Let me set a scene. It's 1997. You're holding a plastic egg on a keychain, bigger than it needs to be, and you're impossibly invested in a creature made of a few dozen pixels. It beeps. It needs something. You drop everything.
Now fast-forward. You're older. You've got a job, responsibilities, a phone that does a thousand things. And yet — you've still got a place in your heart for that little pixel creature. If you've been feeling that pull lately, you're far from alone.
The numbers agree
Tamagotchi launched in 1996. By 2025, more than 100 million units had sold worldwide. That's a staggering number on its own — but here's the part that matters for this essay: sales roughly doubled between 2022 and 2023. This isn't a trickle of nostalgia. It's a genuine comeback.
The "kidult" factor
There's a name for this: the kidult market. Adults who happily spend money and energy on the toys they loved as children. It might sound silly written out, but it's real, and it's everywhere.
For a generation that grew up with digital pets, buying a Tamagotchi again isn't regression. It's revisiting. It's saying, "That little friend meant something to me, and I'd like to meet them again." Collectors curate shelves of them. New colorways and collaborations — remember the Hello Kitty edition, or the festival designs — give grown-ups reasons to keep coming back. It's a hobby now, not just a toy.
The quiet comfort of caring
Here's the part that feels most important, and least discussed.
We live in a loud, always-on world. Attention is scattered. Everything demands something back. In that noise, a Tamagotchi offers something genuinely rare: a small, simple creature that needs a little care, and rewards you with its company. Feed it. Clean up after it. Watch it grow. That's it. No feed to scroll, no notifications to clear.
Digital companionship has become a real part of how people think about mental wellbeing. A pet — even a pixel one — gives you a gentle rhythm, a reason to check in, a small life that's doing better because you showed up. That sounds like a small thing. It isn't.
Not a regression. A homecoming.
So if you've caught yourself shopping for an egg with a screen, or secret-saved a keychain listing at 2 a.m.: congrats, you're in good company. The adults aren't buying toys to be childish. They're reclaiming a small warmth that time didn't actually erase. They're buying a pet that asks for just a little, and gives back comfort, memory, and a reason to smile at your desk.
TamaBuddy feels the same way. Care for something small, and something small cares back. That's the whole trick — and it never gets old.