Making Tamagotchi virtual pets seem like a high-maintenance pain in the butt, the touchscreen Yuruppy kicks it up a notch with virtual pets that require no care and only want to be fondled.
While iPod Classic gaming doesn’t have quite the excitement of iPhone/iPod touch software, the famous Tamagotchi virtual pet is finally making its way to the platform. In Tamagotchi: ‘Round the World you can play with one of four animals through six minigames and three activities Sure, Tamagotchi is a few years late on the iPod scene, but for $US4.99 you can relive the digital late 90s all over again without blasting Alanis Morissette and cosying up in a nice flannel. [Tamagotchi via TUAW]
The Life Clock from Jinsei Tokei is kind of like a Tamagotchi for adults—but instead of caring for it, the little guy living inside this box mimics your lifestyle. Well…sort of. You see, you can choose between three characters: a salaryman, a schoolgirl or a rock star. It gets up when your alarm goes off and it goes back to sleep when you set it at night. In-between that time it will do things like eat, shop and go out on dates. It will even cook if you use it as a kitchen timer. So, this is really a model of how to to live your life. You know—earn a little money, eat 3 square meals a day, find yourself a nice girl and do it all with a strict punctuality. Available for $US55. [Japan Trend Shop via TRFJ]
Undoubtedly reopening the emotional wounds of millions of bereaved Millennials across the world, Tamagotchi has come back from the dead (they always do!) with a familiar line of life support simulators. This time, though, they come in colour, presumably to make the short, hungry, futile lives of those unfortunate little mutants that much more real to impressionable children. It remains to be seen if, 12 years later, today’s young children, many of whom already (and inexplicably) have a mobile phone and/or iPod, will take to the ‘Gotch. Japan only for now, but if and when they arrive in the US expect a price of around $US50. Enjoy some exciting, action-packed screenshots after the jump. [UberGizmo via Inventorspot]
Put simply, the Jinsei Game of Life won’t let you play the simple game contained inside it unless you exercise. It’s part pedometer, part Tamagotchi, part Lap Around Japan, and a little bit of masochism mixed in for good measure. To complete the “stages,” you must take 300 steps, at which point you’ll be granted a spin on the wheel to advance your character through the game. Don’t take the steps and there’s not really any kind of punishment. You’ll just have yet another piece of gaudy tchotchke dangling from your keys, and those little people inside will be judging you without remorse. [Takaratomy via Trends in Japan]
Things’d have to be pretty desperate in your love life if you needed one of these Ikemenbank, or “handsome men banks” from Bandai. For each 500 yen coin you drop in the heart-shaped gadget, you’re rewarded with the next step of a virtual love affair with a Tamagotchi-like digital chap inside. He speaks to you with emotionally supportive phrases, but needs constant attention. Not dropping a coin in for five days results in him leaving you, with nothing but a digital love letter to remind you of his pixels. Fill it up with 100 coins, however, and you get the romantic conclusion—it can be happy or sad—but I’m not clear exactly how pornographic it would be… Anyhow, if you’re lovelorn, and in Japan it will be out for around US$46 in September. [Reuters]
