The best anime gachapon to collect (Pokemon, Hello Kitty, One Piece and more)

Anime gachapon are almost everyone's gateway into this vice. It makes sense: you already know the characters, you already love them, and suddenly there is a capsule version of your favourite waiting inside a little plastic ball. The catch (and the fun) is that in a gachapon you do not choose the figure: chance decides. You order the series, the capsule arrives sealed and you open it at home. So before you dive for a Pokemon gachapon, let us play Jiminy Cricket and tell you which franchises truly hook people, what you tend to get, and how to start without spending your salary.

House notice before we continue: we ship to Spain, all of Europe and the United States, deliveries take 7 to 14 calendar days (this is dropshipping, not magic) and our motto is sacred: you do not choose, the gacha decides. If what you want is to pick the exact figure, hold on until the end, there is a plan B.

The franchises that hook hardest in gachapon

Pokemon: the king of collecting

No debate. Pokemon is the most collectible gachapon franchise on the planet, for textbook reasons: over 1,000 creatures, everyone has a favourite, and the series rotate non-stop. In gachapon you usually get a small PVC figure (3 to 5 cm), often in "sitting mode", "sleeping" or "peeking out" poses. There are gorgeous themed series (Pokemon eating, Pokemon in teacups, Eeveelutions) and a Pikachu almost always drops, because Pikachu moves boxes. If you are starting a collection, this is the franchise you never regret.

Hello Kitty and the Sanrio universe

Sanrio (Hello Kitty, Cinnamoroll, Kuromi, My Melody, Pompompurin) is the other superpower. You are not looking for epic battles here: you are looking for something so cute it hurts. The figures tend to be keychains, mini figures with glittery details or characters dressed as food, animals or whatever that series calls for. It is the perfect gachapon to hang from a backpack and to gift to someone who "is not really into figures" and ends up hooked. Collector's tip: Kuromi and Cinnamoroll have overtaken Hello Kitty in demand among younger fans.

One Piece, Haikyuu and the classic shonen

For those coming from action anime, shonen has an endless capsule pipeline:

• One Piece: figures of Luffy and the crew, often with a surprisingly good finish for the price. Long series, which means many chances to complete.
• Haikyuu: the volleyball figures win because they capture dynamic poses (serves, spikes) in mini format. Highly sought by one of the most loyal fandoms.
• Hunter x Hunter: fewer series, but the ones that come out fly. Gon and Killua are the magnets.
• Shin Chan: the wildcard. Not action shonen, but its cheeky humour makes it eternal. You usually get figures of the little menace clowning around, and they always raise a smile.

What kind of figure do you usually get?

Here is the honest part almost nobody tells you. In an anime gachapon, most figures are PVC between 3 and 7 cm: static mini figures, keychains or pendants. Do not expect a 20 cm articulated statue for 5 euros; that is another league (and another price). What you can expect:

• The popular character almost always drops. Pikachu, Luffy, Hello Kitty... makers know who sells and deal them generously.
• "Secret" variants exist. Some series hide a figure that is not on the poster, with lower odds. Pulling one is the collector's minor jackpot.
• Duplicates are part of the game. That is why gachapon is social: you trade with friends, like the Japanese have done for decades.

If the word "gashapon" (with an S) rings a Bandai bell, you are on track: it is the registered trademark that popularised all this, and the PVC quality in the best series comes from there.

How to start a collection without going broke

Gachapon hooks you precisely because each capsule is cheap (from about 4.99 euros in our gacha collection), and there lies the trap: "just one more" becomes fifteen. Three survivor tips:

• Pick ONE series and focus. Trying to complete Pokemon, One Piece and Sanrio at once is the fast lane to ruin and a drawer of duplicates. One series, complete it, enjoy it, then move to the next.
• Order several capsules of the same series at once. Better odds of the one you want, and you make use of free shipping from 10 euros.
• Do not open them all at once. One a day. The ritual of the surprise is half of what you paid, and it is the half that cannot be repeated.

What if I do not want to depend on luck?

Understood. Some days it is "I need THIS character, full stop". For those we have the Figures collection: individual anime and kawaii figures where you choose exactly what you take, no chance involved. The spirit of gacha is the surprise, but we are not so cruel as to deny you a shortcut when you need one.

Summing up: if you want to start with anime gachapon, Pokemon and Sanrio are the safe bets, shonen (One Piece, Haikyuu, HxH) is for those who already know what they want, and Shin Chan is there to make you laugh. And remember the house rule: you choose the series, the gacha decides the figure. Drop by Don Gachapon and let the little coin do the rest.