Is this strange evolving furball the next hot toy?

Tamagotchi. Furby Hatchimals. Fingerlings. The care and feeding of robotic pets has been an essential part of children's games for more than 20 years.

Japanese toy maker Tomy hopes to create the next hit with Rizmo, a fur-covered creature that changes shape as you play. In fact, it changes shape with two physical transformations, which only happen if you gain enough points.

When he is ready to evolve, his eyes start to shine and children need to encourage the creature to see how a fur pelota becomes a musical and talkative monster with a face and legs. And once that changes, there is no turning back. Rizmo is described as a "rhythm monster" of space that feeds on music. There are many ways to earn points to evolve the creature, but the best way to evolve is to sing.

I had the opportunity to check Rizmo before it went on sale internationally on September 14th. Priced at $ 60 (£ 60, which turns into about $ 110 AU), Rizmo comes in three main colors: berries, aqua and snow. But the design details of his final form and his musical personality are a random surprise revealed for the end.

I was one of those kids who spent hours trying to evolve my Furby and learn his mother tongue, the furbish. So I definitely saw the charm of Rizmo after playing with it for a few hours – and I was excited to work to see the surprise come true.

Want to see how this transformation occurs? Watch my unboxing video (above) to join me in this uncontrollable quest for singing and dancing. Does Rizmo have what it takes to be the hot toy of 2019? You are the judge.