Skylanders: Trap Team is a 3D platform game created in 2014 by Toys for Bob and Beenox. It was published by Activision and is the fourth part of the Skylanders video game series. The game was released on October 2, 2014, in Australasia; October 5, 2014, in North America; and October 10, 2014, in Europe. It is available on Android and iOS mobile devices, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Nintendo 3DS. The game follows Skylanders: Swap Force and includes voices from Fred Tatasciore, Billy West, John DiMaggio, Matthew Moy, Laura Bailey, Alex Ness, John Paul Karliak, Matthew Yang King, and Richard Steven Horvitz.
Skylanders: Trap Team uses a special device called the Traptanium Portal, which reads NFC chips on the bottom of figurines. These figurines are used as playable characters in the game. The game introduces a new group of Skylanders called the "Trap Masters," who help the Portal Master catch criminals released by Kaos from Cloudcracker Prison, a place that holds the most dangerous villains in Skylands. The game also allows players to capture villain characters using new trap figures after defeating them.
A sequel, Skylanders: SuperChargers, was released in September 2015.
Synopsis
Kaos destroyed Cloudcracker Prison, creating the new elements of Light and Dark and freeing the Doom Raiders, the most famous villains in Skylands. The Doom Raiders are led by the Golden Queen and her group, which includes The Gulper, Chompy Mage, Chef Pepper Jack, Dreamcatcher, Dr. Krankcase, and Wolfgang. To capture and trap the villains, the Skylanders receive help from the Trap Masters. They use Traptanium, a magical material that can use the power of the elements.
Plot
A long time ago, a powerful group of villains called the Doom Raiders lived in the Savage Badlands and caused chaos across Skylands. Eventually, a team of skilled Skylanders called the Trap Team captured the villains and locked them in Cloudcracker Prison.
Years later, Kaos destroyed the prison, freeing the Doom Raiders (including Golden Queen, The Gulper, Chompy Mage, Chef Pepper Jack, Dreamcatcher, Dr. Krankcase, and Wolfgang) and other villains. As a result, the Trap Team was sent to Earth along with crystal traps made from Traptanium, the material used to build the prison. During the opening of Skylanders Academy, Buzz saw an explosion and investigated. He helped the Trap Team trap The Gulper, a giant blob monster, by using its love for soda at Soda Springs. Meanwhile, Kaos gathered with the Doom Raiders at his new lair, but they rejected him because he failed to stop The Gulper’s capture. However, Golden Queen, the leader of the Doom Raiders, allowed Kaos and his troll butler, Glumshanks, to stay. The Trap Team gathered information about the Doom Raiders on Know-It-All Island and then traveled to Chompy Mountain, where they fought Chompy Mage and his forces, trapping him. Golden Queen learned of this defeat, and Kaos decided to use the situation to regain control.
The Trap Team was sent to stop Chef Pepper Jack from stealing the Phoenix Chicken and taking an egg to make a Spicy Omelet of Doom. Kaos tried to stop Chef Pepper Jack but let him escape with the egg. The Trap Team attacked Chef Pepper Jack’s Zeppelin and trapped him. The remaining Doom Raiders planned their next move, but Golden Queen still wanted to build a weapon made of Traptanium to take all the gold in Skylands, which upset Kaos. Realizing he needed help, Kaos decided to assist the Trap Team in fighting the Doom Raiders. He revealed that Dreamcatcher, one of the Doom Raiders, was terrorizing a Mabu village in Monster Marsh. The Trap Team went to Telescope Towers to stop her from stealing secrets about Traptanium from Mabu scientists. They defeated and trapped Dreamcatcher, but she managed to send the secrets to the Doom Raiders.
Despite this, Dr. Krankcase, a mad scientist, still needed one final ingredient to complete the Doom Raiders’ ultimate weapon: a large amount of "stinkocity," or a strong odor. He collected this from the Secret Sewers of Supreme Stink, which had a supply of smelly green goo. While the Skylanders stopped the main flow of goo, Dr. Krankcase replaced it with cheese and planned to bury it and travel to the future when it would rot. Time travel required a Portal Master, so the Trap Team reopened Kaos’s Wilikin workshop and trapped him. However, Wolfgang left Dr. Krankcase and escaped. The Trap Team tracked Wolfgang to Time Town, where he had already traveled to the far future and built "The Big Bad Wolfer," a giant speaker that amplified his music. The Trap Team shut down the speaker and defeated Wolfgang, but the rotten cheese reached Golden Queen in the present, allowing her to complete the weapon. She demanded the release of the other Doom Raiders, the surrender of the Trap Team, and all the gold in the world.
