Okay. Gimmick yo-yos. First off gimmick is a rough term . To me it gets interpreted as a yoyo with a single purpose or some sort of a feature that is it’s primary focus over other aspects. Many examples of what I mean but it’s also not always the case. Finger spin being a big example sone just happen to have a finger hub others it’s the core feature. Many yo-yos have multiple gimmicks.
So let’s start soft. Light up and glow yo-yos. Pretty easy concept
Light up you got push a button and it’s on or it lights when it’s spinning either way not as cool in the light or during the day but super cool / essential at night. Usually the light up kit changes play as it adds weight a bit and possible vibe for some. Has batteries or a charger to deal with so more
Maintenance to the yoyo
Glow similar thing to lights you get a yoyo that only does the thing in the dark. It need to charge in light and doesn’t last super long. Generally glow doesn’t impact play but glow materials are honestly kind of ugly in the light lol.
Now we got clutch like the brain and reactive response yo-yos like the fizz or fast yo-yos
Both are neat but limited both come back without much/any effort. The fizz and such are a bit more versatile in tricks but wear down over time unlike the clutch yoyo which is much less forgiving but the springs will weaken over time making it a bit less predictable.
Hubstack yo-yos. I don’t care what you say it is a gimmick and it affects okay by adding some vibe but as you see I love them all the same. Pretty self explanatory they have hubs those hubs spin. All of them act similar some better some worse.
Adjustable gaps weather it’s a key or a dial you can change the gap and response on demand. It’s neat but is it worth it. Idk but they are fun.
Finger spins. Dna, tornado whatever you call it you got a yoyo and it has a dimple for your finger to sit. Neat gimmick that’s very trendy today and has been before. Sone like the cheat code go all in on this gimmick kingbthe yoyo it’s self kind of plain others like the iceberg are just a good yoyo that happens to have a finger spin feature. Either way it’s s fun gimmick.
Odd shapes and challenge yo-yos. The gimmick is it’s strange in shape and may play in a way that’s harder to land on purpose. They are fun yo-yos but most will see them as quirky or the gimmick too extreme.
Tiny, undersize and micro throws. Not everyone cup of tea but they are neat. These are the obvious gimmick yoyo as they tend to add challenge and stray far from anything competition worthy. The knuckle yoyo and Janus being convertible yo other skill toys as well. I added my micro kendama as it’s just absurd as well lol.
Wide yo-yos. The wide yoyo is a gimmick the gimmick being easy to catch on the string kind of like the finger spins your giving up sone stuff to play in a very specific way. These don’t do tech tricks well but they land on the string (sometimes all the string) in a satisfying way.
Swappable/Replaceable cap or rim yo-yos like the mod 44 and unicorn and gemstone and others. I’ll add the nine dragons to this as another odd ball with its spinning hub things.
They are neat some are spin tops sone convert to different shakes some do tricks you can do any other way all are awesome. They often give up something to give you everything but is that a problem or a perk. No idea but I love them.
Special handcrafted throws like the floatable and extremely survivable survivalist or convertible like the 3-1 no jive or meant to swap the guts to change the play style. These are all gimmicks in there own right and awesome yo-yos.
Unrelated to my collection but this reminds me if anyone happens to have a launch and not want it I would gladly take it off your hands. Or know where some dead stock is.
