As we get closer to SDCC, news of Transformers exclusives is finally starting to leak out into the wild. My favorite bit so far is one that’s barely made a blip on the radar of most other outlets.

Optimus Prime is coming to BotBots.

BotBots Con Crew 10-Pack

BotBots have been unique in their short lifespan for featuring original characters that aren’t just tiny versions of those we already have a million versions of. That’s been refreshing, but I think a limited-edition release, like the Con Crew 10-Pack is the perfect place to have a little fun and do a “what if” with traditional characters.

Coming to an eBay auction near you… (Image: Hasbro)

The result is Cofeemus Prime. Officially a cosplaying BotBot rather than the actual character, he joins the other con-exclusive tribes: the Meet n’ Greets, Fantastic Fuelers, and Line League. Featuring everything from a bag of chips to a tent to a… kaiju squid(?), these guys are ready for anything the con has to throw at them.

You’ve got the touch! (Image: Hasbro)

Other than Cofeemus (whose design is spot-on), there are some fun details in this batch of BotBots that really capture the con environment. I love little details like Inky Inkerson’s Autobot vs. Decepticon graphic novel cover or the felt squid cap that Scribzilla comes with. The new tribes have the following members (look for their numbers to grow at subsequent conventions):

Line League:

• Captain Cartridge – superhero handheld game
• Vigitente – tent
• Con-Packtor – backback

Fantastic Fuelers:

• Cofeemus Prime – cosplaying coffee cup
• Cab O’Nate – energy drink
• Hal A. Peno – spicy bag of chips
• Sumthin’ Fishy – fish taco

Meet N’ Greets:

• Scribzilla – marker (and kaiju squid)
• Botarazzi – camera
• Inky Inkerson – graphic novel

The 10-pack will be $34.99 at Hasbro’s booth at SDCC. Any remaining stock will be up on HasbroPulse after convention season in August.

Arcade Renegades 12-Pack

If you can’t make it to SDCC this year, you can still get your new BotBots fix by picking up the Amazon exclusive Arcade Renegades.

Let’s go down to the lobby… (Image: Hasbro)

Coming out a few days before SDCC on July 16, this pack is unique in that you get an entire BotBots tribe all at once. All 12 Arcade Renegades are included, along with four mystery bots from other tribes. They are:

• Knotzel – pretzel
• Driver Ted – racing game
• Clawsome – claw game
• Tutu Puffz – cotton candy
• Old Cool – cabinet game (and my favorite from this wave)
• Bank Shot – pinball machine (oh, Preston…)
• Cackle Corn – popcorn
• Greed Feed – ticket monster
• 24k Bit – gold coin
• Tangry Tart – lollipop
• Sheriff Sugarfeet – doughnut
• Sweet Cheat – candy bar
• Pixelfin – hat
• Papa Click – camera
• The Fizz – soda cup
• Wrist – Banned – wrist band

The new crew (Image: Hasbro)

As you can tell, a bunch of these are redecos of existing BotBots, but the pretzel, cabinet game, and cotton candy molds are brand new to this tribe. Also the ticket monster… but the less said about that one the better.

Mash the buttons! (Image: Hasbro)

The packaging is fun as well – with the blind pack containers molded like arcade buttons so you can mash controls to reveal new bots. You can preorder yours on Amazon right now for $29.99.