We don’t often review items outside the board/card/role-playing game genres, but we are always open to trying new things. Such is the case here today as I let you in on a little secret: I will review pretty much anything. Even toys/activities.
DISCLAIMER: We were provided copies of this toy system for the purposes of this review. These are retail copies of the system, so what you see in these photos is exactly what would be received. I played with these and received feedback from others of all age groups, and you may purchase a copy online or from your FLGS. -T
The purpose of these Loopy Loopers is to provide an alternative to fidget spinners and cubes. Honestly, I never really got into either the spinners nor cubes, but those offer different experiences than what a Loopy Looper does. Okay, so grab a Looper and a marble, whichever type of Looper and color of marble you prefer, and get to loopin!
“Get to loopin,” you say? Yes. The idea here is that you place a marble insider the Looper, grab it however you like, and try to generate centrifugal force to keep the marble spinning inside. Easy, right? That is what I thought as well. Initially I had lots of troubles getting the marble to spin inside the Looper and they kept falling to the ground with a very hard thud. As I practiced more I was able to get the hang of it, but there was a bit of a learning curve for me.
Blue Orange was kind enough to send one of each of the four offerings: Flow (green), Edge (purple), Hoop (blue), and Jump (orange). Obviously I reached for the purple one first. I think that was a mistake. Edge cuts out a good portion of tubing for the marble to travel on, so there is much more risk of the marble falling out if you are unable to find that centrifugal rhythm. Flow is probably the easiest of the four to start with, and that is what I suggest younger children tackle first. Or the uncoordinated adult. Jump can be frustrating to beginners as the marble seems to sneak out if the marble isn’t traveling at the correct speed. I guess for Jump, the rhythm is gonna get you big time (shout out to Miami Sound Machine). My favorite of the bunch is Hoop, and I believe I will have it perfected eventually. With Hoop, you are trying to get the marble spinning, and then let it fall into the provided hole, as a basketball would fall into a… hoop.
As the packaging says, once you are done playing with the Loopy Loopers simply place a marble into the proper holding space on the Looper and set it on its plastic stand for all to see.
Components. Strange to offer opinions on components in a non-board game setting, but I need to address some items. Firstly, these toys are made with excellent components and will stand up to repeated use (and possibly abuse) for a very long time. That is apparent. The Loopers themselves are made from very hard plastic with one side an opaque white and the other side the colored translucent plastic so one can see their marbles having a blast inside. The marbles themselves are rubber-coated metal, so while they feel bouncy to the touch, they certainly hit the floors hard when dropped. All in all the production quality is amazing and the Loopers are incredible to behold.
Now, I have had a great time with these and have tried them on my 4-year-old son (even though the packaging suggests 8+), my 10-year-old twin nephew and niece, my father, and other adults. Every one of them have mentioned liking the Loopers, with some absolutely loving them, and my son attempting a Looper heist to claim as his own. I do have a couple baby negatives here though. Firstly, those marbles are no joke when they fall on hardwood floors. If the floors are softer wood species, I recommend playing on carpeting elsewhere. With practice the fear of dropping subsides, but initially players will want to take precautions. Secondly, I had issues with my purple Edge Looper. When I would have the marble going well it would simply catch itself on the edge (haha) of the tubing and get stuck. Perhaps it is due to my apprentice-level skill, but I was not the only one with that issue.
All being said I would highly recommend checking out the Loopy Loopers if you are interested in spinner and cube alternatives. So many people can benefit from the increased focus or de-stressing affects of playing with these, and it is also encouraged to post videos of your sweet sweet tricks using #loopylooper. Not only do the Loopers look and feel great while playing, they add little bursts of color and interest on a shelf when not in use. If I knew how to make gifs of myself loopin with only two hands, I would show you it in action, but I am not nearly dextrous enough for that. Instead, I will link the YouTube channel so you can check it out for yourself. Oh, and grab one or more of these things because they are super fun. I am actually going to play with one right now!
