Note: Sludge and Swoop were never released, only package art of the two exist. Toys from the USA are worldwide, unless otherwise stated. Toys appearing exclusively in one region will be listed only in that region. Note: The following list is ordered by year, then country (USA, Japan, or Europe). With the Transformers franchise facing extinction, Kenner took the brand in a different direction to hopefully revitalize the seemingly-tired concept. Furthermore, Hasbro had acquired Kenner, and the decision was made to shift the boys'-toy production to Kenner. A handful saw release in the European market (namely the Power Masters), but most of those canceled new molds stayed unreleased for years. Generation 2 was ended after about two and a half years, with several new products trapped in development limbo. Jolt, one of the super-posable Laser Rod toys. The toyline also was not supported by a new cartoon, relying instead on repackaged G1 episodes. Being up against the still-popular Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles brand and the ever-growing popularity of home video game consoles certainly didn't help. Kids still weren't into robots that turned into cars at the time, it seems, and the "older nostalgic" market (which can rarely sustain a major toy brand at nationwide retail even today) was outright microscopic at the time. Some fans blamed color selections, but it seems far more likely that it was simply a case of bad timing combined with too much product "your older brother has in the attic". The series debuted to lackluster sales, despite featuring fan-favorites like the Dinobots and Constructicons. Manta Ray, one of the awesome awesome awesome Rotor Force toys, which, if we haven't mentioned it yet, are awesome. Late in the line's run, Hasbro would use the same general tactic, applying numerous Generation One characters to toy redecoes in the hopes of stirring up nostalgic interest.
Both characters would receive multiple toys over the course of the line, in the form of both new molds and redecoes of previous characters' toys. Multiple new versions of Optimus Prime and Megatron were also released: though Optimus' original toy saw re-release with tweaked deco and new accessories, Megatron received the first all-new mold of the line early on as a colossal tank, as making him a handgun no longer seemed feasible. G2 Megatron, one of the lines more famous molds. Among them were the Go-Bots ( Hot Wheels-styled figures with simpler transformations and "precision" wheels), the Rotor Force (which featured firing plastic rotor weapons), the Laser Rods and Laser Cycles (which featured light-up LED weaponry), and the Cyberjets (realistic fighter planes with complex transformations.) These last groups also featured unprecedented posability. Because of this early product, it is sometimes inaccurately and unfairly remembered by fans as consisting solely of garishly recolored Generation One toys.Īs the line continued, however, numerous new molds and play features were introduced.
Initially, the line featured re-releases of several " Generation One" toys with new accessories and tweaked decos, alongside several molds that had been recently released as part of the European-market line, many of which would be re-released in Europe under the Generation 2 banner. Optimus Prime's first G2 toy, essentially a re-release of the original toy but with a new soundbox and weapons.
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