Do you ever find yourself suddenly remembering those nostalgic toys you were obsessed with as a kid? The gadgets you used to compete with your friends over, or that one item you begged to have no matter what.
Trends in toys may change from era to era, but that thrilling excitement that stays deep in your heart never fades, does it? Some of them are still popular even today.
In this article, we’ll look back at the things we wanted as children and the toys that were all the rage back then, and introduce plenty of items that will make you blurt out, “I remember that!” Let’s open the door to those nostalgic memories!
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- A roundup of nostalgic toys for people born in the 2000s [Trends]
- Nostalgic games that were popular when we were kids
- [Let’s Make and Play!] Handmade Toy Ideas You Can Create Yourself
- [List] A roundup of games and recreational activities kids love
- It's fun to spin! A collection of DIY toy ideas
- DIY ideas for a den-den daiko (Japanese pellet drum). Let’s make and play with this nostalgic toy!
- [Make with Kids] Handmade Outdoor Play Toy Special
- [For Kids] Today's Recommended Recreation Idea Collection
- Indoor Games for Small Groups: Exciting Recreational Activities
- [For Kids] Today’s Handmade Craft Ideas
- [DIY] A Collection of Handmade Moving Toy Craft Ideas
- [For Elementary School Kids] Handmade Toy Craft Ideas
A Flood of Things We Wanted as Kids! A Special Feature on Nostalgic Toys & Trending Toys (1–10)
Tamagotchi
When it comes to nostalgic toys, Tamagotchi is almost guaranteed to come up! Being able to raise a Tamagotchi on a palm-sized device was revolutionary, and ever since the original model was released, new series have kept coming out one after another.
That’s why it’s probably a nostalgic toy for a wide range of generations.
By the way, I’m sure many of us have had the experience of coming back from school to find our Tamagotchi covered in poop and dead…
Game Boy Pocket Camera
It’s a camera released in 1998 that connects to the Game Boy.
Nowadays, cameras are built into smartphones and game consoles, but being able to take photos with a cartridge that had a camera lens was pretty revolutionary at the time, wasn’t it? What’s more, you could even print the photos with a separately sold printer! Even today, Nintendo lets you create avatar-like characters to play with, but it turns out you could do things like that back then, too!
Choro-Q
When it comes to miniature cars, Takara Tomy’s Tomica is famous, but we can’t forget Choro-Q either! While Tomica faithfully replicates real vehicles, Choro-Q’s charm lies in its adorable silhouette with slightly exaggerated proportions.
The built-in wind-up pullback action makes them cute as they run, and I bet many people tried to make them do wheelies by wedging a 10-yen coin in the back of the car body.
Battle Pencil
Battle pencils featuring Dragon Quest monsters.
Each face of the hexagonal pencil had a special move written on it, and you’d roll the pencil to determine the outcome of the battle.
Some were rare, and if you had one of those glittering, shiny pencils, you were the hero of the class! There are probably quite a few people who thought it was too precious to sharpen and just stored it in the closet as is.
B-Daman
B-Daman, a toy that became popular as a spinoff from Bomberman released for the Famicom, featured a chibi, two-heads-tall character that you’d load with a marble in its belly and then fire.
On either side of the muzzle were parts called “hold parts,” and by adjusting how firmly you pressed them with your hands, you could curve shots left or right or fire faster shots.
You could aim at targets and play in various ways.
Besides the chibi model, there was also a larger version that could shoot marbles in rapid succession by turning a handle, right?
Game Boy-shaped shampoo
For those of that generation, this must be incredibly nostalgic, right? It was a shampoo bottle shaped like a Game Boy, and the screen part was a water game.
When you pressed the A and B buttons, rings floated up on the screen, and you could try to hook them onto the little rods inside.
There were also pocket tissues with a Game Boy pattern, weren’t there? All of it is so nostalgic.
Kids Computer PICO
It was one of the educational toys released by Sega from 1993 to 2005.
Since commercials were frequently aired during children’s programs, I imagine many people back then wanted it badly.
The touch pen, the picture-book-style software, and the ability to connect to a TV were all really appealing.
In fact, it’s said to have been developed by repurposing the design of Sega’s Mega Drive game console.
Water game
It’s that thing with lots of rings inside a water-filled container.
When you press the attached button, it creates a current in the water and the rings shoot up.
The goal is to hook the rings onto the pegs inside the container.
There were various series, from slightly larger ones to smaller, handy-sized versions, right? It’s extremely simple, but I think many of us played it obsessively as kids.
Mini 4WD
There were so many kids in the ’90s and 2000s who were totally into Mini 4WD cars! I’m sure lots of people set up tracks to race with friends, and many even entered big tournaments.
Everyone would swap out parts and tweak their cars to make them run even faster! Plus, Mini 4WD became a huge hit thanks to the manga and anime “Bakusō Kyōdai Let’s & Go!!” and even video games.
Biting Granny
The Grandma Biter eraser was released in 1987 as a prize from a lottery you could enter when you bought mechanical pencil lead refills.
Didn’t some of your classmates have one at school? The dentures are designed to come off, making it a very humorous toy! Given its uniquely surreal look, I wouldn’t be surprised if quite a few people have still held onto it without throwing it away.