Order 3D-printed Infinity Blade figurines from inside the game

In a first for gaming, you can now design and order 3D-printed figurines of Infinity Blade characters from inside the Infinity Blade III interface.

World of Warcraft was the first to introduce the custom, 3D-printed figurine of your in-game character back in 2007 via Figure Prints, but the idea hasn't really propagated widely since then. However, now you can design and order a 3D-printed figure of your favourite game character from inside that game -- and not just any game, but a mobile one.

Infinity Blade III for iOS -- the series that has been used as a showcase for the graphics and chip capabilities of iOS devices -- has added an interface which allows you to customise a character from the game (much like a character creation tool) -- and order a coloured sandstone 3D-printed sculpture of the final design.

The character customisation toolkit was deigned by software development company Sandboxr, which has collaborated with several other developers on similar products -- for web, rather than in-game. Sandboxr will also be 3D printing the models and shipping them to customers.

"The ability to take something from the virtual world, customize it, and push a button to transform it into the physical world is magic," said Donald Mustard of Infinity Blade developer Chair Entertainment. "We're excited to introduce collectibles that allow fans to create what they decide is the ultimate expression of their character. We can't wait to see all of their amazing Infinity Blade creations."

In addition to being able to customise their own figurines, Infinity Blade fans will be able to order limited edition Hero statues designed by the Infinity Blade web team, available via a new website specially set up for that purpose.

The prints seem to run between around $30 and $100, which isn't cheap, but doesn't seem too outlandish. The website is currently offering a limited-time deal of $10 off all products.