WonderSwan 25th Anniversary Celebrated With New Merchandise

Bandai Namco is celebrating the 25th anniversary of WonderSwan by releasing new merchandise featuring the classic portable console. The company is working with Amazon and General Sticker to release a variety of merchandise ranging from stickers to apparel.

The Amazon Japan website features a new page dedicated to WonderSwan-themed Merch on Demand items that range from apparel like T-shirts and parka hoodies to smartphone cases for iPhone 15 and Samsung Galaxy S8. General Sticker’s online store on Rakuten also has a new category page showcasing WonderSwan stickers and keychains that are priced at under 1,000 yen individually.

While the Amazon Merch on Demand items are confirmed to be available exclusively in Japan, the overseas availability of General Sticker’s items is ambiguous. The Rakuten website in general supports international shipping with its Rakuten Global Express service. However, the listing page for each WonderSwan merchandise shows no support for shipping outside Japan when “Overseas” is chosen at the bottom of the destination list.

The WonderSwan was a portable game console that Bandai released on March 4, 1999. It was also the last console to be developed by the Game Boy creator Gunpei Yokoi before he died in a car accident in 1997. The console also featured accessories that let it connect with other gaming gadgets, such as Sony’s PocketStation and the Digivices from the Digimon franchise. Bandai released two enhanced models later on, which were the WonderSwan Color in 2000 and SwanCrystal in 2002. However, it ultimately discontinued the whole console family in 2003. All of the consoles were also released exclusively in Japan.

There were no new portable console reveals to mark the 25th anniversary of WonderSwan on March 4, 2024. However, a variety of merchandise inspired by the legacy console is now available for purchase in Japan.