Tamagotchi: Exhibition celebrates 30 years of Japan's iconic digital pet

The Bandai Namco company, the owner of the Tamagotchi franchise, was showing off the Tamagotchi's evolution from bouncing black-and-white pixelated characters to colour screens and wifi connectivity at a special 30th anniversary exhibition that opened in Tokyo on Wednesday.

Manufacturer Bandai Namco said more than 100 million of the pocket-sized plastic eggs have been sold worldwide since their debut. Brazilian tourist told that she didn't own a Tamagotchi but liked the idea.

Rafaela Miranda Freire, Tourist from Brazil said "I think it's cool. Like you don't touch your phone, just taking care of a little virtual pet, and it's really cute, and I think it's good for, you just, phone, get off the phone, and appreciate the small things of the life." 

Swinging from keychains, the Tamagotchi -- whose name is a portmanteau of the Japanese words for "egg" and "watch" -- has become a popular fashion accessory among young people in recent years, according to Bandai.