Can someone fill me in on the crazy differences in the various Tenyo packaging?
Why do some effects come in blue boxes, illustrated boxes, plastic bags with that sort if metallic blue backer or the clear boxes or blister packs.

What confuses me is how some tricks come in several different packages.
Does this change annually or something?

Personally I don't like the toy like illustrated boxes. I much prefer the simple blue boxes or bags.

Blue Box items are generally only sold in Japan, however the exceptions I can think of off-hand are Gorilla Bar and Floral Fantasy.

There are only two items that Tenyo has sold in a bag: "Super Hungarian Linking Ropes" and "Nightmare in Color." In Japan those items came in brown boxes (covered in faux alligator paper).

Once they passed the stage of small boxes, all Tenyo items came in blister packs for many years. That continued in Japan, but in the US they began to use clear plastic boxes with cardboard inserts. In Japan, those items came inside fully-printed cardboard boxes with great cover art. Now they have decided (apparently) to just market the Japanese boxes world-wide and include the proper language instructions in each country.

I still like the blister packs the best. I like the design on some like Diabolicus, Parabox, Geometrick, Mini Zag and Nostradamus Clock.

You forgot to mention the most famous Blue Box trick sold in the US, Eye of the Idol. Also, the actual transition in the US market from the Blister on Card Package (most collectors favor these) was to the tricks in the Cello Bags with Aqua Card, then came the Plastic Box and so on ...

So when I see a trick like Zone Infinity that I purchased with the aqua card in the cellophane bag sold now in a box it's because they transitioned to boxes?
I could never figure out why over the years things change so much even on identical effects.

Thanks for the info. Us any one style worth more than another?

I think the blister packs look best but prefer the clear boxes, blue boxes and cellophane sleeves because I can more easily open but still reseal the tricks.
I do not like the illustrated boxes much as they just seem more toy like and cheaper somehow.

An eBayer questioned my Teleshere listing (how dare he!!) because its the cellophane bag with blue card. That is official Tenyo packaging, I believe the cello bags were mostly from the mid to late 90s in the US. Several really good Tenyo tricks were in the shops in those bags.

I suppose that Telesphere was at the end of its run when it was placed in the cellophane bag. So to that eBayer (I believe he posts here) I say...fooey!! How dare you question my integrity - he actually said I was in violation of an eBay policy

Personally I like the color blister packs. Tenyo's packaging in recent years is horrible but I guess they can't get away with the old style graphics any more. Hate the plastic boxes but at least that's better than the awful graphics they use now.

Oh--I see what you mean by cellophane bag: clear plastic polybag with the slightly metallic aqua cardboard folder that held the instructions. You can usually tell if these are original if the name of the trick properly appears through the oval window in the cardboard.

Does the type of package affect value at all?
For example is the Aqua card Future clock more or less desirable than a boxed one?
Sometimes I come across the same effect in different style packaging and I never know which to get.
I tend to get the ones easiest to keep in good shape.

You'd really have to judge from eBay to answer that question. It's esoteric "collector" thing in my opinion. There is a big difference between an unpackaged trick and a packaged one, obviously judging from eBay prices. But I don't think it matters too much otherwise. I may test the waters on some old sealed Tenyos in packaging that is different from current production so I can report back on that.

For me Future Clock in the bag with card is more mysterious looking than the awful Tenyo box (which I think came later?) but I assume that there are collectors who may even want both packages for their collection. If you're not so much a collector then I think the packaging doesn't matter.

I would think that the original packaging--that is, the packaging used at the time the product came out--would be the more valuable.

However, I believe to save money, for a long period Tenyo stopped making English-language packages and used those poly bags or clear plastic boxes with inserts. But there was none of that nondescript and blah packaging in Japan--all of those same tricks came in cardboard boxes with beautiful artwork.

Now, it appears that Tenyo has decided to simply issue the original Japanese boxes here with English instructions attached. That gives you the attractive artwork.