How to Discipline Your Tamagotchi: Tough Love the Virtual Way

Since the beginning of the Tamagotchi craze, it’s always been about providing a byte-sized simulation of real pet parenting. 

This includes feeding, cleaning up their poop, playing with them, giving them medicine when they need it, and of course, disciplining them when they’re naughty. Just like real pets, your baby Tamagotchi needs to be scolded when they misbehave, helping it grow up into a well-behaved adult.

Let’s look at how and when you should discipline your Tamagotchi pet and the consequences of letting the virtual critter run riot. You’ll learn about your pet’s discipline scale, how it works, and what to do to move that scale in the right direction.

Should you discipline your Tamagotchi?

Discipline is an integral part of raising a Tamagotchi. Without it, your Tamagotchi could grow into a bad-mannered, unattractive alien. There are a few scenarios in which it is appropriate to discipline, whether you have an original Tamagotchi or another version:

• If the Tamagotchi beeps, even though it’s full and happy.
• If the Tamagotchi refuses to eat even though it’s hungry.
• If the Tamagotchi refuses to play games, even though it’s unhappy. 
• If the Tamagotchi refuses medicine when ill.
• If the Tamagotchi is throwing a tantrum.
• If the Tamagotchi sends a prank gift to a friend instead of the intended gift selected by the user. 

The only way to get hearts on the “Happy” and “Hungry” screens is by playing games with or feeding your Tamagotchi, so they could fail to evolve or even die if you fail to discipline them.

How do you discipline your Tamagotchi?

Curious about how to put your Tamagotchi in line? It’s quite simple – give it a stern talk. Generations 1 and 2 of Tamagotchi come equipped with a discipline icon, resembling a Pac-Man letting out a zig-zag sound wave, symbolic of reprimanding. Access this by cycling through the icons using the “A” button till “Discipline” emerges, then execute with a firm press of the “B” button.

With the Tamagotchi Connection, the concept of discipline evolved into a more comprehensive “Training,” which is all about either scolding or praising. But before laying down the law, read your pet’s emotions. If it exhibits signs of sadness, like crying or turning its back, it’s simply yearning for your affection. Highlight the “Discipline” icon and select “Praise” with a push of the “B” button.

Conversely, if your pet roams about the screen in its regular demeanor, disregarding your attention, it’s a sign of mischief. In this case, after navigating to the “Discipline” icon, tap “B” and elect either “Punish,” “Scold,” or “Time-Out.” Each successful “Training” intervention boosts the training meter – a triumphant accomplishment in your virtual pet parenting journey.

Fact

The discipline mechanic takes on some creative forms in other Tamagotchi versions. For example, in Mothra Tamagotchi, discipline is instead called “justice”, and you use that to stop your pet from attacking Tokyo Tower. In the Genjintch Tamagotchi, discipline is instead called “evolution” and is more about influencing how your Tama grows up rather than being about their behavior.

What happens when you discipline a Tamagotchi?

Every Tamagotchi has a discipline meter to let you know how you’re doing. When you’ve disciplined effectively, you’ll hear a sound effect, and the highlighted attention icon will turn off. The more successful disciplines you carry out, the better your Tama will behave. 

On certain versions of the Tamagotchi, your virtual pet may lose a heart when you discipline them, even when you’ve done it the right way. However, most other versions will only do this if you discipline when it isn’t necessary (but surely, you’d never do that?).

What does the discipline meter mean on Tamagotchi?

The discipline meter isn’t too complicated – it’s really just a gauge for how well you’re disciplining your Tamagotchi. The meter moving towards the right means you’re disciplining your Tamagotchi well, and you’ve got the makings of a truly well-behaved digital pet. The higher the meter, the less likely your Tamagotchi will get in trouble.

If you want to increase the progress of your meter, be sure to scold your Tamagotchi when needed. Discipline is one of the ways to increase Tamagotchi’s training meter, and training will impact what kind of adult your Tamagotchi will grow into.

Tip

To check the discipline meter, just press the "A" button and select the meter icon. This displays all of the information about your Tama, including how well it has been trained.

What happens when the Tamagotchi discipline meter is full?

For the original Tamagotchi, each successful scolding results in a 25% increase to the discipline meter. Your Tama will only make enough calls to fill the meter, and once it’s full, it will not call again until it evolves and the meter drops back down. When the Tamagotchi evolves from a child to a teenager, the discipline meter will drop to 50%.

In newer releases, the Tamagotchi will call even after the discipline meter is full. If you miss these extra calls, it will affect which kind of adult your pet will grow into. However, in the original Tamagotchi, not responding when your Tamagotchi calls won’t result in a care mistake, so you can relax knowing your Tama can still enjoy a long life.

Can you discipline your Tamagotchi randomly?

If you’re feeling in a sadistic mood, Tamagotchis do allow you to arbitrarily discipline your pet. However, scolding your Tama without good cause will lead to them losing a “Happy” heart (no kidding).

Lose too many hearts, and your Tama will die. So, you can essentially murder your virtual pet if you feel so inclined. But hey, unlike real pets, you can always just hit the reset button.

How do you pause a Tamagotchi at school or work?

Your Tamagotchi won’t be quiet according to your schedule, so unless you mute your Tamagotchi, you’ll hear its call for discipline anytime throughout the day, like when you’re at school or work. You can’t discipline your pet during class or while you’re on the clock, but you don’t want to risk care mistakes or negatively affecting your Tamagotchi’s evolution. Fortunately, there is a way to temporarily pause the toy, even if just for a few minutes, so you can focus on those “important” things like studying or paying the bills.

There’s no way to pause an original Tamagotchi, but there is a clever workaround by adjusting the toy’s internal clock:

1. Access the clock on the toy by pressing the “B” button. 
2. When you see the clock press the “A” and “C” buttons simultaneously until the hour starts blinking. 
3. Instead of adjusting the time, just leave it.

At this stage, the Tamagotchi is technically paused, so keep it on this screen until you hear the recess bell.

Second-generation Tamagotchis give you the option to leave your pet with its parents (about time they showed up!). Just press and hold down the “A” button until a menu opens, then select “Family> Parents> Leave” to leave your virtual pet until 5:00 PM. 

Thankfully, the Tamagotchi Connection actually introduced a dedicated pause function. To activate it, press and hold down the “A” button, then press and hold the “B” button. The screen will read “Pause.” Repeat those same steps to unpause. Easy. 

Spare the rod, spoil the Tama

Tamagotchi is a one-of-a-kind toy that teaches real-life skills in a virtual setting. Teaching its users responsibility, even the harder parts, like disciplining. No matter what you’re doing with your Tamagotchi, you’re sure to have a blast watching it grow (just don’t neglect to wag the finger now and then).

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Lee Davey

Lee is curator of nostalgia and a long-time collector of loveable junk. An 80s baby, 90s kid, he knows he had it good when it came to Saturday morning cartoons. Spends his life trying to recapture the dopamine hit of playing Game Boy for the first time and believes Beanie Babies will make a fortuitous comeback. Obsessed with everything (and anything) retro, he is your trusted guide to a world of 90s toys, games and collectables.

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