TOKYO —

The egg-shaped Tamagotchi virtual pet is going color. The portable toy from Bandai Co, which shows a graphic image of a cartoonish animal on a tiny screen, has been a hit worldwide.
 
Some 40 million were sold in about two years after it first went on sale in 1996. Revived in 2004, with infrared connection, it was a hit again, selling another 34.6 million units so far.
 
The revamped 5,040 yen Tamagotchi, set to go on sale in Japan Nov 22, is the first time it will have a liquid color display, Bandai said Thursday. Overseas sales are still undecided.
 
The creatures inside the Tamagotchi must be “fed” and “nurtured” by the owner of the toy by periodically pushing buttons on the toy. Should an owner forget, the animal may get angry or even die.
 
The new version offers colorful backdrops including kitchens, bathrooms and playgrounds. The pet’s face turns blue when sick and red when angry, according to Tokyo-based Bandai.
 
Targeting girls between 7 and 9, Bandai plans to sell 200,000 of the color Tamagotchi’s in Japan by the end of March 2009.
 
“By portraying more realistic and varied scenes, the product is designed to intensify the attachment users feel toward the Tamagotchi they raise,” it said in a statement.

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6 Comments

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  Kijimuna at 10:39 AM JST - 26th September

  Had no idea these were still around. This retread strikes me very much like all the Hollywood remakes of older tv shows and books. Evidence of a total bankruptcy of ideas.

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  DenshaDeGO at 02:12 PM JST - 26th September

  “By portraying more realistic and varied scenes, the product is designed to intensify the attachment users feel toward the Tamagotchi they raise,”

  And that's exactly what Japan needs right now: it's kids feeling intense attachment to cheap toys. It's bad enough everyone's glued to their cell phones and DSes.

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  dennis0bauer at 03:15 PM JST - 26th September

  5,040 yen Tamagotchi? that is to expensive, you can download pets to your phone these days.

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  stanoue at 10:40 AM JST - 27th September

  This thing just won't die! I had one at primary school...

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  Pukey2 at 07:19 PM JST - 27th September

  The article makes it sound as if Japan has 40 million girls aged 7-9.

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  DenshaDeGO at 03:03 PM JST - 28th September

  The article makes it sound as if Japan has 40 million girls aged 7-9

  But it does ... or did you not mean mentally?

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