Dinsun Review
I understand that I am not the target audience for Pou, but even as a piece of software, it's remarkably primitive. You tap a bottle to clean it. You drag a piece of food to its mouth. You wait. It’s the kind of 'gameplay' that was mind-numbing twenty years ago and hasn't improved since. The art style is essentially a MS Paint doodle with eyes. I've seen more complex character design on a cereal box.
The only reason this stays on people's phones is the psychological hook of 'keeping it alive' and the mini-games, which are just clones of other, better games (like Doodle Jump or Flappy Bird) baked into the app. It's a container for distractions. As a gamer who values mechanics and depth, Pou offers nothing but a series of chores to unlock a slightly different colored hat. It’s efficient at what it does, but what it does is barely gaming.
Overall Stats
Pros & Cons
- Very low entry barrier for children
- Huge variety of customization items
- Runs on virtually any mobile device
- Core gameplay is repetitive and shallow
- Mini-games are unoriginal clones
- Visuals are extremely basic
Technical Report
Performance: Flawless performance; it requires almost no system resources.
- Simple One-Touch Controls
- Visual Cues for Pet Needs
Audience Fit
Buy if: You are five years old or have a very strong sentimental attachment to virtual pets.
Skip if: You want anything resembling a challenge or artistic depth.
- My Talking Tom
- Tamagotchi Classic
- Neko Atsume
Reviewer Context
- Reviewer: Dinsun, grumpy veteran
- Hardware: iPhone 13 Mini
- Playtime: 1 hours
- Status: Pou reached adulthood
