Collectibles

Vivi Gets The Ban Hammer in MTG Standard

10Nov

By JoseNo Comments

Vivi Gets The Ban Hammer in MTG Standard

Wizards of the Coast announced new cards to be added to the ban list of several formats today. Most anticipated were the bans of Vivi Ornitier, Screaming Nemesis, and Proft's Eidetic Memory from Standard. For the last few months, Izzet Cauldron has been bending the Standard format to its image. After its omnipresence in most major Standard tournaments, it became clear that the Izzet Cauldron deck had to go for the sake of the meta. It is simply too fast, too powerful, and most importantly, too many people play it, hence warping the entire format around it. Izzet Cauldron Takes Over Standard Meta Instead of an emergency ban, as they used to call them, Wizards of the Coast moved up their ban schedule from November 24th to Monday, November 10th. This announcement was made shortly after the ...

Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) Review

20Oct

By CharlotteNo Comments

Features

Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) Review

Now you may remember last month I shared a news piece about the opening of pre-orders for the The Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) and I'm very lucky in that I got sent one to review. My household seems to have developed a bit of thing around ducks and rubber duckies at the moment. I don't know where it came from, or quite why the hyperfixation has landed so heavily on them, but thanks to TUBBZ the love of ducks, gaming and pop culture can combine in the form of awesome collectibles. Making a Tactical Splash As with all TUBBZ products this is of course, an officially licensed collectible. The Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) has the recognisable Numskull Designs take on a PVC duck. Or at least their bill does. I'll be honest the whole thing jus...

Cable Guys Offer Perfect Halloween Gamer Gift

14Oct

By CharlotteNo Comments

Hardware & Tech

Cable Guys Offer Perfect Halloween Gamer Gift

It's that time of year where TikTok is full of Boo Basket videos and inspiration for the best Halloween gifts. Or maybe that's just my timeline? Anyway, here I was wishing for someone to get me the perfect Halloween gift, when the lovely people at EXG Pro asked me to take a look at their Cable Guys Pumpkin King Jack and Monkey Bomb controller holders. Both are sufficiently spooky looking so of course I said yes. What's This? If you're a regular reader of the Collectibles Section here on Thumb Culture you'll know I've reviewed and written about a fair few Cable Guys products. Most recently the One Piece Luffy Controller Holder. I'm doing things a little different today, a two for one as it were. So let's get into it. Monkey Bomb Controller Holder Now I am not a Call of Duty player, ...

13Oct

By Jose2 Comments

Features

The State of Magic: The Gathering

Wizards of the Coast may finally have found out when it is just too much. Overwhelmed fans and viewers were left mouth-opened when Blake Rasmussen, Mark Rosewater, Gavin Verhey, and company took the stage at MagicCon in Atlanta and shared a series of new products and announcements. The Magic: The Gathering community has now had some days to digest the information, and many content creators have come out with statements of their own. Let's dig in, shall we? Good News First What were the announcements made during MagicCon Atlanta? Let's start from the top, in January 2026, Magic players will at long last revisit the enchanting plane of Lorwyn. A beautiful, lush, and vibrant world full of Magic's very own IP. Kithkins, hybrid mana, the evoke mechanic, and many other things that made this fa...

Pokémon x Natural History Museum Pop-Up Store Announced

22Sep

By CharlotteNo Comments

News & Updates

Pokémon x Natural History Museum Pop-Up Store Announced

Pokémon will be celebrating it's 30th anniversary in January and whilst many of us UK fans are hopeful for a Pokémon Center annoucement, the Pokémon company have thrown a curve ball. Rather than announcing a Pokémon Center pop-up, they've instead announced a Pokémon x Natural History Museum pop-up store! Marking the first of its kind with a UK museum, this will no doubt be a must visit for fans. Off On Another Merch Adventure Now I can see you wondering why a Pokémon x Natural History Museum collab? What links the two to make this not such a random partnership? Well, the Natural History Museum and Pokémon share an interest in the natural world and its creatures. Especially evolution and environments! For example in the Pokémon world, Pokémon can evolve into many forms which allow them to...

