ActiMates Barney is required for the pack-in titles, " Barney's Fun on Imagination Island", but was optional for the other titles. The software makes use of a special programming library called "ToyAPI", which communicated with the ActiMates via the PC Pack. Because of the updated capabilities of this pack, Barney's vocabulary jumped from 2,000 words to an impressive 14,000 words in total.
Using the PC Pack, Barney could interact with special PC titles developed by 7th Level and Microsoft. Covering Barney's eyes, which have light sensors, and uncovering them would let the plush play peek-a-boo with the user. These actions can be achieved by pressing the various sensors throughout the plush's body.įor example, if one were to squeeze one of Barney's hands, he would play through one of the games. When used as a stand-alone toy, Barney has a 2,000 word vocabulary and is able to sing 17 songs in addition to being able to play 12 different games. To get the ActiMates to interact with the TV show or the videos, a hockey-puck-shaped transmitter device called a TV Pack must be purchased separately and connected to the video-out connector of the TV set, while to have the ActiMates interact with the specialized computer software (developed by 7th Level and published by Microsoft), another hockey-puck-shaped transmitter device called a PC Pack must be purchased separately and be connected to the MIDI/game port connector of the PC. While Barney can be used as a stand alone toy, the main feature is the ActiMates doll's interactivity with the PC and television. Dolls based on Arthur, his sister D.W., and the Teletubbies were also made following the success of the Barney plush.Īfter dwindling sales, the dolls were discontinued in 2000 with Microsoft losing the patent rights to the toys in 2005. Put into stores, Barney quickly became a huge success that holiday season. The first of these dolls, modeled after Barney, were first displayed at the New York Toy Fair in 1997 to much praise.
Codenamed "Gepetto" for the motion technology inside the dolls, the Actimates toys were Microsoft's attempt to get into the toy market, especially the digital sector that was growing very popular by the late 1990s.Ī store display used to showcase the abilities of ActiMates Barney.
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