Beyblade (toy)

Beyblade (ベイブレード Beiburedo) is a line of high-performance spinning top toys originally developed and manufactured by Takara starting in 2000. Both the toys and their name were inspired by "Beigoma", a traditional spinning top. The introduction of the toy corresponded with the broadcast of the Beyblade anime television series of the same name. In 2002, Hasbro began to sell Beyblade toys internationally (under license from, and produced by, Takara) along with a coordinated country-by-country rollout of localized versions of the TV series. The Beyblade toy line went on to be one of the most popular toy lines in the world from 2000–2005 and as of 2005 over 100 million units had been sold worldwide. In August 2008, Takara Tomy released a new generation of Beyblade with a metal outer layer; the first incarnation of the toy in three and a half years. from the Basic System through the Heavy/Hard Metal System, Beyblades were categorized as Attack, Defense, Combination, or Endurance Types, but when the Hybrid Wheel System was introduced, the Combination and Endurance Types were renamed as Balance and Stamina Types, respectively. These Beyblades may have pictures on them that symbolizes a creature (known as a Bit-Beast) which shows what the Beyblade does, or looks like. In Beyblade: Metal Fusion they have symbols on them that represent one of the 88 constellations in space. Players are encouraged to mix-and-match their Beyblade in order to win.

History
Long ago, meteorites fell down on Earth. One such meteorite was full of dark power. The ancient people used this power to create the basis of L-Drago. With this power, they were able to control the world of war and thus were unstopable. L-Drago was passed down from generation to genreation and changed it's form and shape throughout. However, some people knew these people were greedy and only wanted more power so they created a Bey to represent their "Light of Hope", Pegasus. Pegasus would later become the basis for all other Beyblades. In a fierce battle, Pegasus was barely able to defeat L-Drago and L-Drago was locked away in a chamber in Koma Village and became known as the "Forbidden Bey" due to it's incredible power.

Anime
In the anime, people battle with their Beyblades. When they win they earn Beypoints which show how powerful they are. Beyblades come in all shapes and sizes and Bladers take good care of their Bey when Beyblading.

Rules
Note: These are the rules for the Metal Fusion/Metal Fight era of Beyblade.

Goal


 * Be the first player to score 7 points or more.

How to battle Scoring
 * Both players begin with the signal, "3, 2, 1, - LET IT RIP!"{Go Shoot!}
 * At the signal both players launch their Beys into the Beystadium.
 * One launch per battle; battle ends when one Bey stops spinning.
 * If your top spins longer than your opponent, you score 1 point.
 * If you touch your opponent during their launch, your opponent scores one point.
 * If you don't launch your Bey successfully into the stadium you lose one point.
 * If your Bey gets trapped in a penalty pocket, your opponent scores 2 points.
 * If you touch the stadium during battle, your opponent scores 3 points and the battle is immediately over.
 * Compete in multiple battles until one player scores 7 or more points.

Types of Beyblades
Each Beyblade has a different type. It determines what Type they are most best at.

Attack: These Beyblades specialize in attacking other Beyblades. They battle fiercely and try to knock out the other Beyblade as fast as they can.

Defense: These Beyblades specialize in using defense. Just like the saying "the best offense is a good defense", they stay in one place and defend themselves from incoming Beyblades so their attacks are immune to them. Making an Attack-Type useless against this type.

Stamina: These Beyblades specialize in stamina. They are used so they can out-spin the enemy Bey and win. Their stamina last-longer against other Type of Bey making them a strong opponent.

Balance: These Beyblades specialize in a mix of the other three types listed above. They use a mix of Attack, Defense and, Stamina Types put together to make an even mix to win.

Systems
Through the lifespan of the Beyblade toy line, there have been different generations of architectures introduced in the anime.

