Hatchi
Tony Mei | Jan 14, 2012 Games
(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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Hatchi ($0.99) by Portable Pixels
Available on iPhone & iPod Touch
Tamagochi were cheap, electronic toys popular in the 90′s. It’s basically a battery-powered keychain pet game. To prevent your little pixel based buddy from dying, you have to feed, bathe, and play with the thing constantly.
If you know what I’m talking about, you’re probably feeling nostalgic and/or bitter right now. I know I was obsessed with my little critter. Once, I forgot to take him on vacation and cried the entire car ride (RIP Flippy). Tamagochi is some serious stuff.
Hatchi bills itself as the app store’s first Tamagochi emulator. That’s right- you can relive the joys and pains of your childhood for only $0.99. The artwork is the same retro black pixels. Everything is done by pushing a button. You can only ‘lose’ if you don’t check on your creature frequently. The app can send notifications, in case I feel like being woken up at 3AM being told Henry is bored or hungry or smelly. In that way, it’s like owning your own pet.
You either love Hatchi or you don’t. It’s neat and quirky- great for showing off to friends. But in the game play sense, there isn’t much here. Check back in, press a few buttons to feed, bathe, play with, and read to your pet. It’s feels like playing Sims on a graphing calculator. After a few days, your monster evolves to new forms. If there’s no nostalgic connection between you and Tamagochi, Hatchi would offer much.
Hatchi’s description says that monsters take different attributes depending on how you treat them. I didn’t notice this, unless Henry transformed into a smelly, perpetually starving monster when I wasn’t looking. Oops. Sorry Henry. I hope you’re taking care of your Hatchi better than I am.
Have vaguely positive memories about Tamagochi? Want a pet, but aren’t responsible enough to remember to feed them? Well, Hatchi has a new shipment of critters up for adoption.
Look ma, arms!
| Fun | As fun as Tamagochi can be |
| Sound & Graphics | Retro, graphing calculator quality (in a good way) |
| Controls | I hope you like pressing buttons |
| Replay Value | Nil, unless you get really attached to your pet |
| Overall | Faithful Tamagochi imitator |
| App Name: | Hatchi (iTunes) |
| Version: | 1.0 |
| Price as of this writing: | $0.99. A free version of this app is not available at this time. |
| iTunes category: | Games |
| Available on: | iPhone & iPod Touch |
| Developer: | Portable Pixels |
| Device & iOS used for review: | iPhone 4S, iOS 4.0.1 |
Tags: $.99, Games, good for kids, Hatchi, Tony Mei
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