Things We Saw Today: Tamagotchis Are Coming Back Because Everything Old Is New Again

Bandai America is celebrating the 20th (oy vey) anniversary of the electronic toy with a special limited edition release. I feel very old right now.

I finally got a Tamagotchi of my own long after the craze had died down—before that, they were in too-high demand, and I could only afford a rip-off Tomagotchi whose tiny pixelated pet was shaped like a dog. Regardless, I loved that thing, and I remember feeling despondent when my teacher took it away from me and locked it in his desk, knowing that my poor dog was going hungry and uncared for. Anyway, here are the details of the brief Tamagotchi revival, per Polygon:

On Nov. 5, Bandai America is marking the 20th anniversary of the original Tamagotchi with a $14.99, limited-edition release of a miniature version of the toy. The screen is approximately 40 percent smaller than that of the original, with the body a staggering 60 percent smaller. Aside from the size difference, everything about the Tamagotchi is the same. The screen still lacks a backlight, the three control buttons at the bottom of the device perform the same basic functions and the static 8-bit greyscale graphics are intact. Nothing about the Tamagotchi has been adapted for the modern age, and that’s one of its selling points.

I’m not ashamed to say I want one of these quite badly. (via Polygon)

• “Dove’s Gaffe is Part of a History of Racist Marketing.” YUP. (via Buzzfeed)
• E.L. James is releasing a book that’s Fifty Shades of Grey told entirely from Christian’s perspective, which is also what Stephanie Meyer did for Edward in Twilight, which Fifty began as fanfiction of. Spare us this book. (via EW)
• Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie are adding their voices to the chorus of female voices who have been subject to harassment by Harvey Weinstein. (via NYTimes)
• The President of the United States of America mocked the height of a powerful Republican senator, calling him “Liddle Bob Corker.” I guess this is just the way we live now. (via NYTimes)

So what’d you see today, my precious porglets?

(image: Wikimedia Commons)

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Kaila Hale-Stern

Kaila Hale-Stern (she/her) is a content director, editor, and writer who has been working in digital media for more than fifteen years. She started at TMS in 2016. She loves to write about TV—especially science fiction, fantasy, and mystery shows—and movies, with an emphasis on Marvel. Talk to her about fandom, queer representation, and Captain Kirk. Kaila has written for io9, Gizmodo, New York Magazine, The Awl, Wired, Cosmopolitan, and once published a Harlequin novel you'll never find.

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