My Tamagotchi Forever brings the 90s to your smartphone

We had all but forgotten about Tamagotchis. But those attention-starved little creatures are coming back.

Today, My Tamagotchi Forever launches on Google Play and the App Store. For those of you who didn’t ride the wave of handheld digital pets in the late 90s and early aughts, or those of you who are too young to have participated, here’s the gist:

Tamagotchis were little digital pets that lived inside a small handheld device. What made Tamagotchis interesting is that they were on a real schedule, needing food and attention on a daily basis. If you ignored your Tamagotchi for a few days, it would die. It was a high stakes game.

Eventually, the fad died as did many a Tamagotchi.

But today, Bandai Namco has tried to revive the trend with the launch of My Tamagotchi Forever.

Within the game, each Tamagotchi has a sleep meter, a hunger meter, an entertainment meter, and a bathroom meter. Users must fulfill the needs of the Tamagotchi in order to keep it happy and earn virtual currency to buy equipment for entertainment and food. Users can earn coins by playing mini-games in the entertainment section of the app.

Where My Tamagotchi Forever strays from its ancestors is in-app purchases. The game lets you skip past certain necessities, like waiting for your Tamagotchi to sleep, by purchasing Diamonds.

Given that this game is geared towards children, you could see how users could quickly rack up a bill, as some of the in-app purchases are as expensive as $99.

You can check out the trailer below or head straight to the app here.