Most people know Sega as the company that gave us a blue hedgehog with an attitude problem. Fewer realise Sega is also one of the big names in Japanese prize figures, the collectibles that stock the claw machines in arcades across Japan. Those machines are a Sega invention too: their UFO Catcher arrived in 1985.
Our Sega range is small and focused. It's mostly Fuwa Petit, Sega's line of soft-eyed chibi figures and plushes of Hatsune Miku, Jujutsu Kaisen and Evangelion characters. Here's what Fuwa Petit is, how prize figures differ from the expensive stuff, and what you should (and shouldn't) expect for your money.
Fuwa Petit: Sakura Miku
Fuwa Petit: Yuji Itadori
Fuwa Petit: Yuta OkkotsuWho are Sega?
Sega's roots go back further than most people guess. In May 1940 three American businessmen set up Standard Games in Honolulu, Hawaii, to supply coin-operated amusement machines. That business later became Service Games, and the shortened name "Sega" first appeared on a slot machine in 1954. The modern Japanese company dates from June 1960, and today Sega is headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, as part of Sega Sammy Holdings, the group formed in 2004.
The arcade side has always mattered. The UFO Catcher became a fixture in Japanese game centres, and the Sega group has made the prizes that go inside the machines as well as the machines themselves. In April 2024 Sega Sammy reorganised this business: Sega Toys took over Sega's amusement machine business and was renamed Sega Fave. Sega Fave now handles the crane games and the character goods made for prize machines, lotteries and shops, and that's where Fuwa Petit comes from.
The ranges, explained in plain English
- Fuwa Petit chibi figures: small, cute PVC figures, about 8cm tall, drawn in illustrator Sangatsu Yoka's style with the big signature eyes. They have movable arms and a double-sided face part, so you can switch between two expressions. At the time of writing ours are £27.99–£30.99 and include Hatsune Miku variants (among them Sakura Miku and a Colorful Stage x Persona 5 Royal crossover), Jujutsu Kaisen's Yuji, Megumi, Yuta, Choso and Gojo and Geto in their Hidden Inventory look, and Evangelion's Rei, Asuka and Kaworu.
- Fuwa Petit plush: the same character style as a soft toy. Our Hatsune Miku comes in L (30cm, £54.99) and LL (40cm, £68.99).
- Sega's other prize lines: Sega also produces larger prize figures under names like Luminasta and Super Premium. These are full-size display figures rather than chibis. We're not carrying them at the moment, but it helps to know the name if you see them elsewhere.
What are prize figures, and what are Fuwa Petit?
This is the bit worth understanding before you buy, because it explains both the price and what turns up in the box.
Where prize figures come from
- They're made as arcade prizes. In Japan, prize figures are the rewards in crane games, the claw machines that eat your coins. They're also used for prize lotteries.
- They're made in big batches on a prize budget. Because they have to fill a lot of machines at a set cost, they're produced in large quantities, and some parts of the production are simplified to hit that cost.
- They're released constantly. New characters and new versions come out all the time, which is why prize ranges are so wide.
Why they're cheaper than scale figures
A premium scale figure is made in smaller runs, with more separately moulded parts, more paint stages, clear or specialist plastics and an elaborate base. A prize figure keeps the sculpt and the character appeal and trims the rest. You get fewer separate parts, simpler shading and a plainer base. The gap has narrowed a lot over the years and the best prize sculpts are genuinely good, but the price difference is real and so is the finish.
What quality to expect
- Charm is the point. Fuwa Petit are designed to be cute, with a recognisable house style. They're meant to sit on a desk, monitor stand or shelf and cheer it up, not be inspected with a magnifying glass.
- Simple paint. Expect clean, flat colours rather than airbrushed shading.
- Small imperfections happen. Minor paint variation or a visible seam line is normal for prize figures. It isn't a fault, it's the trade-off that keeps the price down.
- Light posing only. Turning the arms and flipping the face is the extent of it. If you want a figure you can properly pose, that's figma or Nendoroid territory.
How Fuwa Petit differs from a Nendoroid
- Both are small chibi figures, but a Nendoroid (about 10cm) comes with multiple faces, hands and props and more articulation. Our Nendoroids run from about £45 to £70.
- Fuwa Petit (about 8cm) is simpler: two expressions, movable arms, and a lower price.
