Tweechi Is a Virtual Pet That Wants All Your Retweets

Virtual pets have had a real hit-or-miss time on mobile devices. Despite the love we all felt for the Tamagotchi 20 years ago, modern equivalents rarely do well. Games like Hatchi and Clumsy Ninja are fantastic exceptions, but exceptions nonetheless.

The team at Fuzzy Face are hoping that Tweechi will be counted amongst them.

This small indie team (which includes Starseed‘s creator Shane McCafferty) has a unique twist up their sleeve, and it involves a service you already know and love: Twitter.

Tweechi is a pet that feeds on your retweets.

Well maybe “feeds,” isn’t the right word, but the retweets you earn will power Zips — a virtual currency in the game. These, in turn, can be spent to feed your Tweechi, buy it toys, and (potentially) more. And it won’t just be retweets related to the game, either.

In speaking with Wired’s Matt Kamen, studio co-founder Chris Thomas explains the framework thusly:

[quote]Every day when you open Tweechi you get a letter through the door which, when opened with a tap, tells you how many retweets you got yesterday and then how many Zips they earned you. We wanted to recreate that excitement you felt as a kid opening birthday mail but have it be a treat you can have everyday.[/quote]

Speaking of kids, the developers are promising to provide a variety of non-Twitter methods for earning Zips, because after all — not everybody is responsible enough to be on Twitter. (Even a lot of the adults who use it every day).

Tweechi is expected to launch later this year exclusively for iOS. Visit tweechi.com for your chance at early access.

Jim Squires

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Jim Squires is the Editor-in-Chief of Gamezebo. Everything you see passes his eyes first, so we like to think of him as "the gatekeeper of cool stuff." He likes good games, great writing, and just can't say no to a hamburger. Also, he is not a bear.