Activision to bring "Skylanders Trap Team" to tablets

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Activision will bring its popular Skylander series of games and action figures to Apple, Android and Kindle Fire tablets this October, marking a shift in how games are packaged and sold.

The game will be available as an app on October 5 and will cost the same as versions offered for gaming consoles, $74.99. Gamers can download the app and use the starter pack, which will include two "portals of power," two plastic figurines and a controller that will connect to the tablet via Bluetooth.

Activision sells around 175 action figurines that gamers can use to place on the portal instantly creating a likeness of the figurine in the game. Players can then take the character out of the game and use it to play with their friends, by placing it on their portal.

The company sold over $2 billion in toys and portals last year, making the game hugely popular among children, as it is an innovative way to introduce an added element of interactivity to gaming.

"We've built mobile games in the past, but this is different than that," said Greg Wilson, the senior product director of Skylander. "This is all the content, a tremendous amount of linear media, cut scenes, all of the levels, every Skylander character we've ever made going back to 2011, just like you expect in a PlayStation or a Wii."

Part of the reason why such games were limited to gaming consoles is because only recently were mobile devices equipped with enough processing power to handle complex games.