Pokémon Working On A Game That You Play By Sleeping

A press event with full of announcements was held on the last weekend of May in Tokyo to unveil a lot of new hardware and services from the Pokémon Company.  In this event, Pokémon Sleep, a new game from the producer was also introduced.

The new game is created in order to turn the sleeping activity into entertainment. In particular, the time the players spent sleeping and the time they get up would affect the gameplay. Specific details on this game are still limited at the moment. However, since the company planned a launching date in 2020, we can hope for more details about how the game works to be released in the near future.

What we know currently is that a new Nintendo device named Pokémon Go Plus + will be released along with the app. This device deploys an embedded accelerometer to identify the time sleeping of users. Then the collected information will be sent to users’ smartphones via Bluetooth. Due to the similarity with the Pokémon Go Plus in function, the updated device allows users to use it with Pokémon Go in the daytime and with Pokémon Sleep in the night time.

Accelerometers are usually used in sleep trackers to measure user’s body movements when they are asleep. Even so, with the limited information from Niantic about how the game works, it is still hard to know how through sleeping users would be rewarded. In the event, John Hanke – CEO of Niantic only revealed that while the original game encourages users to exercise, Pokémon Sleep will focus on users’ sleeping habits.

“At Niantic, we love exploring the world on foot. And that can’t happen unless we have the energy to embark on these adventures,” said Hanke. “We’re excited to find ways to reward good sleep habits in Pokémon GO as part of a healthy lifestyle. You’ll be hearing more from us on this in the future.”