Image: The Pokemon Company
All you need is a good night’s sleep to catch new Pokemon.
The Pokemon Company is putting you to sleep. Back in 2019, the company revealed an app called Pokemon Sleep with very little information to back it up, but the app finally returned in this week’s Pokemon Presents with gameplay and details on what it actually does.
Watch the reveal below:
The big selling point for Pokemon Sleep is that it gives users a reason to look forward to waking up every day, the same way Pokemon Go sent people out on walks to catch creatures in mobs. The game measures your sleep by length and sleep styles, and gives you a score as well as other collectible Pokemon based on these factors.
The game takes place on a small island where the player is carrying out research on Pokemon sleep patterns with the assistance of a large Snorlax and Professor Neroli. Here’s how it works: once you install the app, all you have to do is place your phone next to your pillow and go to sleep. The app will record and measure your sleep during the night. In the morning, it'll give you a score based on how long you slept. The higher your score, the more Pokemon you’ll wake to find gathered around Snorlax.
Every night you sleep, you’ll be sorted into one of three sleep styles: dozing, snoozing or slumbering. Pokemon who sleep in similar ways will then gather around Snorlax in the morning, and since each Pokemon has a bunch of different sleep styles, you’ll have to play around with combinations of each to complete your dex of sleepy Pokemon. Some Pokemon sleep in very rare styles, and you might end up discovering them only by fulfilling certain sleep conditions.
The Pokemon Company is also releasing another accessory to go with this app, and it might be familiar to Pokemon Go players: the Pokemon Go Plus +. That’s right, not only does this one comes with two pluses, but Bluetooth Low Energy tech that links up with the Pokemon Sleep app too. Using the device, all you have to do is press a button and place it on your pillow before going to sleep instead of your phone. The device measures your sleep data and comes with an AI Pikachu voice that prompts you to sleep or wake up.
Pokemon Sleep launches on Android and iOS devices this summer. This week's Pokemon Presents also revealed a new stop-motion animated series and a two-part expansion for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
