Turn Your American Girl Doll Into an eSports Star

After dabbling in space exploration, American Girl dolls have a new passion: console gaming.

American Girl, the beloved doll and book company, just released a new "Xbox Gaming Set," which will transform your doll into an aspiring eSports star.

And now for something completely different: You can now get an American Girl Doll with an "Xbox Gaming Set" - a console, controller, headset and her own gaming chair. https://t.co/E20lsIxT5c pic.twitter.com/PrLb99nKTB — Larry Hryb (@majornelson) June 19, 2018

The $50 set, intended for kids aged eight and older, includes a pretend Xbox One S game console that's actually a projector, as well as a tiny Xbox One S controller that fits into your American Girl doll's hand, and a pair of wireless gaming headphones for it to wear. You'll also get two fake games, which can be inserted into the console to project 10 different gaming scenes.

Because comfort is key during long gaming sessions, the Xbox Gaming Set also comes with a "faux-leather game chair" on which your doll can sit. The gaming chair doubles as a speaker, which can "plug into personal devices to play music or other sounds."

"Dolls can get ready to play—and win—in tournaments with friends," the product description reads.

The kit requires 3 AAA and 3 AA batteries, which are not included.

Meanwhile, American Girl last year teamed up with NASA to create a new character that aims to inspire young kids — specifically, young girls — to learn about science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The company's 2018 doll of the year is an aspiring astronaut called Luciana Vega who wants to be the first person to set foot on Mars. NASA offered input on the creation of the character and provided imagery and content for an accompanying American Girl app and website that offers space simulations, educational quizzes, challenges, and more.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade.

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes.

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app.

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth.

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light.

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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