The Family Album of a Weird Little Ninja and a Very Fluffy Rabbit - Penguin-keeper's Virtual Pet Log

[Penguin-keeper]

I now have a Kuchitamatchi, and it's been a very uneventful run so far.

One thing that I like about the Gen 1 and Gen 2 remakes is that sickness, misbehaviour, and pooping are not on a set schedule like they were in the originals - they're randomised, so no two runs are the same, and each Tamagotchi feels like more of an individual. I'm pretty sure that this guy is the quietest Tamagotchi that I've ever had.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

For the first time ever, I've failed to raise a Tamagotchi to adulthood. This is the problem with running one when you're busy with other things and haven't run one in a while - you forget that it's there.

This is where the low-maintenance Tamagotchis like the Mini and the Nano come into their own, so I'll probably run one of those next, possibly followed by the MGA Penguin, as I have a specific goal that I want to reach with that one, and it's quite low-maintenance itself.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Well, here we go again!

 

[Penguin-keeper]

And here's Nyorotchi, which is about the best that I could've expected after the abysmal outcome of my Gen 1 remake run.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Oh poop. Sorry, Nyorotchi!

 

[Penguin-keeper]

I'm running my Pac-Man Tamagotchi again, now, too!

I think that the close-ups on this version are really cute.

I also like how, if you play the games perfectly, you'll see your Tamagotchi alongside Pac-Man, and then get a reproduction of an intermission scene from the original Pac-Man - it's adorable! (And if you fail at the games, you'll see and hear the iconic Pac-Man death, and then get a Game Over screen, instead!)

This is the only Nano that I have right now, but it's quickly become one of my all-time favourite releases.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Here's a picture of my 20th Anniversary Mini and Pac-Man Nano together. As noted in my previous post, the Pac-Man Tamagotchi is one of my all-time favourites, but so is the 20th Anniversary Tamagotchi Mini - it was the one that got me back into the hobby and brought me to TamaTalk.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

On the Pac-Man Tamagotchi, Babytchi has evolved into Zuccitchi, who I haven't gotten before on this version (or any other, for that matter).

 

[Penguin-keeper]

One thing that I find fun about doing these runs when I don't have a lot of time for them, is that I'll see status ailments that I wouldn't normally see when I can give more attention to a device.

To that end, here's Zuccitchi facing the Pac-Man level 256 kill-screen bug!

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Over on the 20th Anniversary Tamagotchi Mini...

... Nyorotchi has just evolved into Oyajitichi, which marks the halfway point of this Mini run.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

On the Pac-Man Tamagotchi, pooping and sickness are replaced with ghost-attacks and the kill-screen bug, respectively.

This means that if your Tamagotchi falls asleep when a ghost-attack is ongoing, a ghost will fall asleep next to them, ready to resume the chase when the Tamagotchi wakes up.

 

[Tacoburritotchi]

On the Pac-Man Tamagotchi, pooping and sickness are replaced with ghost-attacks and the kill-screen bug, respectively.

This means that if your Tamagotchi falls asleep when a ghost-attack is ongoing, a ghost will fall asleep next to them, ready to resume the chase when the Tamagotchi wakes up.

AHAHAHAHA!! XD  

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Oyajitchi has now passed away, concluding this run of my 20th Anniversary Tamagotchi Mini. It's been a fun run and I'm glad that he was here for it. Just a few minutes before he died, I had given him his meals and desserts, so when he passed on he was totally full and happy, which I think is a nice thought.

I still have my Pac-Man Tamagotchi running, but there are no changes to report there for the time being.

I've also changed my mind about which virtual pet I'll be running next - it won't be the MGA Penguin, but something else entirely. I'll start up the mystery pet once the Pac-Man Nano run finishes.

 

[Tacoburritotchi]

Oyajitchi has now passed away, concluding this run of my 20th Anniversary Tamagotchi Mini. It's been a fun run and I'm glad that he was here for it. Just a few minutes before he died, I had given him his meals and desserts, so when he passed on he was totally full and happy, which I think is a nice thought.

