London, Apr 12 : Forget playstation and make way for the hand-held puzzle made in the 1970s, the Rubik Cube - the game that has been named the greatest toy craze of all time.

The brightly coloured Rubik Cube remains a firm favourite, seeing off the more sophisticated gadgetry that dominates the modern gaming market.

The cube came top of a survey by an online auction site, which polled 1,000 games fans to find the best craze ever.

Yo-yos, BMX bikes, space hoppers and hula hoops all made the list, and while early personal computers such as the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 made it to number two, modern consoles such as XBox and PlayStation did not.

Others to make the top ten include Gameboys, Furbies, Tamagotchi and skateboards.

The Rubik Cube was launched in Britain in 1980 and went on to sell 300 million worldwide.

But what all the items in the top ten have in common is that when first released they caused stampedes to the shops and shelves to be stripped bare, particularly those released in the run-up to Christmas.

"With the Rubik Cube, people liked its touchability, the fact that they could hold it. It's a very simple concept,” The Scotsman quoted Roy Shepherd of the Institute of Independent Board Game Inventors, as saying.

"But generally, marketing is the key to a toy's success. It's about the 'must have' effect. If you can get it on television, then you can sell huge numbers. It was the case with the Cabbage Patch Dolls. People were willing to fly to New York to get one,” Shepherd added. (ANI)