For the last few weeks, Pokémon Sleep has been advertising itself through short POV animations that give a taste of what it might be like to wake up as an actual Pokémon owner. I don’t know how many people were using Sleep before this, but the ads are incredible enough that I’ve got to imagine more people have been enticed to pick up the lifestyle app now. At least, I’m about to.
Fair warning: These clips are going to kill you, and there’s no undoing it. I feel fully robbed that the main games don’t let us experience anything like this after watching the footage. To their credit, the mainline games have steadily increased the quotidian aspects of owning a pet that ultimately make those companionships feel so rewarding. Think, for example, how you can play with, pet, and feed your ‘mon in the camp areas of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. That’s great and all, but the gameplay there is still stuck to an experience centered around battling. I just want to chill out with my little dudes, Nintendogs style. I want a slice of life Pokémon game, damn it! Apparently I’m not the only one, either. Each one of these clips has been viewed millions of times, with the most popular one amassing over 30 million views and counting.
The Pokémon Sleep ads feature monsters like Sprigatito and Arcanine in different types of early morning situations. You get to see what it’s like when a Pokémon wakes you up by doing biscuits on you, or stands by your doorside with excited, hopeful whimpers that you’ll get up soon. My favorite has to be the Bewear one where it shakes the entire house, items dropping left and right, before basically snuffing you out with its weight. Ugh! I guess I’ll go and interact with my actual cats instead. 🙁
