Virtual Pets - Why Are Virtual Pets So Popular?

By Victor C.
Virtual pets, also known as a digital pet, are popular all over the world today. Many will say you can trace the virtual pets origin back to the 1970's and the "Pet Rock". The Pet Rock was an ingenious marketing idea. The idea originated in southern California but quickly spread across the United States. The Pet Rock fad only lasted around six months but it laid the ground work for many new ideas in the future.

Virtual Pets were built on the age old idea that you do not need a real live pet to have fun. You can create an emotional connection with an inanimate object. Today Virtual Pets have grown into much more than a passing fad. Virtual Pets have morphed into both physical robots and toys, to strictly digital in manner.

They are enjoyed by millions of people all over the world. VP's (Virtual Pets) are popular with both the young and the old. They have become extremely popular in the big Cities of the world. People in big cities do not have the room to raise a real pet. The Virtual Pet gives them the opportunity to feel the same emotional connection they would with a normal pet. VP's have to be cared for. You have to feed them and give them water; they must be walked and loved. If you do not take care of your Virtual Pet it could die.

There are different kinds of digital pets. A few of the different types are:

• Digital Pets: these are the most prominent. A computer or digital device is used to interact with the virtual pet. More often than not the pet is interacted with in a virtual world that exists in the computer or on the Internet. Games or puzzles are often played to allow the owner to earn money to buy food and care items for their pet. The pet can be bred with other owner's pets and can have offspring. You are limited only by your imagination. These virtual worlds come and go making it difficult to keep an accurate count of how many there are. They are numerous on the internet. Digital pets do come in different types.

Some of these are:

o The online Internet Virtual Pet.

o The desktop digital pet; requires software be installed on your computer.

o The digital device Virtual Pet such as the Palm pilot pet.

• Physical Virtual Pet: these come in several varieties. There are robot dogs, fish aquariums, small plastic pets and therapeutic pets for the sick and elderly.

• MP3 Digital Pets: there are different types here as well. Some of these have morphed over into the cell phone.

These are just some of the many different types of Virtual Pets you will find available for your enjoyment today.

When you tire of your digital pet you can think about creating your own alter ego in a digital person. Virtual people have also been created today. You can now create a digital avatar that looks somewhat like you, and lives in a "Virtual World". Your digital clone can have a digital family and a virtual pet. You can live and interact in huge digital cities and worlds. You can get lost in this fantasy land for days on end. It truly is amazing and great fun. It has taken the idea of the Virtual Pet to the next level.

Whether you decide for a physical Virtual Pet or a digital one you will have hours and hours of fun playing and caring for your pet. So let your imagination run wild. Get your digital pet today.