Pop culture specialist Forbidden Planet has labelled the video gaming property as one to watch for 2017 with collectables and plush storming the market, and appeal crossing both the children’s and adult market.
Product demand for the popular cult app game Five Nights at Freddy’s has rocketed, according to retailer, Forbidden Planet.
The property – once billed as an adult gaming title, inciting fear among players as they journey through a haunted pizza restaurant – has found itself crossing over into the children’s market, driving demand for more product than ever.
The property now spans plush items and collectables figures from Funko Pop!, which are distributed across the UK by Funko UK, as well as a new family party game title from Character Options, scheduled to hit shelves later this year.
Grown from an underground community of digital gamers, the title has shot to fame among children and adults alike. Specialist retailer Forbidden Planet has seen such an increase in demand for products, including collectables and toys, that it now tips the property to become ‘one to watch’ for the coming year.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s has skyrocketed for us,” Omar Khan, licensing and special projects manager at retailer Forbidden Planet, told ToyNews.
“Product demand climbed quickly, especially in terms of plush and toys. It still manages to surprise us, because the content seems so distinctly ‘adult’ but I guess everyone likes to be scared.”
Khan has gone on to describe the appeal of the Five Nights at Freddy’s, encouraging retailers to maximise on the rising property while it is in its relative infancy.
“Five Nights at Freddy’s is a great crossover IP – it’s hard to think of an IP that started in the horror genre and ticked boxes for adult/child demographics so quickly,” he continued.
“I am excited to see how it grows over 2017, especially as other licensed Five Nights categories like board games, build kits and action figures enter the market.”
Created by video game developer Scott Cawthon, Five Nights at Freddy’s is a survival horror mystery game set in Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza restaurant. Players must act as a night security guard, defending themselves from malfunctioning animatronics.
The title is just the latest to rise to fame from the pop culture scene, following the likes of Minecraft and the emerging Roblox, a digital community game that has recently launched a new toy line via Jazwares.
“The rise in demand for pop culture products has been huge in recent years,” continued Khan. “We are in a golden age for it, making for Forbidden Planet’s best year to date in 2016.”
