BODY: The world's most beloved blob is coming to your dinner table. Square Enix has released two new rice bowls featuring the iconic Slime from the Dragon Quest series, expanding its growing "Smile Slime Japanese Series" (和シリーズ) of traditional homeware.
Available from June 13 exclusively through the Square Enix e-STORE, the bowls come in two understated colors—blue and grey—each priced at 2,530 yen. Rather than splashing the Slime across the design in loud cartoon fashion, the bowls take a more refined approach, rendering the familiar teardrop silhouette in a style meant to sit comfortably alongside everyday Japanese ceramics.
The "Japanese Series" has steadily built out a lineup of wares that swap flashy merchandise aesthetics for the muted tones and craft sensibility of traditional Japanese tableware. The result is a product aimed less at the display shelf and more at daily use—a bowl you could genuinely serve rice in without it looking out of place at a family meal.
For fans, it's the latest entry in a franchise that has mastered turning its mascot into lifestyle goods, from plush toys to kitchenware. The Slime has long since transcended its role as Dragon Quest's weakest enemy to become one of gaming's most recognizable characters.
The insider take
Square Enix understands something about its domestic audience that overseas fans sometimes miss: in Japan, character goods that lean into restraint often outsell the flashy stuff. The "和" (wa, meaning "Japanese-style") branding signals a deliberate pitch to adult collectors who grew up with Dragon Quest in the late 1980s and now want merchandise that fits a grown-up household. A 2,530-yen rice bowl isn't impulse-buy territory—it's positioned as a small luxury for the nostalgic professional, and that demographic has money to spend.
Originally reported by GAME Watch (Japanese).