It seems that while Sony is stopping its Aibo/Qrio projects, some others are still believing in robot toys: the SF-based company Ugobe. Here are some excerpts from the FT:

Sony may have abandoned its Aibo robot dog but metal pet lovers will soon have a replacement in Pleo, a lifelike dinosaur robot being unveiled on Monday by the co-inventor of the Furby. Pleo is viewed as a big advance in robotics, with its fluid movement and sensors that stop it walking into walls and falling off edges.

It does not require a remote control and can cough, blink, chomp, twitch, sigh, sneeze, sniff, yawn and move its tail.

Why do I blog this? I am interested in this part:

Pleo, the work of Furby co-creator Caleb Chung and a team of biologists, animators, robotics experts and programmers, is the first of a range of “designer life forms” that will be able to evolve and interact with one another, says Ugobe.

This could lead to a new kind of gameplay between light-sabre wielding robots on the tabletop rather than on the computer screen.

You can find some information about their projects here but there aren't any picture of the product yet (on the web).