But importantly, Tamagotchi was also one of the first video games to be marketed primarily to girls. According to Crowley, when consoles like Nintendo were first released, they were just placed on shelves in the boy’s Toys “R” Us section. With Tamagotchi, the opposite happened. He says it challenges the excessive masculinity associated with video games.
“Tamagotchi provides access to those who have been overlooked over the past decade in the video game industry,” Crowley said.
Ironically, it did so by playing into the gender stereotypes that were dominant at the time, and to some extent still are. It’s a toy that appeals to girls because of traits that are considered stereotypical of women — like maternal instincts or conceptions of upbringing. In order for the girls to be allowed to play video games, they would have to take on the role of a custodian.
“Tamagotchi very much reflects the social conditions of the time of its appearance,” says Crowley. “So on the one hand, we ended up offering it to girls, while on the other it was like ‘this is what girls do, this is what’s appropriate.’
The past and future of virtual reality
If not the first, Tamagotchi is an early example of a video game that blurs the lines between the digital and real worlds, aka virtual reality.
In 1997, Finnish addiction specialist and sociologist Teuvo Peltoniemi issue a somber warning about Tamagotchi in South China Morning Post: “Virtual reality is a new drug, and Tamagotchis is the first wave. It’s not just some fads that will disappear. [Tamagotchis] is an ideal example of the threat that can arise when a virtual world becomes a real dependency problem that needs to be treated in the future.”
As a detox specialist, Peltoniemi grew increasingly worried when she saw children glued to their Tamagotchi in school and on the dinner table. In his work, he used Tamagotchi to show how children and adults can develop overly emotional reactions to virtual characters.
“I think Tamagotchi is the first small tool that is accessible to the average consumer where you can find virtual reality and its most important feature is that it captures the emotions and feelings of everyone. people through care,” Peltoniemi told WIRED.
“People develop really strong feelings for their Tamagotchi because they, in a way, have a relationship with digital pets, to the point where people feel they have enough of a human trait. to hold funerals when they die,” he continued.
For some, the Tamagotchi retains its appeal even as an adult. Kim Matthews, 32 years old from Australia is one such person. In her childhood, “tama” was one of her favorite toys. In adulthood, it still is – although now more for nostalgic purposes. She was given her first Tamagotchi on her eighth birthday and immediately fell in love – competing with her friends to see who could keep theirs alive the longest.
“Tragically, my first Tamagotchi accidentally went swimming with me in the pool one day,” says Matthews. “I was exhausted.”
With a collection of 71 Tamagotchi amassed over her lifetime, Matthews still struggles to explain what makes her interested in them so much, even after 25 years.
“I just think they’re neat,” she joked, alluding to a meme of Marge Simpson. “Maybe it’s a ’90s kid thing.”
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