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The Tamagotchi was one of the best toys from the '90s. That's not just the nostalgia in me talking as 30 years later, Bandai is still dishing out versions of the iconic digital pet. You can pick up everything from officially licensed versions featuring characters like Star Wars' Grogu to the newer Tamagotchi Paradise, which includes a full-color display, and now, there's an official smartphone collab out there to collect too.
Bandai Namco teamed up with phone accessories brand Casetify to launch a new Tamagotchi range of products, which includes vivid and nostalgia-fueled Y2K-themed phone cases, phone straps, and even collector cards. But most importantly, this collab, which launched on May 29, includes a bona fide limited edition Casetify Tamagotchi, that's exclusive to the brand.
Casetify's accessories are known for not being on the cheap side, and that includes its new Limited Edition Tamagotchi. It's £43 (Casetify), which is more than double the typical £20 MSRP you can expect to pay for a version of the toy based on the original 1996 design. However, it does include a matching translucent blue plastic protective case, which you won't get if you pick up one of the cheaper retro-inspired toys off the supermarket shelf - much to my chagrin.
You're also paying more for the "limited" aspect of it all. The digital pet is decked out in Casetify branding that you can only pick up as part of this collab. Thankfully, that added bit of branding doesn't affect its design too much, as Casetify thought cleverly to change up their logo to make it better tie in with the tiny versions of characters Mametchi (yes, the Tamagotchi pets have names), Ginjirotchi, and Kuchipatchi dotted alongside it and the tiny LCD display.
If you don't need a new phone case and just have your heart set on a new digital pet, you can grab an official Bandai Tamagotchi starting from £15.98 at Amazon, which includes the same three-button layout and LCD display.
Sadly, by the time the Casetify Tamagotchi arrived at my door, and I had some time to see how it matched up to the rest of my digital pet collection, it has since sold out. It was available to pick up separately, and as part of two accessory bundles, including a Tamagotchi UFO Bundle Set for £118 (Casetify) and a Tamagotchi Collector Bundle Set for a whopping £703 (Casetify), but as of typing you cannot add it to your online shopping basket.
Which is a shame, because as someone who has amassed a small collection of digital friends, this is one of the best looking I own so far. Its translucent plastic chassis and "whimsical sticker-style design" feels like a design I would have seen lining up the toy shelves back in my late 1990 childhood, and it plays exactly as the toy did then.
You can select from the options to feed, play with, bathe and discipline your egg-pet, and everything from the three-button layout to the handy dandy reset button at the back are all present. The toy will also scream at you in an entirely authentic way, though you can set sounds off if you want a bit of freedom from your nostalgic parental duties.
While that's disappointing that it's sold out, there is more to this collab than just a toy. There's a range of Tamagotchi-themed phone cases, which feature the original '90s characters and even art of the digital pet itself. My favorite add-on from the lot is undoubtedly the Mametchi Phone Strap, which includes a tiny plush version of the pet that you can dangle from your phone, and the Mametchi Plush Earbuds Pouch available for £33 at Casetify, which looks ideal to store a pair of SteelSeries Arctis Game Buds.
The phone cases and accessories are available for a wide variety of gaming phones, including the Samsung Galaxy line, and start from £33 at Casetify. Sure, if you're reading this from a toy-collector standpoint they mustn't sound as exciting, but when you order a case, for example, you can not only pick your phone of choice, but even customize the design. The Egg Phone Case allows you to select from your choice of sprite art to feature on the printed image of the Tamagotchi, which is a unique gimmick that I can't help but appreciate as a '90s toy fan.
Check out the best Nintendo gifts and best Lego sets for more nostalgia-fueled toys and collectibles.
