Every year, gamers can count on Activision to put out new entries in at least two of their franchises. The first is Call of Duty, which will be seeing a new release in 2015 in the form of Call of Duty: Black Ops 3, and the second, of course, is Skylanders.

Since its debut in 2011, Skylanders has proven to be a significant franchise for Activision, warranting an annual release schedule as each game in the series continues to sell very well year after year. Fans continue to consume anything Skylanders, which includes a wave of new figures that accompany each entry. Now the fifth game in the series has apparently been leaked for release in 2015, sure to add even more figures and merchandise for the franchise's rabid fan base to collect.

It's no surprise that a new Skylanders game is coming in 2015, but what is surprising is the source of the leak and the title of the game. In a post on his Twitter (since deleted), professional motocross rider Travis Pastrana stated, "Was filming some cool stuff for a new Activision game called Skylanders Superchargers this weekend." He then went on to mention some filming done for the game involving motorbikes, which offers a lot of clues into what this year's gimmick will be for Skylanders.

Each entry hinges on a central theme. The first game introduced the toys-to-life concept, whereas Skylanders Giants added larger figures. Skylanders Swap Force introduced toys that could be attached to each other, and the most recent entry, Skylanders Trap Team, is all about collecting and controlling the game's enemies using a specialized portal.

Pastrana's involvement in the game, as well as the Superchargers subtitle, strongly suggests that this year's game will be based around vehicles. Kids love toy cars and the like, and a Skylanders game built around vehicles has a lot of potential, both in terms of gameplay and sales.

Skylanders Superchargers sounds like it has a ton of potential if this speculation is accurate, but it also has stiff competition to consider in 2015. While Skylanders is the franchise that began the toys-to-life phenomenon, it seems to have more and more competition ever year, as other companies have witnessed Activision's success and want a piece of the pie.

The first to throw their hat in the ring against Skylanders was Disney with their Disney Infinity games, and they have remained a persistent competitor to Skylanders ever since. In 2015, Skylanders doesn't just have Disney Infinity 3.0 to worry about, though; there's a new contender coming to the toys-to-life market later this year, too. This new title is LEGO Dimensions, a game that combines the brick-building of LEGO with the typical toys-to-life technology.

Which toys-to-life game will reign supreme this holiday season? It's too early to tell, especially when one takes into account the brand name power of Lego Dimensions and the inclusion of Star Wars characters in this year's Disney Infinity entry. Even when the time comes to announce a victor, the winner may not even be clear, as both Activision and Disney claimed their toys-to-life game last year was the best-selling.

Skylanders Superchargers will be available later this year. If it releases on the same systems as its predecessors, expect the game to be available on numerous tablet devices, micro consoles, Nintendo 3DS, PS3, PS4, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

Source: Polygon