Tubbz Opens Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box Pre-Orders

11Sep

By Charlotte2 Comments

News & Updates

Tubbz Opens Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box Pre-Orders

Tubbz has long been the brand that is synonymous with cosplaying ducks. Now the brand has gone full tactical with a figure that redefines the phrase "thinking outside the box." Can you call a PVC duck a figure? Either way get ready. The Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) is now available for pre-order! ! I bet you didn't think the Metal Gear cardboard box could get more iconic. And yet here we are. Together sharing in the knowledge that this limited edition duck box exists, and I very much want it. As someone who lives and dies by, sometimes quite literally, the cardboard box tactic, I can't think of a better Metal Gear collectible. The Metal Gear Solid: The Orange Box TUBBZ (First Edition) itself measures in at 7.69 cm high, 8.79cm wide and has a depth of 12cm. As...

11Sep

By CharlotteNo Comments

Features, LEGO

LEGO Italian Riviera Review

As I look out into another September rainy day I long to be somewhere else. Like a Mediterranean coastline town. Where I could watch life bustle by as I sit in a café admiring the pastel buildings and the turquoise blue of the sea. Unfortunately, I am not lucky enough to be there. Fortunately, I am lucky enough that there is a LEGO set of this exact scene though, the LEGO Italian Riviera. And I got one to review. La vita è bella The LEGO Italian Riviera was a LEGO Ideas set submitted by Fan Designer, Alex Sahli. And it wowed voters along with the committee enough to be made into a fully fledged set, much like the LEGO Ideas Minifigure Vending Machine! Talking about his design Alex said, “I've always been passionate about travel, and Italy stands out as my favourite destination. Its blen...

LotR Over Hill And Under Hill Roleplaying Game – Review

8Sep

By JoseNo Comments

Features

LotR Over Hill And Under Hill Roleplaying Game – Review

The Lord of the Rings role-playing game Over Hill and Under Hill, created by the Swedish tabletop gaming company Free League, is a story-driven cooperative game inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's world. The game is a fun mix of role-playing, narrative choices, and dice mechanics. The starter set, Over Hill and Under Hill, which we played, was released in July 2025. An Unexpected Journey into Middle-earth's Roleplay The starter set contains everything a group of new players needs to kick things off, from a rule book to cards of preset characters, a map, different types of dice, and a story book for the Game Master. The game is designed to help players new to the genre get started without requiring extensive prior preparation. Nonetheless, as a casual player myself, I must say that without the h...

LEGO Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship Review

31Aug

By CharlotteNo Comments

LEGO

LEGO Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship Review

If you're a LEGO and Star Wars fan then you've probably spent some time drooling over the Ultimate Collector Series. It's the pinnacle of detail within the Star Wars LEGO space, but these big collector pieces come with big price tags too. It doesn't stop me staring at them every time I'm in a LEGO store though. Which is as frequently as you may imagine. And so when Thumb Culture got the opportunity to get hands on with the newest addition, the LEGO Star Wars Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship I yelled "Yes" faster than Boba shouted "Dad watch out!". I'm just a simple man trying to make my way in the universe This is not a set for casual builders. At 2970 pieces and priced at £260 on the LEGO website, this is a collection piece. Which you probably guessed by the fact it is part of the ...

One Piece Luffy Cable Guys Controller Holder Review

27Aug

By CharlotteNo Comments

Hardware & Tech

One Piece Luffy Cable Guys Controller Holder Review

With the recent release of the Netflix One Piece adaptation, merchandise for this popular show seems to be popping up everywhere. Which is great news for the anime fans! More mainstream merch means more for the collection! No longer do we have to savour the crumbs of the basement in Forbidden Planet. One Piece is taking over! It started with LEGO and now it's the turn of the One Piece Luffy Cable Guys Controller Holder! The King Of Pirates Anyone wanting to get your hands on this before reading any further, I have some bad news. This is not an insta-buy I'm afraid. Simply because it isn't even available to pre-order just yet! Yes, you'll have to wait to spend your £29.99. But I do also have some good news. The EXG Pro website is allowing fans to sign up to get notified as soon as the pre...