The R2-D2 Star Wars loved droid is now officially a Tamagotchi Toy. This allows you to take a small, pixelated virtual pet of the iconic astromech wherever you go.Two colors are available for the R2-D2 Tamagotchi: a white version that closely resembles R2's chassis and a retro translucent blue version which harkens back to two decades ago when Tamagotchis were actually purchased.The R2-D2 digital pet is almost identical to the Tamagotchi game loop which has been around for more than 20 years. You can train your R2-D2 pet using a 24x30 pixelated LCD screen and three buttons. The droid can also be charged and cleaned.Technically, the R2-D2 Tamagotchi is the first Tamagotchi that features the famous droid. Tiger Electronics had released a Giga Pet doll starring R2-D2 in 1997. This was along with two licensed Star Wars models featuring Yoda or the Rancor.Given that virtual pet technology seems to have progressed at a slower rate than TI-83 calculators, it is not clear if the R2-D2 model has more technological sophistication or materially different from the original Giga Pet.It is not immediately clear why a Tamagotchi R2-D2 will be released in 2021. Also, it isn't obvious why Disney and Tamagotchi felt the need for three months of teasing the product.The new Tamagotchi R2-D2 Tamagotchi is actually a Tamagotchi, complete with its egg-shaped box. The Tamagotchi R2-D2 will likely be cheaper than the Giga Pets version which can run $35-50 on eBay.Tamagotchi has not yet announced a price, however, the company sells Tamagotchi toys branded for other franchises for $25. It is likely that the Star Wars model will also be in this price range. Preorders open at 12PM ET today, ahead of the November 11th release.
