[Japanese; cute little egg] space-age cyberpet; a solely electronic state; indigenous to Japan, appearing as an egg on a liquid-crystal screen. Life history, consisting of hatching, feeding, beeping when not fed, sleeping in 12 hour snatches, growing, dying prematurely if neglected, flying away, is completed usually in 2 weeks with maximum recorded life span 4 weeks. The low maintenance costs and brief life span appear to have been designed to suit society's average desired investment level and affection span for a house pet. An unfriendly addition to the veterinary profession's list of exotic companion animals.
Tamagotchi
| Veterinary Dictionary: Tamagotchi |
| Games: Tamagotchi |
- Release Date: 1997 10
- Genre: Simulation
- Style: Life Development Sim
- Similar Games: Catz (Game Boy Color), Dogz (Game Boy Color)
Game Description
Tamagotchi is theA Tamagotchi is a small alien creature that hatches from an egg. Once it is "born," it is up to you to raise it properly by feeding it, cleaning it and playing games with it. Depending on how you raise the Tamagotchi, it will grow into one of several different species.
The
~ Skyler Miller, All Game Guide
Review: Overall
One of the stranger fads of the late Nineties was a little toy called Tamagotchi. Imported from Japan, where it enjoyed mass-market permeation, Tamagotchi was a tiny LCD device with three buttons, where the goal of the player was to "raise" a tiny creature by feeding it, playing with it, and cleaning it. While Tamagotchi went over gangbusters in Japan, its lifespan in America was limited.In any case, Japanese toy giant Bandai has ported Tamagotchi from a keychain toy to the
The main Tamagotchi screen shows your little critter bouncing around or sulking in the middle of the screen. From here, you can feed him a variety of treats, turn off the light to make him sleep, play a variety of incredibly lame mini-games with him, administer medication, flush his toilet, or shout at him. The options are expanded a bit from the original hand-held game -- in this one, you can raise (and name) three Tamagotchi simultaneously, then enter them in Tamagotchi Tournaments once they become healthy and strong. You can also help it study math to build its IQ -- but no matter how smart it becomes, you can never toilet-train the dang thing.
If you ever get confused, simply consult the manual, and completely avoid the in-game help from the Tamagotchi Professor. Otherwise, you'll be baffled with phrases like "SPEED COMPETITION RESULTS OF TAMAGOTCHI CARE," "REMEMBER TO FLASH THE TOILET," and "TAMAGOTCHI LIKES TO PLAY EARLY WHEN UPSET." Right.
If you didn't get sick of the original keychain Tamagotchi, then you'll probably flip head-over-heels for this
~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
Review: Enjoyment
The appeal of Tamagotchi is hit-or-miss -- if you love nurturing little creatures, you'll dig it.~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
Review: Graphics
Pretty chintzy, even for a Game Boy title. The LCD game didn't look much worse.~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
Review: Sound
Droning Tamagotchi tunes that will make you turn down the volume.~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
Review: Replay Value
There are over a dozen different Tamagotchi you can raise, and the battery back-up ensures they'll be alive and kicking each time you turn on your Game Boy.~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
Review: Documentation
The printed manual is bare-bones, but the online help is terrible. In the words of the professor: "MAKE TAMAGOTCHI PLAY SPORTS TO BE STRONGER"~ Colin Williamson, All Game Guide
| Wikipedia: Tamagotchi |
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This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2009) |
The Tamagotchi (たまごっち Tamagotchi) is a handheld digital pet created in 1996 by Aki Maita and sold by Bandai. Over 70 million Tamagotchis have been sold as of 2008.[1] The Tamagotchi is housed in a small and simple egg-shaped computer. Three buttons (A, B, and C) allow the user to select and perform an activity, including:
- Feeding the Tamagotchi a piece of food or a snack.
- Playing games with the Tamagotchi.
- Cleaning up a Tamagotchi's waste.
- Checking its age, discipline, hunger, happiness and other statistics.
- Connecting with other friends
- Marrying other tamagotchis
Contents |
Meaning of "Tamagotchi"
According to Bandai the name is a portmanteau combining the Japanese word "たまご" (tamago) which means "egg", and the English word "watch" (as in timepiece)[2]. Consequently, the name is romanized as "Tamagotch" without the "i" in Japan.
Tamagotchi releases
Main article: List of Tamagotchi releases
As of 2009, there have been 44 Tamagotchi versions released since their creation in 1996. Several of them are Japanese Tamagotchis. These include the original Tamagotchi, Christmas-themed Tamagotchi and newer Tamagotchi versions, known as Connection, Connexion or Plus, which can communicate with other Tamagotchi for games and breeding. The most recent versions are the Tamagotchi Music Star, in which the player can raise a single Tamagotchi, where it will eventually form a band after making friends; and the Tamagotchi Plus Color, a Japan-exclusive virtual pet with a full-color 128x128 screen with enhanced graphics and gameplay.
Tamagotchi Video Games
Tamagotchi for Game Boy and Game Boy Color which are similar to the original handheld games. Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop, Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop 2, and Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop 3 for Nintendo DS are games where the players can run shops to make money. The players can choose between Mametchi, Memetchi, Kuchipatchi, and in Tamagotchi Connection: Corner Shop 3, Violetchi, to become a partner, and work together to keep their customers happy. Also on the nintendo 64, Tamagotchi 64: Minna de Tamagotchi World a Nintendo 64 game released only in Japan in 1997. It is a virtual board game based on the tamagotchi toy. Just recently, a new game has come out called Tamagotchi: Party on where you walk around a board, and play games to win coins and become the town mayor.
