On Santa’s list, interactive companions feature prominently again this year. These cuddly playmates are both fun and reassuring for children. They bring comfort.
“It is the most successful category in the toy market since the start of the year”, explains Frédérique Tutt, the toy world expert at Circana, to RTL. “This trend towards mothering is very marked for this Christmas 2024, in the middle of the demographic winter. Children take care of it like a pet that they don’t have, or like a little brother or sister that they don’t have,” she continues.
This success is driven by Bitzee. The great innovation of last Christmas arrives for these end-of-year holidays in a Magicals version, with 20 digital magical animals at 39.90 euros, and in a Disney version with 30 characters at 44.99 euros, from 5 years old.
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Hologram and digital animals
The Bitzee is a small dark blue box that fits in your pocket. Children can take it everywhere. When you open the box, a hologram character appears inside, in three dimensions. In the Disney version, the child must press a tab above his head to put Stitch to sleep or feed Olaf, and move the box to have fun with Sebastian, the crab from the Little Mermaid.
Innovation this year is also Punirunes, which received the 2024 Digital Toy Grand Prix. It is a new tactile and digital game, for ages 5 and up, sold for 49.90 euros and which also fits in your pocket. It’s a round box like an alarm clock, with three buttons and a small screen in the middle.
The goal here is also to take care of your digital animals, wash them, feed them, while exploring their world. And to take care of these 55 characters, make them evolve on the baby screen, from child to adult and play with them, the child must slide his finger inside the box, to touch them virtually.
Interactive cuddly toys
For Christmas, there are also interactive plush toys to cuddle. Like the brand new baby monkey Mango, My Baby Monkeyfrom Little Live Pets, sold for 39.90 euros. This soft little monkey is very realistic. He makes little noises and his cheeks move when the child gives him the bottle. Thanks to the motion detectors they are equipped with, these interactive companions respond to caresses and cuddles, like real pets.
For the little ones, the pretty Aqua Dream seal from Pabobo won the Gulli Toy Star Prize, in the “My soft friends” category. This plush night light, sold for 49.90 euros, projects soft marine effects, with soothing sounds or white noise, to put baby to sleep.
Finally, the Furbsa little ball of fur that interacts vocally with the child, arrives in a phosphorescent version to act as a night light this year. This curious little owl with big ears, star of the 2000s (40 million have been sold worldwide since its creation), loves to dance, talk and be fed. The Furby, sold for 69.90 euros, has babies this year: Furblets. There are 20 furballs to collect, which interact with each other when you move their ears. Furblets are sold for 12.99 euros.
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