I still have my Pac-Man Tamagotchi running, but there are no changes to report there for the time being.

I've also changed my mind about which virtual pet I'll be running next - it won't be the MGA Penguin, but something else entirely. I'll start up the mystery pet once the Pac-Man Nano run finishes.

Aww! 

Excited to see what you're gonna run next though!

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Excited to see what you're gonna run next though!

Thanks! It'll be a vintage pet that I haven't run in quite a while, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes.

 

[Berks]

I've also changed my mind about which virtual pet I'll be running next - it won't be the MGA Penguin, but something else entirely. I'll start up the mystery pet once the Pac-Man Nano run finishes.

Looking forward to seeing the next one

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Looking forward to seeing the next one

Thanks very much! I think that there's still a few days left for Zuccitchi on the Pac-Man Tamagotchi, but it shouldn't be too much longer.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

This morning on the Pac-Man Tamagotchi, I found Zuccitchi hanging out with Pac-Man on-screen - meaning that I raised him all the way to the best possible ending for this release, where the Tamagotchi only leaves after enough care-mistakes have accumulated over time. I haven't managed that on this version before - my previous two runs ended with the bugs catching Mametchi because I wasn't able to pay him enough attention one day (which resulted in the traditional grave scene, but with one of the Pac-Man ghosts hanging out nearby), and with me getting a Kuchipatchi shortly before the batteries died, respectively.

I pressed the A button, and Zuccitchi did one final close-up, before he and Pac-Man celebrated with fireworks, the same as you get when you get a "Great Success" score in one of the games. After that, Zuccitchi exited stage-left, followed by Pac-Man, and then Pac-Man returned to roam the screen alone;

I've thoroughly enjoyed this run of this device, and it's quickly become one of my all-time favourites. I'm really looking forward to seeing more licensed Nanos that overlap with my interests in the future - here's hoping for a Kirby 30th Anniversary one in 2022!

Now, all of that said, it's time to start up the virtual pet that I'm running next, which is one that I haven't run in a while;

It's my Japanese-version yellow-brick Gen 1 Digimon!

These aren't very pause-friendly (if you need to use the clock-set trick it has to be done in a specific way, and if the Digimon Digivolves it will unpause it and this can quickly cause trouble), so I didn't have great success the last time that I tried to run it - here's hoping for better this time.

He's just hatched into a Botamon, so let's see how this run goes...

 

[Penguin-keeper]

And now, I have a Koromon, who looks like he'd be right at home in the Kirby series, due to his resemblance to a Scarfy.

I do love the original 1990s Digimon virtual pets - they've got much of the same charm as the original 1990s Tamagotchi units do, just with a different aesthetic, from the thematically-fitting shell design, to the Game Boy-esque character-designs, to the personality of it all (not only do they have Tamagotchi-like expressions, but as part of their idle animation routine the Digimon will also periodically gnaw at the sides of the screen as if trying to escape, which highlights the shell-design and brings things full-circle).

The training game is also really charming - it's functionally-identical to the original Tamagotchi's left/right guessing-game, but instead you're guessing whether to attack high or low so as to get past the enemy Digimon's defenses, and it's both responsive, and fun to look at and play. It's interesting how a fresh coat of paint and a new theme can make this two-button guessing game feel sufficiently different to the original.

Basically, if you like the vintage Tamagotchis, you really can't go wrong with a vintage Digimon - they're pretty much siblings, after all.

 

[Penguin-keeper]

Today, Koromon Digivolved into Agumon! Here he is gnawing at the side of his enclosure.

For those following along who might want to see what possibilities this evolution can lead to, the growth-chart for this version can be found here.

I'm not trying to get any particular Digimon, here - I'm just fitting the device into my daily life and going with the flow to see what outcome I get.