Tamagotchi

The enourmously popular toy from Japan, became a national obsession in the UK by 1997. Kids up and down the country would queue for hours to get their hands on the latest craze, often leading to skirmishes in toy shops. The picture was not disimilar in other countries either.

The digital toy would act as a virtual pet that could be carried around on a keyring. Just like a real pet, the Tamagotchi would need feeding, cleaning and vaccinating, but without expensive veterinary fees. If the Tamagotchi were not fed, or became diseased, the poor blighter would have a tough time, eventually expiring from lack of attention (although it could easily be revived, unlike a real pet, by pressing the reset button!). Rise to the challenge and see whether you can raise your own Tamagotchi in our very own Virtual Pet simulator.

The curse of all teachers, with kids having to care for their pets around the clock (even during school), Tamagotchi were a short lived craze and by 1998 had virtually disappeared from the UK market. Several feeble attempts were made at reviving the craze, by introducing Virtual Angels, Virtual Aliens and even Virtual Kittens, but these were to proove too much for the fickle UK consumers. Tamagotchi were withdrawn from stock by January 1999, although they can still be found on occasions when hunting through "bargain bins" in the high street.

There are many tributes to Tamagotchi on the Internet and obviously many fans out there. If you have a story or an experience with Tamagotchi that you would like to share, then please contact us and we'll share your story with the world!