@mjangelvortex  
Oh, thank god. I haven’t checked the date in the source. 2014 though… that’s like 3 years deep into G4. Still weird. But less worrying.

@Background Pony #DF3E  
This is from a very old ad.

Ummm… why are we going back to 3.5 designs? That’s not a good place to go back to.

What fresh hell is this?

oh no…

G5 is looking great already

@mjangelvortex  
The eyes can be chalked up to the crappy animation of Newborn Cuties, due to Hasbro being stingy with the money.
 
The muzzle… I dunno… it doesn’t look that different for me, but I think you might be probably right, because science.

thanks I hate it

@Edhelistar  
She has a smaller muzzle and the eyes look livelier as well whereas the eyes in Newborn Cuties look kinda lifeless.

@MaresFillies  
Not exactly. Newborn Cuties, which is what you are thinking of, is the very tail end of G3.5, exactly before the transition to G4, thus not really representative of G3 as a whole.
 
It does look eerily similar to the Newborn Cuties design, though. But much less creepy, probably because the much higher animation quality…  
 
…and that I see them side by side, I can also see subtle differences in design. Like the G4 version having a more rounded face, making Pinkie look a lot cuter.

dawwww gives her hugs

@MaresFillies  
Early G4.
 
@SecretTitan  
I think the toy of her and baby Spike are rather cute too.

@SecretTitan  
She’s being raised by bipeds. What do you expect?

I saw the commercial and in fact the toy is adorable. Although that version of Pinkie Pie must be from a different universe, since she is an anthropomorphic foal.

@MaresFillies  

 
It’s G4….done in the style of G3.

Isn’t this G3? XD

Oh… oh no…