Beyblade is a child’s toy—a variation on the top—that players use in competitive “battles.” In a typical battle, two or more players each release a spinning Beyblade into a bowllike “stadium.” The winner is generally the player whose Beyblade spins the longest or knocks the other Beyblades out of the stadium. Beyblades have been marketed through their own manga (Japanese comics) and anime (Japanese animation). First introduced in Japan, the toys have become popular around the world, selling millions.
Each Beyblade top consists of a few interchangeable pieces. The base piece includes the tip that the top spins on. The middle piece is a weight that helps determine the Beyblade’s mass and center of gravity. The last piece is a wide, colorful cap.
Once a Beyblade is assembled for battle, the player connects it to a launcher. Battles begin after a countdown from three, with the players pulling a ripcord to launch their Beyblades. The Beyblades spin around the arena and collide with one another. The winner is the last player to have a Beyblade still spinning. Players can collect and trade Beyblade parts to create the most effective Beyblade for competition.
Players can battle their friends or even compete in organized Beyblade competitions. Some of these are conducted by a fan-run organization called the World Beyblade Battling Association (WBBA). In WBBA competitions, players are scored according to a few different rules. If a Beyblade spins out of the stadium or stops spinning, for example, the opponent player receives one point. If a Beyblade Burst model top breaks apart during battle—as they are designed to do when struck—the opponent receives two points.
Beyblades draw their inspiration from beigoma, a traditional Japanese game of battling tops. Beyblades were first introduced in Japan in 1999 by the Japanese toymaker Takara. They were introduced worldwide by the American toymaker Hasbro, Inc., in 2002. The Beyblade Burst version of the toy was introduced in 2016.
The manga “Bakuten Shoot Beyblade” was introduced alongside the Beyblade toy in 1999. The manga followed the adventures of Takao Kinomiya and his friends as they trained and battled to become the best Beybladers in the world. The anime adaptation of the series was also titled “Bakuten Shoot Beyblade.” It ran for about a year in 2001. An updated manga series, “Bakuten Shoot Beyblade: Rising,” was released in 2016.
