What are these things???
Arpakasso or Alpacasso are alpaca plushies from Japan! Originally they were prizes found in UFO catchers (crane games) in arcades, but over the years they’ve become popular enough you can easily find them sold online now (or if you’re lucky enough have the UFO catchers/stores near you)
A genuine alpacasso is made by the brand AMUSE, who makes other series of plush toy prizes for UFO catchers. There are other companies that make alpaca plushies, but since they are not AMUSE they would not be called alpacasso. Any plushies that are made to look like specific series of alpacasso and/or have tags saying alpacasso are bootlegs.
Is it arpakasso or alpacasso?
Both are used pretty much interchangeably! Many of the older series are labelled arpakasso (or alpakasso, sometimes Amuse wasn’t consistent) while newer series are alpacasso. It’s is your own preference to call them arpakasso or alpacasso.
Why do some look different?
Arpakasso generally have three different looks- regular (adult) alpacas, baby alpacas and kids alpacas. Some series have have a llama as a color, and they have longer ears than normal!
Are there places I can buy arpakasso in [INSERT PLACE IN THE WORLD]?
Seeing as I very likely don’t live where you are, I wouldn’t know for certain. Few places outside of Asia carry them unless they are specialty stores that sell Japanese goods. There are few places that have physical stores on my list of online sellers and in this thread but in general I cannot and will not answer these questions because 99% of the time I don’t know.
Where can I buy my own arpakasso?
There are several places:
1) Online Sellers
The easiest way to find authentic arpakasso because there are many resources with legit sellers and reviews! Go ahead and check out my list or this post that has a comprehensive list of legit sellers. I reblog many of these sellers who post on tumblr and share pictures and info!
2) Online Auction Sites
Including Mbok, Yahoo Auctions Japan, and Ebay. The first two both require a shopping service so there are extra fees. There are many guides to show how to big on Japanese auctions you can search! Ebay is straight forward, but you have to be careful if you care about bootlegs or not because a lot of the time the listing is only an official stock image and not the real thing, and a lot of alpacasso on ebay are bootlegs.
3) Conventions
Beware, though, that a LOT of bootlegs are sold at conventions. Most dealers only know that arpakasso is popular and find cheap plushies they can sell for prices comparable to real ones. There are, however, sellers that take their stock to conventions and random dealers that happen to have authentics.
4) Arcades/Stores
As I’ve said in the previous question, I can’t give you specific stores/places in the world that will have alpacasso. There are places that exist, though! Perhaps a dealer at a convention or an online seller has a physical store, or a Japanese gift shop/arcade will have them. BE AWARE, though, that there still chances of them being bootlegs (or a mix of bootlegs), and most stores don’t know or don’t care so you’ll have to be able to discern yourself if it is authentic or not.
Does [INSERT WEBSITE] sell legit alpacasso?
My page with a list of sellers also includes a small list of infamous places to avoid buying from! Please assume most random sellers on places like ebay, amazon, and storenvy using random stock images do not sell legit alpacasso unless you are able to discern what is a stock image and whether they are fake from pictures. Also PLEASE CHECK THE ASKS TAG BEFORE ASKING. Chances are somebody has asked already!
How can I tell if one is fake?
There are several ways to distinguish fakes and bootlegs from the authentic plushies. Check out my Bootlegs page for links!
I think I bought a fake alpaca!! DDD; ;o;
It’s a mistake a lot of us have made before! All you can do is learn your lesson and either have fun with your bootleg or do whatever you want. Many of us even have bootlegs we still have! You can even sell it, but please explicitly state that it is a bootleg, do not be like bootleg sellers who mislead buyers. Chances are if you do try to sell a bootleg claiming it as authentic on sites other collectors go to and see, you will be called out to protect the community.
Do bootlegs really matter??
My arpakasso had some food and is dirty. How do I wash them?
Using a damp cloth and scrub them. Putting them in the washer is risky and definitely do not dry with a lot of heat!! A hair dryer on low will work. If the faces or paws are pilling, you can use a lint brush!