I have followed Skylanders ever since Spyro’s Adventure. Now, with the sixth iteration of the game in six years I can say that I’m still as excited to play as I was on day one. Skylanders Imaginators is headed to consoles everywhere on October 16 in North America. I will certainly be all over that game when it arrives. I just got confirmation of my upcoming review copy of the game and can’t wait to play it. Actually I did get to play a little at Sweet Suite last month. It was awesome! I was able to build a new character and play it. I was also able to play with and hold a bunch of the Sensei characters including Crash Bandicoot.

What I didn’t know then was that Kaos was going to be made into a Sensei and he would become a playable character! That is something that portal masters have been wanting for a while. We kind had that with Trap Team but it was limited. Now with Skylanders Imaginators Kaos is free to roam wherever and he’s is super powerful. If you pre-order and purchase the Skylanders Imaginators starter pack you can get a FREE Kaos figure (while supplies last). That is great news.

However, Kaos is not the only Super Villain who is becoming a Sensei for Skylanders Imaginators. Crash Bandicoot’s arch-nemesis, Dr. Neo Cortex is also coming to the game. Additionally, Skylanders Imaginators will feature an all-new dedicated Crash Bandicoot level called Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands! This level is steeped in nostalgic Crash Bandicoot gameplay, including the classic TNT boxes, crabs, hazards, temple ruins, Wumpa Fruit, exploding fruit and more. This level will be available on the PS3 and PS4 starter packs at launch and will be released in a special Adventure Pack for all platforms later this year.

this is very exciting news. A Lot of great stuff came out of GAMESCOM 2016. Check out the full press release below.

SKYLANDERS IMAGINATORS UNLEASHES KAOS AT GAMESCOM 2016

All-New Crash Bandicoot Level Reveals Dr. Neo Cortex, Crash Bandicoot’s Archnemesis, as Skylander Guest Star

Videogame Supervillains Kaos and Dr. Neo Cortex Arrive as Fully-Playable Skylanders Senseis Toys This Fall! Free Kaos Toy with Pre-Order and Purchase of Starter Pack!

SANTA MONICA, Calif. – Aug. 17, 2016 – Portal Masters be on the lookout this October! Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) is bringing more content and characters to Skylanders® Imaginators– the game lets fans unleash their imaginations like never before in a Skylanders game. Starting today, the villains of Skylands are taking over Gamescom and revealing an all-new dedicated Crash Bandicoot® level, Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands, to fans. Leading the charge is Skylands’ most notorious villain Kaos, who along with the help of new guest star Skylander, Dr. Neo Cortex are sure to add more fun to players’ imagination-to-life gameplay experience. Both supervillains are joining the lineup of Skylanders Sensei characters as fully-playable toys in Skylanders Imaginators, and Kaos will available for free to fans who pre-order and purchase a Skylanders Imaginators starter pack.

“From the moment we received the first fan art, we knew Skylanders was unique in its ability to fuel kids’ imaginations. With Skylanders Imaginators’ powerful character creation tools, we can’t wait to see what amazing Skylanders our fans will bring to life,” said Paul Reiche, president and co-founder, Toys For Bob. “Now fans can create more characters than there are stars in the known universe. These Imaginators join a strong lineup of Sensei characters which include fan-favorite villains, now reformed and fighting for good!”

In North America, fans who pre-order and purchase the Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack will receive a playable Kaos Sensei toy for free while supplies last between October 16 – 22, 2016.

With Kaos having discovered the power of Mind Magic to create Doomlanders, one of his first creations was none other than a clone of himself! Figuring that no one in the universe, including the Skylanders, could ever stand up to more than one Kaos, he unleashed his clone in his quest to take over Skylands. But to Kaos’ surprise, the clone – also being Kaos – wanted victory for himself! As a result, he fights against his creator, in turn helping the Skylanders in their endeavor to defeat the real Kaos!

