It has been nearly three decades since Aki Maita and Yokoi Akihiro unleashed the Tamagotchi, that tiny egg-shaped virtual pet that took the early 2000s by storm.
Ah, the memories. Like countless kids around the globe, I too was the proud owner of a pocket-sized Tamagotchi. I poured my heart and soul into nurturing that digital critter, only to watch it meet its inevitable demise days later, no matter how much love and care I showered upon it. Talk about tough love.
Tamagotchis were notoriously difficult to keep alive. They were like the high-maintenance divas of the virtual pet world, craving attention regardless of the hours we poured into their well-being. No matter how many buttons we pressed or how carefully we followed the rulebook, their fate was sealed.
Forget about potty training or timely feeding. Those tactics were merely a recipe for disaster. It seemed that the only guarantee in the Tamagotchi realm was that death was just a matter of time. Talk about existential dread.
But hold on to your nostalgic hats, folks. Despite the monumental technological advancements since those humble pixelated days, Tamagotchis are making a grand return in 2023, armed with pocket-sized collaborations that will transport us back to our virtual parenting days.
First in line was Supreme, stirring up nostalgia with a collection of Tamagotchis as part of their Spring/Summer 2023 lineup. These digital darlings will now cost you a whopping $180 on StockX for a trio. It seems the price of virtual companionship has skyrocketed since our playground days.
Not to be outdone, Hiroshi Fujiwara’s fragment design is hopping on the bandwagon too. The Japanese designer teased us with an Instagram post flaunting a pristine Gen 1 Tamagotchi. Brace yourself for more premium price tags, folks.
While inline Tamagotchis historically ranged from $19.99 to $39.99, Supreme set the bar higher with a retail price of $49. It’s safe to assume that FRGMNT’s collaboration will follow suit. Who said nostalgia comes cheap?
With over 82 million units estimated to have been sold by 2017 (and surely a higher number now), it’s no wonder that brands are itching to cash in on the enduring Y2K trend. The world is about to get needier with an influx of Tamagotchis, but hey, they taught us valuable lessons in life and death, right? Remember the Tamagotchi Cemetery? A true homage to existential contemplation.
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