Have You Cried Recently? Shinchaken
Note: I'm not sure how exact this translation is.
Have You Cried Recently? Shinchaken (最近涙した？新茶犬) is the name of an interactive, crying plush by Sega Toys, based on Midori from the Ochaken franchise. It had a retail price of 5,040 yen, and was scheduled to be released on the 4th of June, 2009.
"Ochaken" means "Tea Dog", while "Shinchaken" means "New Tea Dog", and refers to the puppies in the franchise.
Appearance
Important: I haven't found any photos of this toy, aside from photos of it at the 2009 Tokyo Toy Fair and an official listing photo; I don't know for sure if the listing photo shows a prototype or the released toy.
The toy has a large, round head with large, round eyes that have large, black pupils. The plush dog has a pair of floppy ears, a round, white muzzle, and a piece of cloth around its neck, that has frills.
Functions
Its cheeks can light up, and it can respond happily when you hold it and pet its head. With a water tank inside, it can cry, if left alone. After crying for a bit, it may feel better.
2009 Tokyo Toy Fair
At this event, five versions of the toy were on display. Two resembling Midori (Shinchaken with green ears), one resembling Fan (Shinchaken with yellow ears), one resembling Ruu (Shinchaken with pink ears), and one resembling Kafu, a black labrador from the Japanese film, Waiting for Kafu. Sega Toys collaborated with the company behind the film, to create a version of the toy based on Kafu.
The other version of Midori, which has a green face, unlike the one in the above photo, was functional; it had external wires connected to itself, and you could see it cry.
A Midori version of the toy appears to have been released, judging from an old Yodobashi listing, which features a photo of a Midori version; versions based on other Shinchaken characters and Kafu aren't confirmed to have been released.
Gallery
Videos
Links
