COUNTDOWN: 6 Transformers toys to look forward to in 2026

As another year in Transformers collecting draws to a close, it’s hard not to start glancing ahead. Anticipation has always been part of the hobby’s rhythm, from reveals and announcements to the slower burn of releases that take months to arrive, and if nothing else, it gives us something to talk about between toys actually landing on shelves.

With that in mind, this isn’t intended as a list of rankings or must-buy proclamations. Instead, it’s a small selection of confirmed upcoming releases that, for one reason or another, feel worth paying attention to as we head into 2026. Some of these are exciting because of what they are; others because of what they might represent.

So, as the year winds down, here are six Transformers toys I’m quietly looking forward to seeing land over the months ahead.

#6: Transformers x Macross 7 Basara Prime

TakaraTomy’s crossover projects have always occupied an unusual corner of the Transformers world. They’re often unapologetically niche and clearly collector-focused, although unlike Hasbro’s equivalent output, they typically rely on existing moulds with minimal-to-no retooling. Basara Prime certainly fits the first part of that, but not the second, and it’s all the more intriguing for it.

Hopes for a Transformers x Macross crossover had been rife for years. However, the resulting project is precisely what no one could have imagined — if only because it completely eschews the nostalgic trappings of both series’ most classic entries for something altogether more creative! Marrying the flamboyant, music-driven energy of Macross 7 with an entirely unique Transformers-styled robot mode is something that sounds bizarre on paper, yet the figure itself is surprisingly cohesive. There’s a joy to the concept that feels refreshingly unbothered by mass appeal, and in an era where so many releases are shaped by broad expectations, that kind of over-the-top indulgence is quietly welcome.

Even if it never ends up on everyone’s shelf, Basara Prime serves as a reminder of how elastic — and how fun — the Transformers brand can be when it allows itself a little freedom.

#5: Studio Series Titan Age of Extinction Grimlock

Including a live-action movie release here feels important, if only because the films remain such a significant pillar of the franchise, even when they hugely divide opinion. That fandom interest is something Hasbro also seems keen to acknowledge yet again with Studio Series, after a good few years of the movieverse designs arguably taking a back seat to 1986-era output. Yes, 2026 is the year that Bayformers go big — really big!

Titan Age of Extinction Grimlock has certainly got people talking. It’s a release that fully embraces the excess of the movieverse, leaning into spectacle and scale in a way that feels unapologetic. Whether it ultimately ends up being loved or critiqued, it’s undeniably a statement piece, and one that suggests Studio Series is once again looking to stretch its horizons. The plans to follow Grimlock up with further Titan-class Dinobots are the ultimate testament to that.

At the very least, it’s a fascinating example of how differently Transformers can be interpreted depending on era, audience, and intent, and that contrast remains part of what keeps the line interesting.

#4: Age of the Primes Bruticus

Technically, this is five toys in itself, but here it makes sense to treat Age of the Primes Bruticus as one holistic project. Combiners are often judged as much on how they feel as a completed whole as on the individual figures themselves, after all. They have always carried a particular weight in Transformers collecting, given how ambitious and technically complex they can be. We’ve seen as much with recent Generations examples such as Menasor and Superion, but dare I say that the upcoming Combaticons look set to take things to a whole other level.

That said, Bruticus brings with it much of the same baggage as its predecessors — it is, after all, a so-called ‘skeleton’ combiner, and thus by its very nature incites debate, with some fans perceiving it as a compromise from the off. In this case, there’s also been plenty of uncertainty concerning the proportions of the combined mode itself based on the initial reveal, although further photos taken from conventions have allayed those fears somewhat.

How Bruticus ultimately lands remains to be seen, but it’s safe to say this is a combiner team that will dominate discussion in 2026.

#3: MPG-17 Optimus Prime

If you had said to me just a year ago that there was going to be another Masterpiece-styled Optimus Prime on the horizon, I’m sure I would have groaned slightly. And yet, here we are, with the reveal of MPG-17 having landed to fairly uniform acclaim — including my own — on account of daring to do something a little different.

After all, we’ve had increasingly cartoon-styled Masterpiece toys for years now, and the previous attempt at the Autobot leader was essentially the zenith of that. Whatever you made of MP-44, it looks like it had stepped off a TV screen, translating the character’s cartoon model into plastic with astonishing accuracy. Yet TakaraTomy’s direction with the MPG update reads like a bit of a reset, in many ways, and an altogether more original and creative endeavour, free from the trappings of having to slavishly represent one specific media source.

If anything, MPG-17 signals a slight return to the blended influence of the Hasui era, weaving inspiration from multiple disparate eras of Transformers into one cohesive whole, and imbuing it with a fairly uniformly pleasing aesthetic that feels classic, even if it’s also exceptionally stylised.

In a landscape where Optimus Prime is never far from another update, MPG-17 stands out as a release that comes off as purposeful rather than obligatory.

#2: Adamas Machina Predaking

Adamas Machina Predaking occupies a very different space in the hobby, and that’s what makes it so compelling. High-end, mechanically ambitious, and clearly unconcerned with broad accessibility, it pushes at the boundaries of what a Transformers toy can be.

Taking the fan-favourite beast-themed big man and reimagining him in exceptionally stylish but stylised form, this is also a project a world away from the mass appeal design of the more recent Generations combiners. Loaded with diecast and lathered in paint, it wears its status as an “adult collectable” proudly in the promotional blurb — and comes with a price tag to match such ambition.

This isn’t a release designed for everyone, nor does it attempt to be. Instead, it exists as a showcase of engineering and intent, blurring the line between toy and display piece. Even for collectors who admire it from a distance rather than owning it, Predaking signifies the outer limits of Transformers design as we head into 2026.

#1: Missing Link Ultra Magnus

If there’s a single upcoming release that feels genuinely symbolic of where Transformers is heading, it’s Missing Link Ultra Magnus.

The Missing Link line has already proven itself as more than a novelty, offering respectful modernisations of classic designs without erasing their origins. Ultra Magnus, however, is the real test. His original toy was unconventional even by 1980s standards, and updating it while preserving its identity is no small task.

That this project exists at all speaks volumes about the brand’s confidence in and reverence for its own history. More than simply reinterpreting the same ideas, Missing Link suggests a willingness to look back with care, nuance, and restraint, qualities which feel increasingly valuable in a long-running franchise. That’s also evident in the inclusion of ‘Deerstalker’, an overhaul of the original Diaclone toy’s Powered Buggy companion — a dream come true for many of us!

If Ultra Magnus delivers on its promise, it won’t just be another strong release. It will stand as a clear statement about how Transformers intends to honour its past while continuing to move forward, and a yardstick for how ambitious Missing Link can continue to be in the future.

So, as we look ahead to 2026, which Transformers releases are you most curious about?

TTFN