Basic System (BS)
The "Basic System" tops are the first generation of Beyblade tops. They are made entirely of plastic, with the exception of Weight Disks and some tips. These Beyblades consist of five basic parts:


 * Bit Beast: A decorative plate inserted into the Fusion Ring of the Beyblade, adorned with a small icon of a mythical creature. In the anime, these creatures' souls were actually housed in the Beyblades themselves.
 * Attack Ring: The Atack Ring determines the blade's effect when it impacts against its opponent, as this is normally the first part to come into contact with the opposing blade.
 * Weight Disk: The Weight Disk affects the power and speed of the Beyblade.
 * Blade Base: The Blade Base determines the direction of the Beyblade's rotation; either clockwise (right) or counterclockwise (left). Also, the Spin Track holds the Fusion Ring in place on the top, preventing it from coming off mid-battle.
 * Tip: The tip determines how the Beyblade spins, and also affects its movement pattern. The Performance tip is attached to the Blade Base.

The first tops consisted of a four-layer part system: Bit Beast, Attack Ring, Weight Disk, and Blade Base; the Spin Gear would lock into the Blade Base, essentially making the top only four layers after initial construction. Upon the arrival of the S- and F-series Beyblades, Spin Gears were introduced that were removable and interchangeable, thus creating a five-layer system.

Magnacore System (MG)
Introduced with the V-series, the "Magnacore" line of Beyblade toys featured magnetic Spin Gears and Weight Disks to attract or repel blades from each other. Additionally, one could purchase magnets that were affixed to the bottom of one's Beystadium, which affected the movement patterns of the Beyblades.

Engine Gear System (EG)
Engine Gear tops were introduced with the G-series, and retain the same major design of a typical Beyblade, including a Bit Chip, an Attack Ring, a Weight Disk, and a Blade Base; Engine Gear tops, however, replace the typical Spin Gear with a more advanced Engine Gear, which affects the behavior of the top during the battle. Each Engine Gear includes a Turbo Winder to wind-up the engine core. When in action, the Blade Base releases the Engine Gear determined by the Blade Base's clutch lock system. This series of beyblades were the last ones to be made of plastic parts with the exception of the weight disks. The later ones were semi metal or completely metal.

Engine Gear types
 * Engine Gear: The default engine gear that comes with most beyblades, but their tip is varied.
 * Turbo Engine Gear: First released with the left-spinning Dragoon GT, the Turbo Engine Gear gives an even more powerful release than that of the original engine gear. Comes with a larger turbo winder.
 * Reverse Gear: The Engine Gear spins in the opposite direction of the rest of the top. This engine gear is only bundled with Dranzer GT, which uses this gear for a reverse zig-zag attack. Although this attack can be very effective, the beyblade loses spin when the gear kicks in. As with Dragoon GT, it comes with a larger turbo winder.
 * Gyro Engine Gear: This unique type allows the tip of the Beyblade to spin independently. Thus the beyblade can be launched without a launcher, as a ripcord can be inserted into the beyblade. Only used for Torch/Flame and Thunder Pegasus (which are identical except for color).

Blade Base types
 * Instant Release or First Clutch: The Engine Gear triggers at the beginning of the battle, resulting in a large burst of speed almost immediately after launch.
 * Steady Release: The Engine Gear triggers at the beginning of the battle, but releases earlier because of the weight of the beyblade on the larger or wider revolving blade base, which is attached directly to the engine gear. Used in Rock Bison and Wolborg 4.
 * Hit Release or Final Clutch: The Engine Gear triggers when the blade base collides with an object, or when the beyblade is running out of spin, and releases a quick burst of speed. The clutches must be pulled prior to winding the spin gear.
 * Middle Clutch: Built exclusively for Dranzer GT, the middle clutch has a similar design to the final clutch base, but releases the engine gear in the middle of the match; earlier than a final clutch but not instant as in the First Clutch base.

Customizable engine weights For the 2 GT Series Beyblades that were released, the Engine Gear that comes withintended for use with the Customizable Engine Weight of each top. The Engine Gears, however, can fit with the "Clutch" bases.

Heavy/Hard Metal System (HMS)
Beyblade HMS (Heavy/Hard Metal System) is a line of Beyblade toys released after the Engine Gear line of blades in respect to the anime series. This series, unlike ones in the past, use smaller pieces made mostly of metal. HMS Beyblades have a distinct advantage over previously released Beyblades, that being that their spin velocities are 1.5-2x faster.

