A virtual experience: Virtual pets, anyone?

(First of two parts)

One movie that recently aroused my curiosity and interest is the movie Simone. It’s about a virtual actress that takes Hollywood, the entertainment industry and the rest of the world by storm. The storyline alone is already very intriguing. Although there have been several movies where virtual characters are used, this is the first movie I know of that actually takes the virtual world concept and makes it the highlight of the film. And with Al Pacino as the lead actor, this is one movie I know I just had to see. I would not, however, even attempt to do a critique of this movie since that is better left to the "real" movie buffs. Suffice it to say that I enjoyed the movie immensely and it was refreshing to see Mr. Pacino in an offbeat role.

The use of virtual characters, however, is not limited to the silver screen. Believe it or not, your mobile phone can provide you a host of virtual friends and animals that promise to keep you company in whatever mood or situation you’re in. For Globe Handyphone subscribers, there are three "virtual" applications to choose from. We will explore one of these applications in greater detail. The other two will be presented in the next article.

Virtual Pet – If you’re looking for a pet that’s cute, doesn’t bite, smiles, won’t give you allergies and is low maintenance, then the Handypet is just what you need.

The Handypet is an application developed by Wireless Services Asia (WSA) that allows a mobile subscriber to raise a pet through the use of a mobile phone. Because this application is SMS-driven, any GSM handset will allow you to play this game. The pet starts off as an infant, in some cases an egg, and each command the subscriber sends via SMS helps the infant pet grow and reach adulthood. Should the subscriber, however, neglect his pet, this could lead to a naughty pet, the pet leaving the owner or death to the pet.

There are currently four pets you can raise:

a) Meowisha the cat

b) Handycat the cat

c) Dino the dinosaur

d) Rusty the dog

New pets – a monkey and a panda – will be added soon.

Raising your pet

There are five commands you can use in raising your pet, each command having a unique effect on the pet.

• Nourish — This command allows the subscriber to feed his/her virtual pet. This command helps in maintaining the health state of the pet although some pets, like Meowisha, are known to exhibit a negative effect if overfed.

• Tickle — This command allows the owner to have some fun with the pet. The tickle command is as synonymous as kidding around with the pet.

• Sport — This command is used when the subscriber wants to give his pet some exercise. Each pet has a different choice of sport.

• Relax — This command tells the virtual pet to rest. Relax is an important command because it allows the owner to get his/her pet to recharge after doing a series of action commands.

• Trick — Every virtual pet has a trick that he/she aims to perfect. With Dino, it’s fine-tuning his fire breathing skill, with Rusty, it’s perfecting his skills in fetching things. This command helps in the development of a pet’s trick.

Playing the game

To start playing the game, a subscriber needs to register and choose his/her preferred pet and send the SMS to 2333. In choosing your pet, you also need to assign a name.

There are some variations in the registration process depending on your choice of pet. For more details, you can log on to www.globeinteractive.com.ph.

Once you have registered, you can now take care of your pet using the various commands.

After sending your text commands, you will receive a reply that highlights some characteristics of your pet.

In the process of raising your pet, you can also track his growth progress by downloading its logo. The logo will show you what development stage your pet is in.

Once fully grown, your Handypet will remain a loyal and constant companion as long as you nurture and feed it.

First in the world

One interesting trivia about the Handypet is that it is the world’s first virtual pet application done on the GSM/SMS platform. This proves once again that the Philippines ranks among the top developers of innovative mobile value-added-services. This application has, in fact, been exported by WSA to Europe and has been copied all over the world.

I believe the Philippines has a very strong chance to be the mobile value-added services (VAS) capital in Asia. The telco infrastructure we have in place allows us to be at par with the world’s best. The Filipino’s appetite for SMS services has allowed us to develop applications not found in other countries. And as the world’s SMS usage continues to grow, this mobile VAS segment of the telco industry offers a huge potential for the Philippines to be on the telco world map. This is one good news that should be given media and world attention.

For Globe subscribers who want to know more about the Handypet service and instructions on how to raise the other pets, visit www.globeinteractive.com.ph.

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The author is the marketing director of Wireless Services Asia, a pioneer of local mobile value-added services. For inquiries, e-mail at [email protected].