Maybe a Tamagotchi Will Help

Why digital pets are sparking joy right now

Photo: Xavier ROSSI/Getty Images

My Tamagotchi, which I’ve named Tamagotchi III, chirps beside me as I doomscroll. I detach my eyes from Twitter and attend to Tamagotchi’s needs: He is hungry but refuses the apple pie I offer him, opting instead for a bottle of milk.

He’s my third Tamagotchi hatchling; the first, Tamagotchi I, died — I forgot about…