- Think of Fuwa Petit as a mascot and a Nendoroid as a tiny action figure. If you're weighing the two, our Good Smile Company guide covers Nendoroids in detail.
Fuwa Petit (about 8cm)
Nendoroid (about 10cm)A note on price
Prize figures have a reputation for being cheap because in Japan you can, in theory, win one for a few coins. In practice, anyone who has fed a UFO Catcher knows "a few coins" is optimistic. Over here, you're paying for the figure plus the cost of getting it from Japan, through a European distributor, to Barry. That's why an 8cm prize figure doesn't cost pocket money. It's still good value against a Nendoroid, just not a bargain-bin purchase.
So which one should you buy?
If you're a Hatsune Miku fan
- A Fuwa Petit Miku figure (from £27.99) for the desk, and the L plush (£54.99) if you want something softer to look at.
- Sakura Miku is the seasonal favourite, and the cherry-blossom pink suits the Fuwa Petit style.
Fuwa Petit figure: Miku
Fuwa Petit plush: Miku LIf you're into Jujutsu Kaisen
- Gojo and Geto's Hidden Inventory figures are the pick for anyone who has, like everyone, opinions about that arc.
- Collect the main crew (Yuji, Megumi and Yuta) for a little desk-top sorcerer squad. More in our Jujutsu Kaisen collection.
Fuwa Petit: Gojo
Fuwa Petit: GetoIf you're an Evangelion fan
- Rei, Asuka and Kaworu. Buy all three, line them up, and enjoy the most emotionally complicated shelf in the house.
If it's a gift or a stocking filler
- Fuwa Petit figures are about as safe as anime gifts get: small, cute, under £31, and they don't need wall space. Just check which character they like. Gojo fans and Geto fans are not interchangeable.
- The LL Miku plush (40cm, £68.99) is the "big present" option.
If you want a centrepiece
- Honestly, this isn't the range for that. Have a look at scale figures in our collectible figures instead.
Fuwa Petit: Rei
Fuwa Petit: Asuka
Fuwa Petit: KaworuHow ordering works with us
Our Sega range is mostly listed as pre-orders we bring in especially for you. You order, we order it in from our European distributor, and it ships to you when it lands. New releases are genuine pre-orders with release windows. Check each product page for its availability and timing.
Prize ranges move quickly and characters don't hang around forever, so ordering while a piece is listed is the easiest way to avoid paying a reseller's mark-up later. Browse everything we can bring in under Pre-Order On Demand and Collectibles Pre-Orders.
The honest bit: what we'd swerve
- Expecting scale-figure finish. These are prize figures. If you'll be cross about a seam line, spend more on something else. If you want a cute character on your desk, you'll be happy.
- Paying silly money second-hand. Prize figures are made in large quantities and new ones arrive constantly. Paying a big mark-up for a common one rarely makes sense.
- Too-good-to-be-true listings. Popular anime figures of every kind get faked. Buy from a seller who can tell you where the stock came from.
- Plush near the radiator, figures in the sun. Direct sunlight fades PVC paint and plush fabric. A shelf out of the window's glare keeps them bright.
- Losing the spare face. The double-sided face part is small. Swap it over a tray or a table, not over the carpet.
The short version
- Sega: founded in 1940 as Standard Games in Hawaii. They invented the UFO Catcher in 1985 and are a major maker of Japanese prize figures.
- Sega Fave: the Sega Sammy company behind crane games and prize goods since April 2024.
- Fuwa Petit: about 8cm chibi figures with movable arms and a two-expression face, £27.99–£30.99 at the time of writing.
- Prize figures: made in large numbers on a prize budget, with simpler paint and fewer parts.
- Fuwa Petit vs Nendoroid: Fuwa Petit is the cheaper, simpler, cuter mascot. A Nendoroid is the posable mini figure.
- Best for: desks, gifts and stocking fillers. Not for centrepieces.
See the full Sega collection, browse Jujutsu Kaisen for more Gojo than is strictly healthy, or explore the wider world of toys and collectibles.
Final thought: Fuwa Petit isn't trying to be a £200 statue, and that's exactly why it works. It's a small, cheerful figure of a character you like, priced so you can buy the friend as well. Judge it as a mascot and it's hard to be disappointed.
Further reading: find out when the next anime Pops arrive in Anime Funko Pop Release Dates UK, or see how blind-box displays work in our Megahouse figures guide.