Arcade systems
Mario Kart Arcade GP 2
Mametchi, a common tamagotchi character, appears in Namco Bandai's/Nintendo's Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 as a character.
TamaStation
TamaStation is an arcade machine released in Japan where the owner can get prizes for their EnTama/UraTama. This machine has a sequel, TamaStation 2.
In other media
Film
On June 1, 2007, it was announced by Reuters that an animated Tamagotchi film was to be released in December 2007. The film , Eiga De Tojo-Tamagotchi: Dokidoki! Uchuu no Maigotchi!?, focuses on Mametchi, along with his friends Memetchi and Kuchipatchi. Introduced are Tanpopo, a human girl who Mametchi accidentally transports to the Tamagotchi Planet; and ChaMametchi, the younger sister of Mametchi who is born during the film's events. It has been said that a sequel will be released at the end of this year, featuring Hapihapitchi. More short films on youtube have recently come out called Let's Go! Tamagotchi. There is a whole series that viewer can enjoy.
The movie, Eiga De Tojo-Tamagotchi: Dokidoki! Uchuu no Maigotchi!? released on December 15, 2007, and was distributed by Toho Co. The film opened at #3 at the box office on opening weekend.[3] On May 31, 2008, North American distributor Bandai Entertainment announced they had acquired the rights to the film.[4] The movie's first English release was a direct-to-DVD version, released on June 3, 2009 in Australia. The UK DVD was released on September 14 2009 via Manga Entertainment.
Animated Series
A Japanese-only anime series called Anime TV de Hakken!! Tamagotchi (アニメ TVで発見!! たまごっち, lit. Found on Anime TV!! Tamagotchi) aired from July 7, 1997 to March 21, 1998 on Fuji TV.
In December 2007, Bandai Japan began airing Saa Ikou! Tamagotchi(さぁイコー！たまごっち) a week before the release of the first film. In December 2008, Bandai America dubbed the series, Let's Go! Tamagotchi, and began streaming it on YouTube in both English and Japanese, with captions for up to 7 other languages.[5]
Recently, another Tamagotchi TV anime was announced, called Tamagotchi! (たまごっち!). It is set to air in October 2009. The airing channel has not been specified yet. Other foreign releases for this anime have not been announced.
Animated video
An animated video called, "Now Museum, Now You Don't," Tamagotchi Video Adventures was produced by 7th Level, Inc. in association with Bandai in 1997. Directed by Dan Kuenster, produced by Susan Deming and written by Kuenster, Deming and David Lewman. It runs approximately 42 and a half minutes long. Cosmotchi sends the Tamagotchi to Earth to collect an object that best exemplifies the planet for the Tamagotchi Museum. An original animated music video ("What's a Tamagotchi?") and a how-to-draw Tamagotchi featurette, starring director Kuenster follow the movie.
Music
A song called "Tamagotchi" was produced by the music band Sqeezer in 1997.
In Japan, the band Kigurumi, after gaining new members and becoming a trio, released their single, "Tamagotchi", on November 21, 2007, which was also the theme music for the upcoming film.[6] It was dubbed in English along with the English dub of the movie.
The group Daze made a song called "tamagotchi"
The Los Angeles based pop duo, LOONER, released their tribute to the toy in May 2009 with the single "I Love My Tamagotchee!"[7]
Criticism and controversy
One controversy over Tamagotchi digital pets involved children taking them to school because certain Tamagotchi versions could starve or die in less than half a day from lack of care. Worry over potential ownership disputes, class disruptions, and general distraction from schoolwork has led many schools to ban the product.[8] (Later versions included a 'pause' feature, plus a newer sound on/off function). Some parents also express concern because the device constantly calls the user to it with penalties for ignoring its signal, including death, starvation, and sickness, effectively keeping the device in the child's consciousness at all times and interfering with other, potentially constructive, activities.
On August 3, 2005, South Australian MP Nick Xenophon attempted to ban the Tamagotchi Connection Version 2 (or at least have it classified R18+) due to the "Slot" game featured on it, fearing that it would make kids grow up to become "gambling addicts of tomorrow".[9]
References
- ^ Dean Takahashi (2008-12-17). "Here kitty kitty! FooMojo launches virtual pets game FooPets". Venture Beat. http://venturebeat.com/2008/12/17/foomojo-launches-virtual-pets-game-foopets/. Retrieved 2008-12-31.
- ^ バンダイ タイムマシンバンダイ マシン (Older archived version)
- ^ Japanese Box Office, December 15-16: Tamagotchi at #3 - Anime News Network
- ^ Bandai Entertainment Gets Tamagotchi Feature Film - Anime News Network
- ^ Bandai Streams Tamagotchi in Seven Languages for Free - Anime News Network
- ^ Kigurumi gains two members - Tokyograph
- ^ LOONER "I Love My Tamagotchee!" Music Video
- ^ Honolulu Star-Bulletin Local News
- ^ Your Vote: XYZ | Refused-Classification.com
External links
- Official USA Tamagotchi site
- Official European Tamagotchi Site
- Net Discovery! Tamagotchi, current official Japanese site
- Net Discovery! Tamagotch (1996-1998 Japanese Tamagotchi page)
- Official Movie Website
- くちぱっちのモグモグブログだっち, Kuchipatchi's blog
TamaTown
- TamaTown Official site for V3 through V5.5 and Music Star online connectivity
- Tamagotch Tushin Japanese page for TamaTown
- Tamagotchi Europe European Tamatown for V3 through to V5 Famalitchi
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