The video game world and the real one have collided in the most unusual and unsettling way, as a Japanese fishmonger’s shop has made a collectible pen with an actual living parasite inside, making it seem like something Resident Evil villain Albert Wesker would own.
Spotted by various users on social media and reported by sites like Asahi News, the now-viral pen initially seems like the usual AI slop encountered nowadays, but it’s actually a real souvenir being sold from Japan’s Kochi Prefecture.
These pens are being sold at a fishmonger’s shop in Susaki city, with the things swimming around inside them being living Anisakis suspended in a clear liquid, a real-life parasite that dwells inside fish like skipjacks or bonitos. Takuhiro Tada, president of the local company behind the pens, Tada Suisan, stated that the inspiration behind the collectibles came when an acquaintance, FUNA84, placed Anisakis extracted from his own stomach into ballpoint pens.
Inspired by FUNA84, Tada wanted to make similar products for fun, but following positive reactions, he decided to sell them at his store as unique souvenirs. Tada also added that since the Anisakis are extracted from caught fish, the number of pens made each week will depend on their catch. These pens actually made waves on the Japanese internet back in 2024, but have now caught the eyes of the global audience, especially fans of the Resident Evil franchise.
Resident Evil diaries be like
— Katastrophe (@ImKatastrophe) April 8, 2026
April 9
I found this cool pen with wriggly stuff in it at the office, but as my manager walked in I started chewing nervously on it. I also let my dog have a nibble because it tasted funny. Hope the thing inside doesn't escape.
April 10
It escaped. https://t.co/7CLJwSLjcf
The pens also caught the attention of Resident Evil’s Community & Social Media Manager, X/Twitter user ImKatastrophe, who made a post imagining how these pens would fit into the game’s universe as one of its many ominous in-game diary entries. Add to the fact that Anisakis can actually cause food poisoning when someone eats raw or uncooked fish containing it, and its links to the fictional Umbrella corporation’s many failed and dangerous experiments become even more uncanny.
Kevin is a reformed PC Master Race gamer with a penchant for franchise “duds” like Darksiders III and Dead Space 3. He has made it his life-long mission to play every single major game release – lest his wallet dies trying.