These tops are composed of a four-layer part system:


 * Bit Protector: This holds the parts together, unlike its plastic counterpart, the Bit Chip, which was merely decorative. With the release of the first 5 HMS Beyblades, 2 different stickers for made for the Bit Protector, one of a "bit beast" and one of the emblem. The emblem stickers were the only ones that appeared in later Beyblade toys.
 * Attack Ring: This is composed of an inner metal part screwed to an outer ABS caul.
 * Weight Disk: HMS Weight Disks are completely circular, unlike plastic Weight Disks which were shaped as hexa-, octa-, and decagons. There are also Customizable Weight Disks, which have plastic and metal parts, the plastic parts giving the Weight Disk a certain feature.
 * Running Core: The Blade Base of HMS.

HMS blades do not use Spin Gears or Engine Gears, nor do they require them since the blade can be launched from both spin directions. This is possible through the HMS Neo Dual Launcher, which allows such spin-changing.These beyblades were the last ones corresponding to the Original series. A few years later, a new show under the name Metal Fight Beyblade,(Beyblade: Metal Fusion in North America) with new characters and Beyblades made in the same scale as HMS Beyblades, but with a completely different structure, was introduced.

Pre-HWS/Metal System
Before the beginning of the anime in April 2009, Metal Fight Beyblades were constituted of four parts:

Face/Face Bolt: Hexagonal screw-like piece that fastens the Beyblade together, similar to Bit Protector from the HMS. They feature graffiti-style illustrations on the top (i.e. Bull, Pegasis, etc). With the introduction of the Hybrid Wheel System also came the Metal Faces, which are 3.5 grams heavier than normal Faces, therefore they help add weight to a Beyblade. After BB-27, Faces have become blank and stickers now have to be added on them.

Wheel: Main source of attack from a Beyblade; unlike HMS, the Wheel is completely made out of metal to compensate for the lack of a Weight Disk. They use various shaped protrusions to lower the spin velocity of an opponent. The Wheel is fundamentally the same as the Attack Ring from the HMS and plastic Beyblades. The shooter connects directly to the Wheel and does not depend on the Face or the Track for a solid connection. The Wheel determines the spin direction of the Beyblade.

Track/Spin Track: The Track is the component of the Beyblade that connects the Wheel and Bottom. The Track determines the height of the Beyblade. Their names (when read with a decimal before the last digit) determine their height in millimeters. For example, Pegasis' Track is called 105, which stands for 10.5 MM. Some Tracks have gimmicks which help make multiple good customizations since some of them are significantly heavier than others, like Flame Sagittario’s C145 Track.

Bottom/Performance Tip: The bottom of the Beyblade. It has interchangeable tips which the Beyblade spins on. Movement patterns can be altered with the differently shaped tips that can be used. It is similar to the Blade Base from plastic Beyblades or the Running Core from HMS. The Bottom is indicated by the (sometimes two) last letter(s) of a Beyblade’s name: for instance, Capricorne 100HF, where HF is the Bottom and stands for Hole Flat.

Hybrid Wheel System (HWS)
The current system was released in 2008 in Japan and in 2010 worldwide. It introduces new components making the Beyblades more complex including a wheel made of polycarbonate and more technically advanced bottoms.

Names of Beyblades can now be determined by their parts. For example, Storm Pegasus 105RF has a "Pegasus" clear wheel/energy ring, 'Storm' metal/fusion wheel, '105 (10.5mm)' track/spin track, and a "RF (Rubber Flat)" bottom/performance tip.


