Toy and game companies have named the products they expect to drive holiday wish lists this season, in a lineup the companies submitted themselves to The Toy Book. The picks run from a $4.99 plush farm friend to a $279.99 wooden space railway, and licensed entertainment brands, screen-free audio, and app-connected crafts recur across the list. Because the entries come from manufacturers rather than independent testing, the selection reflects each company's own view of its holiday drivers rather than a ranked verdict.
The publication noted separately that its own editorial team's hot-holiday picks appear in sister title The Toy Insider's 2026 Holiday Gift Guide.
Franchises carry much of the list
Pokémon's 30th anniversary appears twice: a $49.99 Elite Trainer Box for ages 6 and up that introduces a "Futuristic Rare" card rarity, all-foil cards, and the return of 30 classic Pokémon, and a $199.99 Toniebox 2 bundle for ages 5 and up whose four figures — Pikachu, Squirtle, Charmander, and Bulbasaur — play stories and songs on the screen-free audio player. Jazwares offers a $79.99 Pikachu with more than 100 action and sound combinations, touch sensors, blinking eyes, and mouth movement. Elsewhere, a 106-piece LEGO Bluey school set sells for $24.99, a two-foot-tall five-story Bluey home at $149.99 projects spinning stars and moons from its chimney, a Donkey Kong Country playset with 2.5-inch figures is priced at $19.99, a 502-piece Minecraft Skeleton model targets ages 10 and up, and Playmates' $37.99 Mega Thunderzord carries more than 15 phrases with lit eyes.
Tech and AI edge into play
Hapiko's voice-powered sticker maker uses AI to generate printable sticker combinations; the company says built-in filters act as guardrails and that the device is not "always listening." Golden Bear's $99.99 Strikesphere basketball trainer guides drills with light across three game modes and tracks scores on an LCD. A Cra-Z-Art instant camera for tweens prints photos in seconds without cables or extra devices and ships with markers and stickers. Loops Lab's set for ages 12 and up pairs an eight-spot stage that lights in multiple colors with five EDM-inspired band characters and two DJ figurines.
Sensory, squishy, and hands-on
Goliath's Chester, $29.99 for ages 8 and up, wiggles and emits comic sounds when squeezed and dances when its head is pressed, running on three AAA batteries. Horizon Group USA's slow-flow glitter gel stress toys, $4.99 to $8.99, come in licensed themes including Squishmallows, Hello Kitty, and Minecraft. Moose Toys packs five slimes and more than 50 mix-ins into a $32.99 kit. Melissa & Doug's modular dollhouse pieces run $9.99 to $34.99 for ages 0 to 2, while Simplay3's oversized rocking sensory nest, built for several children at once, is $129.99 for ages 2 and up.
Premium builds anchor the top end
Ravensburger's BRIO World Space Deluxe Set, $279.99, extends the wooden railway into orbit with 56 pieces, a multilevel layout, tunnels, a space station, a rover, and a shuttle with lights and sounds. Mattel's $214.99 modular dollhouse for ages 3 and up joins two structures into one home or links them with a bridge, and bundles nine play areas, two pools, two slides, and more than 65 accessories. Fat Brain Toys' tube-building system, $129.95, uses adjustable airflow to send foam balls racing and hovering through constructions.
Collectibles fill the impulse tier
MGA's eight mini dolls themed to music genres, $11.99 for ages 4 and up, arrive in pink disco balls topped with a record player. Super Impulse's Drip Drops sneaker collectibles offer 16 styles in Series 1, with brands including Hot Wheels, Godzilla, and Smiley, each in a shoebox with real laces, a display case, and a keychain. Tomy's woodland-themed blind boxes with uplifting messages run $18.99 to $24.99 for ages 15 and up, License 2 Play's Domo collectibles are $4.99 to $14.99, and Fizz Creations' keyring arcades carry Pac-Man, Tetris, and Grinch titles at $16.99 to $39.99.
Across the submissions, pricing splits between sub-$50 collectibles and craft kits on one side and playsets above $100 on the other, with age guidance stretching from 18 months to 15 and older.