CYPRESS, Calif.—Bandai America Inc. announced plans to release a mobile-phone version of its popular Tamagotchi virtual-pet game.
Tamagotchi, first introduced 10 years ago as a handheld game, requires users to care for a virtual pet by feeding it, playing with it and performing other tasks to keep it happy and alive.
The company said the game will be available through most U.S. carriers.
Bandai is not the first company to add a “companion” to cell phones. Last year, mobile entertainment company Player X and Vodafone Group plc announced plans to launch a cell-phone companion called Space Boy.
Meanwhile, mobile game-maker In-Fusio is hoping to use a virtual-pet application to build mobile communities. The publisher is teaming with Neopets.com, a division of MTV Networks, to allow Cingular Wireless L.L.C. subscribers to download characters, stories and activities from the online game.
