Why you should download Pokémon Sleep before going to bed

You probably know Pokémon Go, but now there is also Pokémon Sleep. We could call it the opposite of Go. You are inspired not to go outside, especially not to be active, and yet it has everything to do with Pikachu and his friends. The game is not made by the same studio (Niantic is still working on Peridot, among others), but it comes from Select Button, a Japanese studio that has received some assistance from Niantic. Is it a game or just an app? Anyway, it is now available for download in Europe.

Pokemon Sleep

You play Pokémon Sleep with your smartphone or with the special gadget that was released for the game: the Pokémon Go Plus+ (yes, it really says plusplus). The intention is that you put your smartphone or that device next to your pillow when you go to sleep and then monitor your sleep. Very handy, but what exactly is it for? Firstly, it keeps track of how many hours you make, which Pokémon have appeared in your sleep and, with Professor Neroli in the Sleep Style Dex, record which Pokémon have passed by.

The funny thing is that the app actually provides you with a reward if you work more hours. The sleepiest Pokémon of them all, Snorlax, plays the main role in the game. The bigger it gets (and it grows the more hours you sleep), the more Pokémon you’ll run into while checking the inside of your eyes. Pokémon that come to visit can become your friends and together you can collect berries that Snorlax likes to eat. That way it becomes stronger and if your sleep score is also good, you will get more Pokémon in your aura.

Snorlax

It all sounds quite funny, although it is not a very deep game in which you seem to be able to exert a lot of influence. However, that is not too bad. You can also catch Pokémon during the day. You do that by feeding Snorlax those berries during the day and by ‘hanging out’ with Snorlax and other Pokémon during the day. It is not very active, but it does help to make Snorlax’s Drowsy Power heavier and that ensures that you get extra points, useful if you can’t sleep for a night (or if you just want extra points of course).

The app can also help you fall asleep. He does this by, for example, letting you hear some quiet music. The app is also an alarm clock: useful, because that way the app knows even better how long you plan to sleep. You have to switch off the sleep session anyway when you wake up: whether you set an alarm or not. You do have to take into account the fact that the app will be on all the time while you sleep: that can cost quite a bit of battery. Your phone screen may be black, but the app must be open in any case.

Dozing, Snoozing and Slumbering

There are different Pokémon to collect, of the type Dozing, Snoozing and Slumbering (it’s still Pokémon, right?). It’s up to you to write them all down in your Dex. We won’t tell you which ones they are: you shouldn’t see that with your own eyes, erm. This app is fun to try: it costs you nothing, although you do have to keep an eye on your phone’s battery. Other than that, it’s something you can do while asleep (with a little aftercare maybe, but not much). It’s at least worth a try: who knows which Pokémon visit you at night? Okay, that sounds creepy, but it’s nice to see that we can integrate Pokémon into our daily day in a different way. We are sitting, no lying down, ready.

At this point, the long-delayed game is finally out in Europe. As for Android devices, it is only out on certain devices, including Google Pixel 7a. On iOS, the game is only available on iPhones running iOS 14.

Laura Jenny

When she’s not tapping, she’s traveling around the wonderful world of entertainment or some cool place in the real world. Mario is the man of her life,…