ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Before the holiday wish lists and mad buying rush each year comes a dose of nostalgia with the National Toy Hall of Fame’s annual picks for enshrinement.

This year, bubbles, little green army men and the Rubik’s Cube took their place alongside past winners, including Monopoly and Silly Putty. But is the road to such playtime immortality really all fun and games?

According to the judges, well, yes.

But they say any real pressure is nostalgia driven, a matter of balancing head versus heart.

Take Star Wars action figures, which were on the ballot last year, said Jeff Gomez, chief executive at Starlight Runner Entertainment.

“What I have to do is separate a little bit from my own childhood and take a look and see if I could argue for them,” the media consultant says. It turns out he could because of the way the figures let children tell their own stories within the movie mythology. In they went.

Before making the ballot, toys first have to survive a panel of historians and curators at The Strong museum, where the 16-year-old hall of fame is housed. The group meets several times to choose 12 finalists from nominees that pour in online all year and via postcard and petition. The finalists are then sent to the 24 judges, who include inventors, educators, psychologists and others.

This year, 434 toys were nominated within 5,000 submissions. Only toys with longevity, icon status and the ability to inspire kids are seriously considered. But that only narrows the list so much.

“I try to pull back and look at the big picture – How much did this toy impact our culture, impact our country?” ESPN producer and judge Amy Rosenfeld says. “It’s impossible not to apply your own personal experiences.”