For kids and parents, opening gifts is the highlight of birthdays and holidays. Whether reliving your own memories or sharing family stories, these iconic toys are guaranteed to drum up serious nostalgia.

Etch-A-Sketch - 1960

Chatty Cathy - 1960

Easy Bake Oven - 1963

Battleship - 1967

The iconic strategy board game was first played on paper, but Milton Bradley brought it to life in 1967. Battleship has also been released as an electronic board game, video games, smart device apps and it was even made into a feature film that starred Rihanna.

NERF ball - 1970

PONG on Atari - 1975

Star Wars Figures - 1978

Baby Alive - 1973

This “living” baby doll was the first to features lifelike movement and functions. Baby Alive came with a bottle, diapers, food and a spoon. The doll would chew the food, which eventually ended up in their diaper. Versions of the doll released during the 90s could talk and included sensors for a more lifelike food-to-diaper cycle.

Teddy Ruxpin - 1986

Cabbage Patch Kids - 1982

Rubik’s Cube - 1980

Sega Genesis - 1989

Sega entered the console gaming arena as the anti hero of home entertainment. Marketed as a console that did “everything Nintendo didn’t” and armed with one of gaming’s most legendary mascots in Sonic the Hedgehog, the Genesis went on to become the leader in producing sports games and home console arcade titles.

Beanie Babies - 1993

Tamagotchi - 1997

Furby - 1998

Game Boy Color - 1998

The release of the GameBoy Color allowed portable gamers to play in full-color, as well as play their favorite older titles with an updated look. The new, more pocketable Game Boy came in a slew of colors and ushered in a boom in popularity for the all-time great RPG, Pokêmon.

Razor Scooter - 2000

Beyblade - 2002

Nintendo Wii - 2006

iPod Touch - 2007

Apple’s revolutionary iPod touch changed the entertainment industry for good. One of the most popular consumer electronics devices ever, the iPod touch lets users listen to music, watch movies and download apps all on a large, touch screen made to be used by fingers instead of a stylus.

iPad - 2010

NES mini - 2016

Cozmo - 2016

Fingerlings - 2017

Fingerlings took the toy world by storm in 2017. If you’re read the rest of this list, you’ll notice that traditional toys have become less popular, so at $14.99 Fingerlings’ popularity was certainly not expected. Created by Sydney Wiseman, a then 28-year old brand manager for her two uncles’ family business. Inspired by a viral Facebook photo Wiseman came across of a pygmy marmoset hanging on to a human’s finger, the small monkey-like toys also hang onto fingers and react with various movements and sounds based on touch, audio or motion input. Parents and children both enjoyed fingerlings because of the toy's seamless integration of the nostalgia surrounding traditional toys, modern technology and affordable pricing.