At Gamescom, Skylanders Imaginators will introduce fans to the return of Dr. Neo Cortex as a Sensei Skylander and reveal an all-new level, Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands, that’s steeped in nostalgic Crash Bandicoot® gameplay. The level includes special Crash Zones that bring back the classic massive boulder chases from the original games. And, as with any Skylanders level, there are secrets and hidden areas all along the way. In paying homage to this iconic character on his 20th anniversary, the level is packed with TNT boxes, crabs, hazards, temple ruins, Wumpa Fruit, exploding crates and many more elements from the original Crash. But it all takes place in the Skylands – which means a new twist of Skylanders combat and action brought into the world of the Wumpa Islands.

“You can’t have Crash Bandicoot as a guest star Skylander without his arch-nemesis, Dr. Neo Cortex,” said Jen Oneal, studio head, Vicarious Visions. “We approached the level as a way for us to bring the best parts of Skylanders and the best parts of Crash together into one epic adventure. Players are going to enjoy how we’ve honored the heritage of traditional Crash games in the musically-themed, TNT crate-filled level. For fans of Crash this is going to feel like going back to the old world of Crash Bandicoot — but in gorgeous 1080p.”

In the game, a “Synchronization Celebration” has aligned the world of Skylands with the Wumpa Islands. Upon arriving, Spyro and Mags discover that Dr. Neo Cortex (voiced by Lex Lang) has created a terrible machine to harness the rhythmic power of the island’s celebration for his newest evil scheme! When the machine goes awry, something occurs that throws the whole party out of sync. Crash (voiced by Jess Harnell) must team up with the Skylanders and his old enemy Neo Cortex to restore the celebration before the Wumpa Islands are syncopated right out of existence!

The Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands level will be available to players who purchase the Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack featuring Crash Bandicoot for PlayStation consoles at launch. The level will also be available to all platforms via purchase of the Skylanders Imaginators Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands Adventure Pack this holiday for the suggested retail price of $29.99. The Skylanders Imaginators Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands Adventure pack also will include Crash Bandicoot and Dr. Neo Cortex as fully playable toys.

Last but not least, Portal Masters will soon be able to collect Imaginite Mystery Chests. These chests will unlock new creation pieces, such as gear, weapons, and parts for players’ Imaginator characters.

Skylanders Imaginators immense possibilities empowers players to unleash their imaginations by giving them the freedom to create their own Skylander. Portal Masters will enjoy the available in the game — including appearance, powers, abilities, names, catchphrases, musical themes and much more — to create the wildest Skylanders imaginable. Developed by Toys For Bob, Skylanders Imaginators supports all 300+ Skylanders from previous games and will launch on October 16, 2016 in North America. The Skylanders Imaginators Starter Pack will be available for the suggested retail price of $74.99.

About the Skylanders® Franchise

The award-winning, $3 billion Skylanders® franchise has sold through more than 250 million toys1 since pioneering the toys-to-life category in 2011 with the debut of Skylanders® Spyro’s Adventure. The game originated a play pattern that seamlessly bridged physical and virtual worlds across multiple platforms. In 2012, Skylanders® Giants further evolved the genre and added LightCore® characters to the collection of interaction figures. Skylanders® SWAP Force™, which launched in 2013, introduced an all new play pattern – swapability. In 2014, Skylanders® Trap Team reversed the magic of bringing toys to life by allowing players to pull characters out of the digital world into the physical world and became the number 1 kids’ console game globally1. Skylanders® SuperChargers launched on September 20, 2015 and expanded upon the franchise’s signature gameplay to introduce vehicles-to-life for the first time.

About Activision Publishing

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading global producer and publisher of interactive entertainment. Activision maintains operations throughout the world. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company’s website, www.activision.com or by following @Activision.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing’s expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future, including statements about the expected features, functionality and release dates of Skylanders Imaginators and Skylanders Imaginators Thumpin’ Wumpa Islands Adventure pack, are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing’s actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

©2016 Activision Publishing, Inc., SKYLANDERS, SKYLANDERS IMAGINATORS, CRASH, CRASH BANDICOOT, SKYLANDERS SUPERCHARGERS, SKYLANDERS TRAP TEAM, SKYLANDERS SPYRO’S ADVENTURE, SKYLANDERS GIANTS, SKYLANDERS SWAP FORCE, SWAP FORCE, LIGHTCORE and ACTIVISION are trademarks of Activision Publishing, Inc.

¹The NPD Group, GfK Chart-track, Activision Blizzard internal estimates, including toys and accessories