Pokémon Sleep will gamify your sleeping patterns

In 1996, Nintendo released the first Pokémon games — Pocket Monsters Red and Green. The pioneering series elevated mobile gaming to a whole new level. Introduced in the original Gameboy, Pokémon has always subsisted on portable consoles.

In 2016, Pokémon upped the ante even more, releasing the ground-breaking Pokémon Go. Because of the popular AR game, the series incorporated gaming into the real world. Pokémon Go promotes a walking lifestyle, allowing gamers to change their experience based on how far they walk. In 2016, Pokémon Go turned Pokémon into a lifestyle: you can play while you walk.

Now, Pokémon is breaking another barrier — the realm of sleep. This week, Nintendo hosted a Pokémon-themed Nintendo Direct Presentation. Naturally, with recent news, everyone wanted Pokémon Shield and Sword announcements. However, Nintendo had a different plan — Pokémon Sleep.

As the name suggests, Pokémon Sleep brings the monster-collecting game to your bed. The game is literally a gamified sleep tracker. According to Nintendo’s presentation, your quality of sleep — how many hours you get — will affect your gameplay. It is developed by Pokémon Magikarp developer Select Button.

Sadly, Nintendo has not explained exactly how Pokémon Sleep will play or change gameplay. However, the presentation hints at connections between Pokémon Go and the existing Switch games.

Besides the game, Nintendo is also simultaneously launching a new accessory — the Pokémon Go Plus Plus. (Yes, two pluses.) The new accessory functions like the original Pokémon Go Plus. However, the Pokémon Go Plus Plus will track both sleeping and walking. The device will join the original walker and last year’s Pokéball Plus.

Pokémon has now created a lifestyle-oriented ecosystem. Nintendo’s recent launches are rewarding good lifestyle choices — better sleeping, longer walking.

Pokémon Sleep and the Pokémon Go Plus Plus will launch next year. In the meantime, Niantic has released a promotional sleeping Snorlax in Pokémon Go to hype the game.

SEE ALSO: A Pokemon Tamagotchi is coming!