Star Wars Tamagotchi Lets You Lead Darth Vader to the Dark Side

Aki Maita, a former Japanese office worker, struck gold when she thought of Tamagotchi in the 1990s. The egg-shaped toy—which allowed kids to take care of digital pets their parents didn’t have to clean up after—was an immediate hit. Several media franchises have collaborated with the brand, and Star Wars is no exception. Grogu (a.k.a Baby Yoda) and R2-D2 have already received the Tamagotchi treatment, and now it’s time for Darth Vader to get his own version.

As Gizmodo reports, the new toy condenses the arc of one of pop culture’s greatest villains into an adorable, gamified package. With the new Tamagotchi, you can raise Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader through fun mini-games. Have your Jedi do lightsaber training, go on the Death Star trench run, and battle Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker. The cute, pixelated versions of the characters even act out 12 scenes from the Star Wars movies. Though Anakin’s turn to the darkside is set in stone, the flavor of Sith he becomes isn’t. You can watch your Anakin grow into 10 different versions of Darth Vader. The toy even comes with a silicone case shaped like the character’s black helmet. The Darth Vader Tamagotchi is expected to cost about $30, with a release date set for this March.

Tamagotchi officially launched in 1996, and even in the app era, it’s still going strong. Sales have more than doubled between 2022 and 2023. You can find many versions of the toys, from the originals you remember from the ’90s to updates on the classic, on Bandai Namco’s website.

There’s a weirder—and crispier—side of the digital pet world. KFC released a fried-chicken-shaped version of the pocket game in some Spanish-speaking locations last year for a limited time. Instead of raising a cute creature, players were tasked with taking care of a sentient drumstick.

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