Star Wars fans get ready—Force Friday is almost here! If you’re a Star Wars fan looking forward to the upcoming release of Star Wars Episode 8 just before Christmas, then prepare for an early look at the biggest and most exciting Force Friday event in Canada on September 1st. It’s Best Buy’s massive Force Friday celebration, and it’s coming in various forms to all 191 Best Buy locations right across Canada. This even includes Best Buy Mobile stores, which are participating as stops in a special Find The Force Scavenger Hunt. If you’d like to learn more, including the store locations for the 3 all-out Force Friday event celebrations (which will include first looks at a large selection of never before revealed Star Wars toys and merchandise), just keep on reading. But first, a little bit of recent Star Wars toy history…
Hit Star Wars Toys of the Recent Past
To provide some sense of the kinds of amazing innovations that surely await Star Wars tech toy lovers this Force Friday, its only fitting that we take a look back at a few of the massive toy hits of the recent past. For instance, who could forget the lovable and heroic Sphero BB-8 App-Enabled Droid—the clever little astromech droid that helped Rey and Finn in their mission to oppose the evil First Order? This little bot features authentic movements (app controlled through your smart phone or tablet), autonomous behaviour (like exploring the outer reaches of your living room), holographic communications, and an adaptive personality (BB-8’s behaviours evolve as you interact with him… or is it her?). I can tell you from my own personal experience that BB-8 is heaps of fun, providing near endless hours of entertainment to Star Wars fans of all ages. But, what robotic innovations could be in store for us with this year’s Force Friday revelations?
Another branch of Star Wars tech toys that really took off with the launch of Star Wars Episode 7 was Hasbro’s highly realistic line of Force FX Lightsabers. These sabres, sold under the banner of The Black Series, proved so enormously popular that they’ve all but disappeared. The only sabre that still remains in stock at Best Buy as of today’s announcement is Kylo Ren’s unique sabre with the cross-hilt blades. And if you’re familiar with these sabres, you’ll understand their popularity. Featuring highly realistic metal hilts, lights, and sound effects taken directly from the audio reels of the iconic Star Wars films, these sabres provide extreme fun for both memorabilia collectors and those engaging in Star Wars themed cosplay. The only question that remains is, will we see another wave of these incredibly cool lightsabers with this year’s Force Friday releases??
Of course, there are loads of other extremely cool Star Wars Toys available at any given time at Best Buy as well. Everything from the Sphero Star Wars Force Band (to control your BB-8 with) to non-tech toys like the numerous Star Wars LEGO sets and the popular Funko Pop! figures await. With the impending release of Episode 8 this December, the selection of these toys too is sure to expand.
Key Force Friday Details and Major Event Locations
The first thing you need to know is that if you live in (or near) either Montreal, Toronto, or Vancouver, there’s a major Force Friday event taking place at a Best Buy location near you. The major event stores are as follows:
- Montreal: Anjou Store (event runs from 10AM-2PM)
- Toronto: Bay and Dundas Store (event runs from 9:30AM-2PM)
- Vancouver: Cambie Store (event runs from 9AM-2PM)
If you live close to any of these event stores, lucky you! Just be sure to take note of the event’s running time for the location nearest you. All times are local and there’s considerable variation across the 3 stores. These events last well into the afternoon, but not for the whole day.
Also keep in mind that this event will be a Star Wars celebration like no other! It’s almost on par with a Star Wars convention. Vendors will be there to reveal and demonstrate many of the cool new toys, which you’ll not only have the opportunity to see, but also to purchase. And there’s sure to be some cool Star Wars characters on hand as well. In fact, if the Force moves you to do so, come to the event dressed as your favourite Star Wars character for a chance to win some exclusive Star Wars prizes. This event is going to be heaps of fun whether you’re a serious Star Wars toy and memorabilia collector or just a casual fan. In the coming days, check out BestBuy.ca/starwars for more toy and product information, and don’t forget to show up on Force Friday (that’s Friday, September 1st) to partake in all the fun.
If you don’t live near one of the 3 major event locations but still want to enjoy the Force Friday fun, details of the Find The Force Augmented Reality Scavenger Hunt will be available online at findtheforce.ca in due course. On the day of the event, visit the website for all the details and stop by your local Best Buy store to play the game. There’s a special app that you’ll need to download in order to play. It’s sure to be a blast!
Here are some steps to get you started:
- Download the Star Wars app and launch the “Find The Force” feature.
- Starting September 1, look for Star Wars graphics with the “Find The Force” logo at participating retail locations and websites. Click here for full list.
- Scan these graphics using the “Find The Force” feature to reveal AR character experiences.
- A data chip will be unlocked each time a new AR character experience is revealed. Unlock digital rewards as you collect more data chips!
- Each graphic reveals a different AR character experience every day from September 1-3.
Try it now! Download the Star Wars app, launch “Find The Force” and scan the images below to unlock the AR characters:
© & tm 2017 Lucasfilm Ltd.
If for any reason you’re not aware of the location of your nearest Best Buy store, you can easily find out using Best Buy’s Store Locator tool.
Finally, I’m personally attending the BIG event at the Cambie store in Vancouver and will record video and take photos so that I can report back to all of you right here on the Plug-In Blog. I’ll show as many of the new toys as I can possibly pack into the video and article, and I’ll also provide a complete list (with brief descriptions) of the exciting new toys. This event and everything that goes along with it is going to be absolutely huge, so come on out and see it all for yourself if you live in the vicinity of one of the 3 major event stores. However, if you live elsewhere in the country, don’t forget that you can still take part in the Find The Force Augmented Reality Scavenger Hunt as long as you can get to one of the 191 Best Buy locations across Canada. And remember, this includes Best Buy mobile stores, so come on out and we’ll have heaps of fun as we celebrate Force Friday 2017!
Click here to see all Star Wars merchandise available at bestbuy.ca
hi Leonard,we are waiting for that day anxiously.
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