Nintendo has released an official plush toy for one ofSplatoon 3players' favorite new characters, the incredibly helpful Salmonid Smallfry often referred to as Little Buddy. Apart fromPokemon, plush toys for Nintendo games can be somewhat rare and sporadic. It’s already been months sinceSplatoon 3launched, after all. But when it comes to a plush Little Buddy,Splatoon 3fans are likely to say it’s better late than never.For those unfamiliar with Little Buddy, the Salmonid Smallfry plays a significant role inSplatoon 3’s single-player campaign"Return of the Mammalians." Salmonids are historically antagonistic toward Inklings and Octolings, butSplatoon 3starts with Little Buddy already being a close friend of the player character Agent 3. The two go throughSplatoon 3’s story together, with Little Buddy turning into valuable tools and weapons all the way through to the final boss.RELATED:Splatoon 3 Reaches Major Sales Milestone in First 3 MonthsNowSplatoon 3players can have a Little Buddy of their own. Sanei Boeki, Nintendo’s official partner for plush dolls and other assorted merchandise, has revealed its latest additions for the All Star Collection. Three different plush toys were revealed forSplatoon 3, including not only theSmallfry Little Buddy, but also plushes forSplatoonplayers' favorite cats, Judd and Li’l Judd.
All three of the new Sanei Boeki All Star Collection plushes forSplatoon 3can now be pre-ordered, but there is a catch. The plush toys are not being made available worldwide, at least for now. That meansSplatoon 3fans will have to make their preorders through Amazon.jp, the Japanese regional shop for the online retailer. It’s not all bad, though, as the current conversion rate for Japanese yen means fans overseas should get a healthy discount when ordering on Amazon.jp.
These aren’t the firstSplatoonplush toys that Nintendo has released, of course. Large and small plush Inklings and Octolings, in their ink-swimming forms, were released alongsideSplatoon 3. There were also a range ofSplatoon 2plush toys, includingPearl and Marinaplushies and even full-sized Inkling plushies with weapons. It’s likely they’re all long sold-out, however.
Overall, the pending release of the Little Buddy, Judd, and Li’l Judd plush toys is both positive and negative news forSplatoon 3fans. It’s positive that they’re being released at all, and that fans across the world at least have the opportunity to buy them. It’s negative that they’re restricted to the Japanese Amazon shop, and likely to be fairly limited in availability as a result. Something is better than nothing, at least.Splatoon 3fans will just have to be careful not to accidentally end up buying knockoff plushes going forward.
Splatoon 3is available now on Switch.
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