The New Year season is often a peak shopping time in Japan, and as such stores pull out the big guns in what are known as fukubukuro (lucky bags). These are bags full of the merchandise a particular shop peddles. Sometimes it’s random which means you could end up with a laptop for fifty bucks, other times the contents are known but you can still get a decent deal on a bulk purchase. And sometimes, in the name of publicity, shops will throw in some unusual item or offer remarkably great deals to celebrate the new year.

It appears the winner for 2015 will be Keisei Department Store who are offering what must be a very large fukubukuro containing a two-meter-tall functional robot suit!

The robot up for grabs is a Kids Walker Cyclops model by Sakakibara Kikai. As you can see in the following video, it’s seriously cool.

Measuring 2.07 x 1.7 x 1.3 meters (6.79 x 5.6 x 4.3ft) and weighing in at 360kg (794lbs), the Cyclops seats one and runs at two speeds. Sadly, rather than plodding along like you might expect, the Cyclops just scoots around on wheels. I’m not to crazy about the lime-green color scheme either but I guess once you take it home you can airbrush all the dragon-riding Valkyries on it you want.

That is, if you have enough cash left for the paint job after shelling out a whopping 5,555,555 yen (US$46,616) for the robot. I suppose you could try applying for a loan from the bank, but in this economic climate I’m not sure how receptive they’ll be when you tell the you want to buy a giant robot suit.

If money is a problem or if you’re one of those crazy people who doesn’t want to walk around town in a huge robot, Keisei Department Store is offering a wide selection of fukubukuro this year such as gold coins, noodles, bungee jumping experiences, and a mysterious lucky bag offering a marriage proposal to a loved one, which is valued between 1,000 and 1,000,000 yen ($8.40 – $8,400).

Or, if you are ready to take the plunge into a pair of robot pants, just head down to Mito Keisei at the address listed below and purchase a claim ticket for the fukubukuro of your choice during store hours before 2 January. If you can nab one before they sell out then you can pick up your suit on the second, and if bags aren’t bought up they’ll still be available until 4 January. I’m not sure if they’ll let you walk out wearing it or not, though.

Mito Keisei Department Store
1-6-1 Izumi, Mito, Ibaraki

Source: Sakakibara Kikai, Keisei via Niconico News, Netlab
Video: YouTube – sakakibarakikai