Amiibos are meeting Skylanders exclusively on Wii U — and changing the existing ‘toys-to-life’ model

LOS ANGELES — Nintendo is playing nice with Skylanders — and making a savvy business move in the process.

Donkey Kong and Bowser will be figures in the upcoming Skylanders Superchargers. By switching the base, they can work as either Amiibo or Skylanders. Amiibo are compatible with Wii U and 3DS games like Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8. It’s the first such partnership in the four-year-old “toys to life” market, which has generated $4 billion in sales to date. A recent survey found that parents spent $131 on toys-to-life over the last six months alone.

The figures will come packaged with a Supercharges Starter Pack for Wii U, Wii, and 3DS. The new Skylanders comes out on Sept. 20.

These toy-based games have been strictly separated in the past, so this partnership is a big surprise.