight over the biggest Christmas toy – Tickle Me Elmo – the giggling red monster Muppett of “Sesame Street”.

It has been over 40 years since Trivial Pursuit challenged the knowledge of players in a wide variety of questions.  Since its inception, the game has sold over 100 million games.