Perhaps you thought that, after the Christmas shopping frenzy died down, Hatchimals were starting their slow decline into obscurity. Think again! The makers of the hit toy have some new eggs for children to go gaga over, leading many parents to wonder, when will Hatchimal minis go on sale? The new toys are coming to stores in May, but if last year's craze is any indication, they may not be available on the shelves for long.
Spin Master, the company behind the self-hatching toy, announced the launch of Hatchimals Colleggtibles a couple of months ago. These Colleggtibles are mini versions of the company's big hit, with a few significant changes. With the minis, children can rub the egg until a heart on the front of the toy changes colors. Then, instead of the creature inside making its way out on its own, children have to hatch the egg themselves by breaking it. The creature doesn't have all the learning and moving capabilities of the bigger Hatchimals, but there are plenty of different creature varieties to keep children entertained.
The first run of the mini eggs will have 70 different creatures, including a few "limited editions" to maximize parental stress, with more varieties likely to come in the future. While the creature inside each egg is a surprise, the speckled color of the egg will tell consumers what "family" it belongs to.
The Colleggtibles will retail for $2.99 for a single pack, and $9.99 for a four-pack. Starting in May, they'll be available on the Hatchimals website, as well as places like Amazon, Target, Toys "R" Us, Walmart, and Kmart. However, if last year's Christmas craze was any indication, they may soon be popping up more frequently on reselling sites like eBay.
In 2016, Hatchimals debuted to unusually high demand, and Spin Master couldn't keep up with all the eager children clamoring for a hatching creature of their very own. Increasingly desperate parents turned to eBay, where some unusually prescient profiteers sold the Hatchimals they'd stockpiled for hundreds of dollars per toy.
Here's hoping that won't happen again, now that the toy company knows exactly how much demand there is for the product. But still, it might be a good idea not to wait too long to pick up a Colleggtible if your child is hoping for one (or two, or all 70).
And soon, the company will be debuting even more new options, like a glitter version of the original concept. Long story short: It seems that Hatchimals mania isn't likely to go away any time soon.
