Your American Girl doll can have an Xbox Series X

Somewhere, from the depths of my parent’s garage, I can hear my dusty American Girl doll whispering, “Actually, Xbox Game Pass is a great deal …” Even Felicity is espousing the extolls of Microsoft’s subscription gaming service. Yes, it is now canon that Felicity was the first person to play the Xbox Series X in 1774.

You see, American Girl debuted a new set of accessories in June to give the dolls a new hobby: playing video games on their Xbox Series X. Typically, one probably wouldn’t pair these accessories with the dolls in American Girls’ historical series line; I guess it’s more suited to the modern dolls. However, I now need to believe that Felicity would have appreciated the joys of gaming. Like the Xbox One S kit that was released in 2018, the Xbox Series X accessories kit comes with a tiny console — that lights up and makes noise — alongside a tiny headset, two controllers, and some very small game discs. There is also a fidget spinner (a gamer classic) and a doll-sized vape water bottle.

Image: American Girl

Hilariously, Microsoft saw this as a very good opportunity to bring Xbox Game Pass to a new, younger audience. The Xbox Gaming Set comes with a “pretend Game Pass card that looks just like a real Game Pass activation card,” as well as crucial accessories to the experience, like the mobile gaming bracket for cloud gaming with a controller. Plus, there’s also a real Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 30-day pass in there, too.

Though best known for the Historical Characters line, the American Girl franchise has long allowed its dolls to have diverse and wide-ranging hobbies and experiences. Heck, one of the historical characters is canonically a gamer: Courtney, from the ’80s, is an arcade diehard that loves Pac-Man. (She has her very own working, doll-sized arcade cabinet — an asset that surely helped her become a top-scoring player at her local arcade.) She was released in 2024.

Now, of course, there’s the Xbox, which makes sense. The thing with American Girl dolls is that kids are supposed to be able to create a doll that embodies their world, if that’s what they want. Your American Girl doll can be class president, an animal rescuer, a surfer, and, also, a gamer. The only exception, I guess, is if your American Girl doll was actually devoted to Sony. Or if you’d prefer she be the sort of gamer who doesn’t identify as a gamer, but has sunk 1,000 hours into Animal Crossing: New Horizons on Switch. (Sorry, folks.)

Anyway, these kits aren’t only for kids, but also for adults who like to waste money on tiny things. Like me. I can’t wait for my tiny Xbox Series X.