Editing Virtual pet (section)

{{Short description|Type of artificial human companion}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Update|date=January 2021}}
[[File:Tamagotchi 0124 ubt.jpeg|thumb|A [[Tamagotchi]] virtual pet]]
{{Simulation VG}}
A '''virtual pet''' (also known as a '''digital pet''', '''artificial pet''',<ref name="ongamedesign">{{cite book|last=Rollings|first=Andrew|author2=Ernest Adams|title=Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on Game Design|publisher=New Riders Publishing|year=2003|pages=477–487|url=http://my.safaribooksonline.com/1592730019/ch16|isbn=978-1-59273-001-8|access-date=6 December 2011|archive-date=2 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200502170557/https://my.safaribooksonline.com/1592730019/ch16|url-status=dead}}</ref> or '''pet-raising simulation''') is a type of [[artificial human companion]]. They are usually kept for companionship or enjoyment, or as an alternative to a real [[pet]].

Digital pets have no concrete physical form other than the hardware they run on. Interaction with virtual pets may or may not be goal oriented. If it is, then the user must keep it alive as long as possible and often help it to grow into higher forms. Keeping the pet alive and growing often requires feeding, grooming and playing with the pet. Some digital pets require more than just food to keep them alive.  Daily interaction is required in the form of playing games, virtual petting, providing love and acknowledgment can help keep your virtual pet happy and growing healthy.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-06-14|title=From Tamagotchi to "Nintendogs": Why people like digital pets|url=https://corinspired.com/from-tamagotchi-to-nintendogs-why-people-like-digital-pets/|access-date=2021-11-10|website=Corinspired|language=en-US|archive-date=10 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211110063343/https://corinspired.com/from-tamagotchi-to-nintendogs-why-people-like-digital-pets/|url-status=usurped}}</ref>

Digital pets can be simulations of real animals, as in the [[Petz]] series, or fantasy ones, like the [[Tamagotchi]] or [[Digimon]] series. Unlike [[life simulation game|biological simulations]], the pet does not usually reproduce.<ref name="ongamedesign"/>