Company: Bandai
Release: 2024
Size: +/- 6 cm
Main distribution: Japan / USA / UK (Gashapon machines)
These are Tamagotchi Swing Cases gashapon. They are little plastic boxes that can open and are on a keychain.
The cases can be obtained through a Gashapon machine. They come in transparent coloured balls, so you can see which case you have prior to opening it.
The cases are wrapped in plastic. Mine didn’t come with a leaflet, presuming these weren’t localised and I got it in the UK.
There are 5 cases to collect. I got 1/5.
Maskutchi (ますくっち Masukutchi)
The Maskutchi Swing Case looks like a Tamagotchi; egg-shaped, orange with a yellow screen, yellow buttons and yellow logo print at the top. Maskutchi, originally called Masktchi or Mask-tchi, is a Gen 1 adult Tamagotchi character. He’s bursting out the screen in a 3D relief in full colour.
The case has a ball chain at the top, and a hinge on the right (opens Japanese). It can hold little items. The back is plain, but does have moulding for the reset button and battery compartment which is a nice touch. On the back is also the branding. In raised font in a dented square it reads: © BANDAI B. the 4 dots of Bandai and 2707158.
I thought these looked cool and seemed more functional than the other Tamagotchi keychains with stickers for screens, seeing it opens and can hold something small. They also featured characters I like, so I didn’t mind much which one I would get.
I secretly hoped these could work as a protective case for a real Tamagotchi. And I suppose they could!
But you’d have to remove the metal ring at the top for it to fit, and mine is still attached.
I love practical merchandise, and although my case can’t hold my childhood Tamagotchi exactly, it’s still a cool thing to own.
If you love Tamagotchi, or functional keychains / little cases, you’ll like this.
If you prefer the static Tamagotchi keychains, or don’t like Tamagotchi, you’ll give these a miss.
Got any more details / information you think I should add? Or did I get something wrong? Do you own these cases? Do you agree or disagree with my findings? Let me know in the comments below!