Thirty years. That is a strange thing to say about a tiny plastic egg that was supposed to be a passing fad.
In 1996, Bandai launched the Tamagotchi in Japan: a keychain-sized virtual pet that beeped for food, demanded attention, and grew up before your eyes. Nobody planned on it becoming culture. Yet here we are in 2026, and Bandai is marking three full decades of the little egg with a proper anniversary year — new launches, new partnerships, and a flagship retail takeover that looks nothing like 1996.
The centerpiece of the action is the newly announced lineup of Original Tamagotchi designs, arriving March 18, 2026. Bandai is bringing back the classic first-generation device, the shell everyone remembers from the playground. It is joined by two all-new molds that let Bandai stretch the formula: the "New Species Discovered!" Tamagotchi, which plays on the series' long-running sense of wonder, and the Tamagotchi Angel, a softer, lighter take on the standard egg. These are fresh physical designs, not remasters — a small reminder that after 30 years, Bandai still wants the device itself to surprise us.
Before those hit shelves, anniversary energy takes over Manhattan. From February 14 through March 1, 2026, MINISO's Times Square flagship becomes a full Tamagotchi takeover — a rare, large-scale retail presence for the brand in one of the busiest tourist corridors on the planet. If you are in New York that fortnight, it will be hard to miss. If you are not, expect a lot of photos in your feed.
The celebration is also a partnerships story. Bandai is treating the 30th as a launch platform, using it to open new collaborations that carry Tamagotchi beyond its toy-box roots. The specifics are still rolling out, but the direction is clear: the brand is treating this birthday less as a nostalgia lap and more as a year-long introduction to a new audience.
That is the part worth noticing. A 30th anniversary is easy to do as a museum piece. Bandai is doing the opposite — new hardware, new designs, new shelves in Times Square, new partners. Thirty years in, the egg is still being handed to people who were never alive for the fad that started it.
Whether you remember the original beep or are meeting the Angel for the first time, 2026 is shaping up to be the year the Tamagotchi earns its next decade. Keep an eye on TamaBuddy for launch-day coverage and closer looks at each new shell as it lands.
Missed the earlier anniversary announcements? Catch up on the timeline at hermesnews.