I didn't need Deep Water Rescue High Tide but I was compelled to order it anyway - Rescue Bots is a category I largely ignore because I am not six. I am fascinated by the format, as Hasbro (via Playskool) manages to make colorful, sizable toys at a low price. High Tide's robot mode is comparable to contemporary Leader-class figures, which are also 10-inches tall and cost $44.99. That's over twice as expensive for a toy that, while significantly more complex, is roughly the exact same size. High Tide does not deliver cool weapons, incredible detail, or impressive articulation. It is, however, an insanely speedy transformation and a decent sized vehicle/playset for your smaller toys.
In short, it's inspiring - Hasbro managed to make something like this at a nice low price, and its experiments in lower-priced toys always yield interesting results. For a mere $3 more than a Generations Deluxe toy, you get a big robot that turns into a big boat - I have to wonder if Hasbro were so inclined, could they apply this to a bigger toy? Could we get a very simple city bot for $50-$60? I can't help but think it could be doable.
The 10-inch boat bot looks like a seaworthy Omega Supreme. With claw hands and a nifty hook backpack, the figure has no real articulation to speak of - it's just a big plastic robot you can play with. If you're an older fan, you'll no doubt recall that the original toys of the 1980s were often pretty simple too - any and all moving parts were dedicated to the transformation. Things like wrist joints just plain didn't exist, so what you have here is a robot with white feet from the deck, a red chest from the tower, and a blue head on top of the whole thing. He's even got a Rescue Bots anchor tattoo on his arm - how naval! There are little pegs all over him for boat mode, these allow you to connect various 5mm accessories to his arms or body. The downside is what you see is what you get - his neck doesn't turn and his arms only move inward in the auto-transformation to boat mode.
The boat is a boat! Of course it is - what else would it be? High Tide is a little too big for most Rescue Bots toys, but you can see places to put smaller figures on the deck of the ship. The claw mounts to the front, and you can use it to pretend to pull guys out of the water. He has rolling wheels so he can move around the ocean that is a table, so it's actually a pretty great toy.
With no real articulation and minimal action elements, this is a good toy for kids. I'm not saying you won't like it as a collector - there are enough elements that make it fun to futz with, it's just that you can do everything there is to do with this toy inside five minutes of opening the box. It's a sizable example of what can be done on a budget, but I think if toys in the other lines were exactly like this we'd see a rapid exit of collectors. As it is, it's decent. I like it, but I'm not going to go all-in on this line.
16bit.com is best not viewed in Apple's Safari browser, we don't know why. All material on this site copyright their respective copyright holders. All materials appear hear for informative and entertainment purposes. 16bit.com is not to be held responsible for anything, ever. Photos taken by the 16bit.com staff. Site design, graphics, writing, and whatnot credited on the credits page. Be cool-- don't steal. We know where you live and we'll break your friggin' legs.
RSS 
