Takara Tomy released HelloPocha, an interactive toy version of Piplup from Pokemon, on November 13, 2021. It is available from the official Takara Tomy website, as well as other places that sell toys. The HelloPocha Piplup robot toy costs 3,300 JPY, which is approximately $29. [Thanks, Hobby Watch!]
In the past, Takara Tomy released two other similar interactive robot toys. As one may expect, they looked like Pikachu and Eevee. The HelloPocha Piplup toy will react when you say, “Hey, Piplup!” When it hears you talk to it, it will react by moving its beak, laughing, or singing. It can also use Bubble Beam. Because there is a gap between its flippers and its body, you can clip it on to something, similar to how you can clip a pen to your pocket. It is about 100 x 130 x 70 mm in size, which makes it quite small. If one so wishes, they can take it around with them outside.
With Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl on the horizon, Piplup has appeared even more often than usual in merchandise. The Pokemon Company announced a huge Piplup plush in August 2021. It also collaborated with various food companies to release Piplup-branded Lawson Karaage-kun and Tokyo Banana.
The HelloPocha Piplup toy is available online and in stores in Japan. Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl will appear on the Nintendo Switch worldwide on November 19, 2021.
