No, most of us probably don’t want to spend our days feeding, bathing, and taking care of Tamagotchis. You have to admit, though, there was a time that you willingly did and enjoyed every minute of it. Well, just in case you’d like to dive back into the nitty-gritty of raising a digital pet, you can do just that with the Tamagotchi On.
That’s right, you can now go back to raising Tamagotchis as an obsessive hobby, allowing you to spend even more time staring at a tiny screen. Why can’t just do this on your phone? We’re pretty sure you could (there are tons of knock-off apps out there), but if you want to enjoy Tamagotchi in its full glory, having a dedicated egg-shaped machine definitely works so much better.
Like the original iteration, the Tamagotchi On comes in an egg-shaped enclosure with a small screen out front and three control buttons. It’s got a full-color display now, so it’s a lot prettier to look at than the toy of old, with better graphics, so there’s a lot more detail onscreen to really hook you in. You’ll find your digital pet onscreen in a small living room as its primary backdrop, with the option to purchase more rooms as you earn points through taking care of your creature. So yeah, there’s, at least, some incentive to keeping up with the care of your Tamagotchi.
Like any actual pet, the digital critter needs to be fed, cleaned up, played with, and, basically, given some amount of attention, lest leave it depressed or… in the worst case… dead. We’re hoping it can also get angry after being ignored and turn into a Gremlin (or an evil Furby), but we’re not sure how that mechanic will work, so it’s probably not in the game. Yes, the device will beep every time the pet wants attention, so you best keep it within reach at all times, lest leave your critter to fend for itself (all that poop isn’t going to clean itself).
If you haven’t touched a Tamagotchi since the 90s, then you’ll probably be surprised at the amount of activities now available for the Tamagotchi On. As in, you can now take your pet shopping, bring them to the park (to socialize with in-game characters), go traveling with them (there are many towns in the game that can be unlocked), and do a whole host of other things. An infrared sensor on top allows you to connect with other Tamagotchi Ons, giving your digital pet a chance to interact with other digital pets, whether for a playdate, a shared vacation, or to get married. Yep, they can marry now and even have kids afterward, at which point, you and the other owner will receive an egg on your device. Up to 16 generations of Tamagotchis can live in a single device at any one time, so this can make for a more consuming game than the ones you probably remember.
There’s also an upcoming Tamagotchi On app, by the way, that you can use to socialize your Tamagotchi with pets from all over the world, so you can be the only Tamagotchi owner within miles without feeling all alone in your obsession. Do note, this version of Tamagotchi is also way bigger than older iterations, so while you can still hook it up to your keychain, it’s probably best worn on a lanyard or a bag strap instead. It requires two AAA batteries.
The Tamagotchi On is now available for pre-order.
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