It's no secret that toy based gaming is big business at the moment. Back in October 2011 Activision released Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure. As well as owning the game, consumers also got a Portal and 3 small figures, which when placed on the portal allowed gamers to play as that particular critter in game. The game was a method of getting former platform hero Spyro back on the scene too, but it soon became apparent that the gaming market had space for toy-based peripherals.

Nearly 4 years on and you can now buy around 317 Skylanders (including a number of limited editions and such) with the latest game, Super Chargers, bringing vehicle based gaming to the series.

Disney have entered the scene with a number of Disney, Marvel and (as of end of the month) Star Wars characters. Where Skylanders are more about platforming/mission based gamplay, Disney have tried to encourage a more imaginative approach, encouraging gamers to use their own inspiration to create levels and mini-games.

Did I mention LEGO are getting involved too with LEGO Dimensions? We'll cover that incoming title in more detail in a future post.

The reason for this post though was to talk about another line of toy based gaming, one of which, on face value, doesn't really have as much value in each figure. So why on earth do I keep getting tempted to buy more?!

I am, of course, talking about Nintendo's Amiibos. Where as until now the figures you buy usually unlock that specific character for use in a particular game, Amiibos are usable in multiple games but only for relatively minor content, for example additional costumes. They are though very detailed figures, more so than Skylanders/Disney Infinity figures in my personal opinion. More importantly though, is the power of Nintendo.

Nintendo have had to rely on first-party characters for years to keep gamers buying their hardware due to lack of 3rd party support, which is fine because no company has a back catalogue of popular characters than Nintendo. I planned pre-release to only pick up a couple, but as you are just about to see I've got a few more than a 'couple':

What is really frustrating, in the manner of which Nintendo have mastered, a number of particular Amiibos have been quite difficult to get hold of which has in turn helped drive some of my purchases. But you know what, I just can't stop picking them up!

Our very own Mike also has built up a collection, as you can see below:

So what I'd like to see, are your collections of Amiibos. Do you keep them boxed? Why have you bought into them? Who is your favorite?

Send us your images via Twitter (@BlastProcess), post the pictures on Facebook.com/BlastProcess or email them to contact@blastprocess.com and we'll post them in a future post.

Can't wait to see your collections!