Are you ready to feel old? The Tamagotchi turns 25 this year. And to celebrate, Bandai Namco is releasing a smartwatch version of our favourite virtual pet.
Our childhood virtual pets are now old enough to rent a car, so to commemorate that, Bandai Namco has decided to bring the beloved technology into the modern era with ‘Tamagotchi Smart’ – the new, wearable Tamagotchi that mimics a smartwatch.
Each device comes with its own characters to own and care for, with Bandai Namco also selling TamaSma physical DLC cards, which will allow you to download additional exclusive characters for a small fee.
Although the device physically resembles a smartwatch, don’t expect this to be the high-tech Apple Watch dupe of your dreams. The Tamagotchi Smart is a child’s toy, so the features are pretty basic, but what else do you expect? It’s literally a Tamagotchi.
The major upgrade from previous models – apart from the obvious benefit of being able to wear it on your wrist – is the voice and touch controls that have been implemented in the Smart.
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You can now wake up your pet with a voice command and pet them using physical touch. Honestly, this will be a godsend for all of the children who aren’t allowed to adopt a dog and instead are given a Tamagotchi.
According to the FAQ, the technology only works based on sound, so it doesn’t actually understand specific commands, but at least you can yell at your Tamagotchi to wake it up now.
The device comes packed with features we’ve seen in previous models like a pedometer and a clock, which technically makes it a smart watch. Additionally, there’s a possibility – judging by the trailer – that the device may also have the ability to play music, however, this is unconfirmed.
The Tamagotchi Smart launches in Japan on November 23. There’s no word on an international release just yet, but judging on previous models, we can likely expect it to drop in Australia sometime in 2022.
Gizmodo Australia has reached out to Bandai Namco for comment.