[1] Available in a variety of different characters, each Giga Pet is a palm-sized unit with an LCD screen and attached key ring.

By September 1997, three new pets were introduced, Komputer Koala, Floppy Frog, and Salem the Cat (Sabrina the Teenage Witch).

Shortly after, KFC hosted a special promotion in November 1997, which offered four new Giga Pets, DigiPooch, MicroPup, CyberKitty, and Bitty Kitty.

Towards the end of 1997, a second edition of eight of the original Giga Pets was released with new clam designs and added animal sound effects.

The Giga Fighters series was geared more towards boys and consisted of six units with characters from different TV shows and movies, including Men in Black, Mortal Kombat, WCW/nWo, Batman & Robin, The Lost World, and Tech Warriors.

Intended to be a follow-up to Giga Pets, Shiffman included Furby in the deal he made with Hasbro when Tiger Electronics was sold to the giant toy manufacturer in 1998 for US$335 million.

The characters Pixie, Tomcat, Puffball, Dragon Lizard, Scorpion, and Bunny were all available individually at a suggested retail price of approximately US$15.

Gameplay on the handheld device consisted of feeding, playing with, bathing, and caring for your pet using various food items, toys, and medicines.

Common complaints included annoying beeping sounds and children's constant worry over their pets’ well-being.

[11] In a Journal of American and Comparative Cultures article published in 2000, author, David W. Kritt, discussed the impact virtual pets had on young females in terms of gender stereotypes.

Kritt claimed, “The implicit message to the predominantly female owners is that an emotional meaningful relationship is simply care and dependence.

He wrote: “Despite McLuhan’s trenchant insight that the medium is the message, the virtual pet may not be so much a point of entry intro cyberspace for girls as it is a promoter of traditional values.” Kritt argued that this message is amplified when a child's parent, particularly her mother, focuses on helping the daughter keep the virtual pet alive.