Double Feature!
Originally posted: 14th January 2026
Have you ever seen the above image before? Maybe it's just because of the particlar internet circles I find myself in, but I have come across this image so many times. But what is this? Some sort of bootleg Tamagotchi? Well this is a Mushipet, a virtual pet toy with a screen that allows you to care for a pet beetle - and it is incredibly difficult to get information about them.
I've been searching for at least an hour just to try to find the name of the company which made these toys. Even dedicated virtual pet websites just refer to them as being made by an "unknown company". I've found images online showing the back of the packaging, and I can't see any copyright symbols or anything. My very poor Japanese literacy doesn't help! There also doesn't appear to be any official websites, official artwork, dates of production, or anything.
Some people online have reported that the toys were released in the mid - late 2000's, but I'm not sure where this information has come from. All I have discovered about these toys is from photos of the packaging, and from an instruction manual that somebody posted online. The toys are sold for really high prices, and seem to be something of a collector's item. Because of this, all of the images I have found have been from online shop listings.
The main information I have managed to find about these toys is that they were very much like other Tamagotchi-style toys. You have to look after the beetle through different life stages, feeding it, cleaning up after it, and playing with it. People online who own them have reported that the gameplay is a bit lacking unfortunately.
One interesting feature of Mushipet is that if you get two of them together, you could connect them and make the beetles fight! Maybe this feautre was more fun than the regular gameplay, but I can't find anything about it other than from the instruction manual.
Something I have learned from the packaging is that it seems they were released in waves (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, etc) and it seems that each wave featured a normal-coloured pet, and a gold-coloured pet. There was also a wave that specifically featured a far more realistic design for the toy itself, although I'm not sure if the gameplay is any different.
Ever since I saw that first picture at the top of this post, I knew I really wanted to own a Mushipet myself. It's just such a cool design idea, to have an insect-shaped virtual pet! And the idea seems to have really captured the imagination of many, as I've seen a lot of character art inspired by this toy. Hopefully I can find a Mushipet for a decent price one day...
As a consolation prize, here's a bonus section about a very similar toy to Mushipet - Mushiking! As far as I can tell, there isn't a specific name for this toy to differentiate it from other Mushiking products (I will make a post about the Mushiking card / arcade game at some point!) So let's just refer to it here as the Mushiking Virtual Pet.
Unlike Mushipet, the company behind the Mushiking franchise is well documented, and it's none other than SEGA! There's also a bit more information online about how to play the game thanks to websites such as this.
The gameplay is similar to Mushipet and other Virtual Pets, you have to take care of your beetle until it grows into its adult form, and you can fight them against each other if you connect two of them together. It looks like the battle mechanics are based on the rock-paper-scissors combat system from the main Mushiking arcade game.
In my opinion, the design of these toys isn't nearly as cool or interesting as Mushipet, but it does seem to have a bit more of a following for the gameplay at the very least. I'm not sure if this is just because Mushiking is a fairly well known franchise, or if it's because the Mushiking Virtual Pet is genuinely more fun. I'm sure that sort of thing is difficult to know for certain.
All images are copyright of their respective owners. Bugs are cool. Website by Vespoth, 2026.