Skylanders: Swap Force preview at Toy Fair 2013

Skylanders is Activision's very popular video-game line that lets you use a physical toy as an in-game character. At Toy Fair this year, we got a sneak peek at the upcoming Skylanders: Swap Force, the third installment in the game series.

The new game highlights the titular Swap Force characters: While playable as themselves, they can also be pulled in half and reassembled with another character's upper or lower body. For example, you can take the upper body of Wash Buckler and combine it with the lower body of Magna Charge.The character will now be called Wash Charge and will appear on screen exactly the way the figure looks.

You'll be able to create combinations like this to gain the abilities of both characters, and to access areas within the game that only certain element combinations can reach. It looks like a fun system that makes the game and the physical figures more interesting to play with.

Skylanders has proven that combining physical toys with video games is a formula that works.This trend looks to continue, as Disney is set to release a similar offering with Disney Infinity later this year. It will take a lot to knock Skylanders off its throne, though, especially with Skylanders: Swap Force looming on the horizon.

—Matt Ferretti