The Trap Team stole a rocket from the Trolls and used it to reach the Skyhighlands, where they found a crystal to locate Golden Queen’s lair and defeated her. However, Kaos took the weapon for himself and absorbed the stinkocity and energy from the Traptanium, becoming much stronger. He gained the ability to connect with the human world and realized he did not need to defeat the Skylanders, but rather the Portal Master, or the player, and focused on Earth. With both worlds at risk, the Trap Team fought through the weapon and defeated Kaos, trapping him in a special Kaos Trap. The game ended with the official opening of the Skylanders Academy.
In the Eternal Archives, Hugo read The Most Boring Book Ever and accidentally opened a portal to The Realm of Dreams, allowing Nightmare creatures to escape along with their master, The Dream Sheep, and his sidekick, The Sleep Dragon. Dream Sheep cast a sleep spell that put all of Skylands to sleep, letting his minions cause chaos. The Skylanders and the Trap Masters were not affected by the spell and had to trap the nightmare villains and stop Dream Sheep.
Gameplay
In Trap Team, players control characters by placing toy figures onto a device called the Traptanium Portal, which uses special technology called near field communication to activate the characters in the game. A new item called the "trap" allows players to store up to forty-seven Villains and use them as playable characters. These Villains are stronger than Skylanders and can be moved to other consoles. The Traptanium Portal includes a built-in speaker that plays sounds from trapped enemies, making the trapping feature more noticeable. The game includes a mini-game called Skystones Smash, which is a new version of Skystones from Skylanders: Giants. This mini-game is played like a tabletop card game based on numbers.
Trap Team introduces two new types of characters: Trap Masters, who are better at fighting trappable Villains, and Skylanders Minis, which are smaller versions of regular Skylanders. Players can switch between playing as a Villain or a Skylander at any time. In co-operative play, players can share a trapped Villain and take turns controlling it. However, the time a Villain can be used is limited, and this time shortens if the player controlling it is attacked. Once a Villain's energy runs out, players must wait until it recharges before using it again. Hidden quests involving Villains reward players with special upgrades when completed. Villains can also be stored in a place called the Villain Vault, which is located in the game’s main hub area.
The mobile version of Trap Team uses a Bluetooth-enabled Traptanium Portal and optional touch controls. If the Traptanium Portal is not connected, players can use "on-the-go characters," which are digital versions of the toy figures stored on the device.
Trap Team adds new elements called Light and Dark, represented by characters Knight Light and Spotlight for Light, and Knight Mare and Blackout for Dark. Areas and Villains that require these elements are labeled as "Unknown Element" and cannot be accessed or trapped until a Light or Dark Skylander or Trap is placed on the Portal of Power.
Characters
Skylanders: Trap Team includes 18 new Trap Master Skylanders, 18 new core Skylanders, 46 trappable villains, and 16 new mini Skylanders. It also features five reposed core Skylanders from earlier games and 8 Eon's Elite Skylanders with shiny finishes.
Release
Skylanders: Trap Team was released on October 2, 2014, in Australia; October 5, 2014, in North America; and October 10, 2014, in Europe. The game was available for Android, iOS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Nintendo 3DS.
Along with the regular Starter Pack, which includes Food Fight and Snap Shot (two Traps), sticker sheets, and trading cards, a Dark Edition Starter Pack was also released. This version included the Ultimate Kaos Trap, a dark version of Snap Shot, Dark Wildfire, Dark Food Fight, a two-sided collector’s poster, sticker sheets, two additional Traps, and trading cards.
The Nintendo 3DS Starter Pack includes Gusto and Barkley but does not include any Traps because the trapping feature works differently on the Nintendo 3DS.
The Tablet Starter Pack for Android and iOS devices includes a Bluetooth Traptanium Portal, a controller, and all items from the regular Starter Pack for game consoles.
The Wii version includes a free download code for the Wii U version of the game, which is not available on the Nintendo eShop elsewhere.
Reception
According to the review website Metacritic, Skylanders: Trap Team received "generally favorable" reviews on most platforms. The version for iOS devices received "universal acclaim." Although the Metacritic scores for Skylanders: Trap Team were slightly lower than those of the previous game on most platforms, the iOS version achieved the highest Metacritic score in the series.
At the 18th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Skylanders: Trap Team for "Family Game of the Year."