The original Tamagotchi is making a comeback, cashing in on a wave of 90s nostalgia that’s already seen the Nintendo NES and SNES resurrected.
The wildly popular egg-shaped toy first launched in the US 21 years ago following its 1996 release in Japan, allowing users to hatch and raise their own digital characters.
Retailing at $19.99, the toy – which will be available to re-order from 30 September – is coming in eight new colours and eight vintage styles.
While Tamagotchi’s pixelated design may be a far cry from the complex games available today, the firm expects the nostalgia factor will be a major luring point for those who once owned the toy as a child.
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The original Tamagotchi is making a comeback, cashing in on a wave of 90s nostalgia that’s already seen the Nintendo NES and SNES resurrected
Reports suggest the virtual pet gadget will come with original retro programming.
The re-release will be rolled out in two generations – Generation One will require players to guess the pet’s next move while Generation Two will feature a number guessing game.
‘[Bandai has] decided to bring back the original Tamagotchi with some new additions that will keep the classic look and feel of the original game, but with new colours that will bring the device to life like never before’, a company representative from the Japanese toy manufacturer told Hype Beast.
MailOnline has contacted Bandai to ask if the Tamagotchi is being released in the UK and how much it will cost.
After hatching a digital creature, users must take care of their virtual pet as it moves through the different stages of life.
Users have to feed it – either a ‘meal,’ consisting of a rice bowl, or a candy ‘snack’ – and clean up after it goes to the bathroom.
If they fail to care for it properly, the pet will get sick and could even die.
The wildly popular egg-shaped toy first launched in the United States 21 years ago following its 1996 release in Japan, allowing users to hatch and raise their own digital characters
Retailing at $19.99 (£15.39), the toy is coming in eight new colours and eight vintage styles and will be available to re-order from 30 September
In June last year, Nintendo released a modern and miniaturised version of the NES console, said to be one of the ‘greatest video game systems ever made,’ and gamers snapped them up.
Nintendo’s second iteration of the NES Classic was available online and in-person at stores the world over.
In September the Japanese firm also resurrected the Super NES console that first launched back in 1991.
It came with 21 built-in games – including beloved titles such as Super Mario World, Yoshi’s Island, and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
This is not the first time Tamagotchi has made a come-back.
The virtual pet toy was available to order as a 20th anniversary version last year and sold for $15 (£11.30).
Pre-orders began October 10 on Amazon, before the toy officially hits the shelves in the US on November 5.
The retro Tamagotchi was first re-released in October last year and sold for $15 (£11.30).Pre-orders began October 10 on Amazon, before the toy officially hits the shelves in the US on November 5
The 20th anniversary version was much smaller than the original but the gameplay was much the same, albeit simpler in some ways
‘It got such a tremendous worldwide response from fans that were knocking down our door to bring it back to the US, so we brought it back,’ Liz Grampp, Vice President of Brand Management at Bandai America, told Dailymail.com last year.
The 20th anniversary version was much smaller than the original but the gameplay was much the same, albeit simpler in some ways.
The toy was released in six different shell designs, from pale orange and see-through blue to boldly contrasting two-tone schemes straight out of the 90s.
Each Tamagotchi included six virtual pets.
‘It’s about resource management, it’s about nurturing, caring for a little virtual pet, and that basic human emotion of taking care of something that I don’t think ever goes away,’ Grampp told Dailymail.com.
‘What’s different is our delivery. So, it’s a more classic pixel game, which has a little bit of a trend of its own.
‘I think for kids who have only grown up playing with iPhones and iPads, it’ll feel unique, but the game play will still feel really familiar.’
The toy was released in six different shell designs, from pale orange and see-through blue to boldly contrasting two-tone schemes straight out of the 90s