Pet Pals

Michelle | Apr 14, 2009 Games

User rating: (32 votes, average: 3.03 out of 5)
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I’m always looking for apps that I can whip out in a hurry to entertain the kids during long car trips or endless waits at the doctors’ office, etc.

I thought this might be simple enough to entertain my non technical 7-year-old AND my uber computer geek of a 9-year-old. Also, I like apps that entertain me while I’m on hold for hours waiting for some person to get on the line and treat me like crap because I have an issue.

Pet Pals looked like the sort of app that might fit the bill for all of us. Sparebytes has created an pet simulation game where you can adopt up to 3 pets, choosing from 5 different animals, a cat, a dog, a penguin, a rabbit and a rock. The rock is a really funny touch. It eats, drinks, plays and moves. You have to bathe and take care of all the animals. Giving a bath to a rock is a fun one-time trick, but the action with the animals is a little limited. You can feed them, give them a toy, tickle them, and bathe or brush the animals, but that’s about it.

The animals request certain toys, food and baths and you get rewarded for giving them what they want. There are secret items hidden throughout the game, but we didn’t find any. My son did get $500 for putting the rock in the toybox.

The items in the store are oddly priced. A ball costs $50 and a toy mouse costs $400. The games earn extra money to buy supplies (such as a $400 toy mouse) and are very simplistic. Of the three games, one is a slot machine, one a sledding game and the third, a numbers guessing game. The sledding game is the most challenging, but still easily mastered by all of us.

I let my kids play this game and within 5 minutes my 7-year-old killed the rabbit. Even though I told her there would be no consequences for killing the bunny if she could just tell me what she did to make it expire, she continued to say she had no idea and it “wasn’t her fault.” The 9-year-old found the sledding game the most fun. I have to say there was no fighting over the Iphone to play the game and that tells me it isn’t the most entertaining Iphone app out there.

There is limited activity for the animals and the games are too easy. The sounds the animals make are cute and the cartoon animals look good. This is the first version Sparebytes has put out. It is rated 12+ on the age because of the simulated gambling.

At least this bunny can't get pregnant like my real pet. Dang cat.
At least this bunny can't get pregnant like my real pet. Dang cat.
tilt right; tilt left.......tilt right, tilt left
tilt right; tilt left.......tilt right, tilt left
The 3 games......am I thinking of a number higher or lower than 5?
The 3 games......am I thinking of a number higher or lower than 5?

The three games choices....remember slots is simulated gambling!
The three games choices....remember slots is simulated gambling!
iphone_petpals_img


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  • Michael (Admin)

    Yep – if the kids aren’t fighting over it then something’s definitely wrong with that picture!

  • http://www.sparebytes.com/ Arthur and Andrew from Sparebytes.com

    As the developers of the game, we want to comment on several things about this review.

    We want to clarify that the pets cannot be “killed”. They will run away if you don’t care for them, especially in the beginning since they’re newly adopted and need attention.

    We agree that the mini-games may be easy and will look into developing more challenging games for those who are into that. However, we have to remember that the goal of this game is to care for your pet. We wouldn’t want trainers to spend all their time playing mini-games while their pet is starving!

    The game is geared towards those who were into the Tamagotchis and the Nano Pets of the past and we find that those looking for a similar game for their iPhone won’t be disappointed, especially in comparison to other virtual pet applications that are currently available. You get everything you want in those past games and more with the addition of achievements, animated toys, multiple sceneries, etc. You can read all about the features of the Pet Pals and even find a game guide by going to http://www.sparebytes.com/petpals.

    We do thank you for spending the time to review our application. We respect your opinions and will use them to further improve our application.

  • Yuki

    I don’t agree with the statement about there being something wrong with an app if the kids aren’t ‘fighting over it.’ my toddler loves playing with the cat and has figured out how to do basic things in the game. i’ve tried other similar virtual pet games, and this one does so much more (some of them don’t even move). i think the graphics are great and the sounds and the animals are cute. it’s fun to see how the pet interacts with the different items. my kid doesn’t ask to play with it every second (and I wouldn’t want her to) but it doesn’t mean that it’s not a worthwhile app. btw, it’s not just meant for kids. i enjoy playing with it as well. my two cents. thx.

  • Michael (Admin)

    Thanks guys! We always appreciate it when developers take the time to address criticisms.

    If you make any significant changes to the app, feel free to send in an update and it’ll get posted.

    Thanks,
    Michael

  • Savannah

    I am addicted to this game ! I am a huge sucker for internet pet games, and this one is really good. It exceeded my expectations with the animals moving and actually interacting with the toys you put out rather than just words saying “so-and-so is playing with the toy !” like in some of the other pet apps. And its really cute how they laugh when you tickle or play with them. the stuff in the store is oddly priced, by hey, its not something thats of major concern with me.

    I do agree, however, that there should be more challenging games. I understand where the creators are coming from where they don’t want the pets to ‘starve’ but when you get all of the pet’s need up to 100, you need to kill time until they get a bit lower. And i would much rather play games on the pet pals app than just closing the app altogether to play another game. So if you add more challenging games, it would be perfect (:

    P.S. Overall this is a really fun game and I’m 15 years old, so its not just for little kids.

  • Sophie Dunning

    this game is awesome! :D :D :D :D :D :D

  • MaryT

    Why when I search this app in the app store it does not come up? Was the app discontinued or something?

  • http://sparebytes.com Andrew

    The title of this app has been changed to pet playpen due to legal reasons. Thank you for your interest.

    Andrew

  • JustLiz

    I am 14 and I play it on my iPhone. Me and my cousin play it together, I love mine(: IT IS NOW CALLED PET PLAYPEN (: You’re welcome, hahaha. :D :lol: