(c)TOMY

Cars that drive up walls and flying robots that battle in the skies have until recently been seen only in anime or video games, but there are now toys that do these things. And these toys are not just popular with boys; even fathers are becoming fans of them, too.

(c)TOMY

At first glance, Aerospider - an infrared remote-controlled car for indoor use that went on sale in October 2008 - looks like a typical remote-controlled car. But moving the power switch from Ground to Wall allows the car to race up vertical walls or underneath tables like Spiderman or a ninja. It's amazing.