 * Face/Face Bolt: Playing a much larger role than the bit chip, the face is the screw that holds all parts together.
 * Clear Wheel/Energy Ring: These are composed of CPC (Polycarbonate). Aerodynamics sometimes are a factor, but usually they are just used for weight.
 * Metal/Fusion Wheel: These create a frame for the clear wheel and make the most contact with the opposing beyblade.
 * Track/Spin Track: These determine the height of the Beyblade. Some are just heights, but some also have special gimmicks, such as metal balls, down-force fans, claws, spinning horns and height switch track(Gasher's/Cancer's spin track).
 * Bottom/Performance Tip: In this system, there are new bottoms to ensure greater performance.
 * Light Wheel: Found only in Beyblades from random boosters 1, 2, and 3 by Takara Tomy, it is a similar item to the fusion wheel, but:


 * 1) A light wheel is thick, unlike a Fusion wheel which is sometimes hollow.
 * 2) Light wheels are not made of metal, instead, they are plastic.
 * 3) There are only 4 types of Light wheels,being Mad (Light wheel ver. of Dark), Wind (light wheel ver. of Storm), Clay (light wheel ver. of Rock) and Heat.

4D System (4D)
This system was o March 26, 2011 in Japan. It is like a combination of the Hard Metal System and the Hybrid Wheel System. The 4D's stand for this. Naming the Beys, has changed. For example, Big Bang Pegasis F:D, Big Bang Pegasis is the Fusion Wheel. While, F:D is the 4D Performance Tip. However it is not always like this. L Drago Destroy F:S is a good example, as it's Energy Ring, L Drago, is under the Fusion Wheel, L Drago Destroy.
 * Different Material
 * Divided Wheel
 * Dynamic Move
 * Deep Custom
 * Face/Face Bolt: Plays the same part as the Hybrid Metal System.
 * Clear Wheel/Energy Ring: The Energy Rings are now made of metal compounds to be heavier. Sometimes, Beyblades will not have the Energy Ring like L Drago Destroy F:S.
 * Metal Wheel/Fusion Wheel: This time, the Fusion Wheel is in several parts. For Big Bang Pegasis F:D, it has 3 parts for the Fusion Wheel. Not all Beyblades have these parts. It can have a different amount of parts. The parts can be:
 * PC Frame: The PC stands for Polycarbonate as that is what was made to create it. It is clear like an Energy Ring.
 * Metal Frame: The metal part of the Fusion Wheel. It can be put in different ways which will change the mode of a Beyblade.
 * Core: The Core is the bottom of the Fusion Wheel and is as it's name implies, the "core" of the Fusion Wheel.
 * 4D Bottom/4D Performance Tip: The Spin Track and Performance Tip are now together in a currently unnamed piece. However, it is not always like this, Fang Leone 130W²D is a good example as it's Spin Track and Performance Tip are seperated.

Differences between Takara and Hasbro Beyblades
There are several differences between beyblades made by Takara and Hasbro:


 * Hasbro has weaker adhesives for the Beyblade stickers
 * Hasbro has changed the names of some Beyblades.
 * Initially, some beyblades released during V-Force had no MG Core but a weighted non-magnetic core. Hasbro replaced many of these with magnecores. There are no longer MagneCores in Hasbro V2 Beyblades (BBA Championship Series). In the same way, Hasbro added the engine gear to several beyblades that originally did not have an engine gear (Metal Driger, Gigars etc.).
 * Hasbro's version of the Customize Clutch Base (Dranzer V2) has had the clutch removed and was originally fixed in the sharp position and could not be changed. Later releases contain a properly working clutch.
 * Hasbro's version of Uriel 2 was named Capricorn Strike G. It has a golden colored gyro(Flame Pegasus) instead of the original Weight Disk/Support Parts/Blade Base/Spin Gear.
 * Hasbro changed Trypio's Attack Ring to not be able to fly.
 * Hasbro released many of the Random Booster blades in a different series rather than in Random Boosters.
 * The initial version of Driger V made by Hasbro had a completely sharp metal tip on the blade base, while the Takara version had a semi flat tip. Many fans complained about Hasbro's change, and Hasbro later changed the metal tip to be semi-flat.
 * Hasbro's versions of the "Hidden Spirit" Beyblades had small joints for the "dragon parts" to attach to on the attack ring, while in Takara's version they attach to the blade base, so they look like the blade in the anime, but neither version is launchable.
 * The "Heavy Metal" system was marketed by Hasbro as the "Hard Metal" system.