For a few heady months in 2016, “Pokémon Go” transformed the morning commute for millions of people into a critter-hunting safari, populating the ordinary world with a reality-augmented menagerie of Pikachus, Charmanders and Eevies.
Now its creators hope to do the same to the nightly snooze.
Pokémon CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara said Wednesday that the Japanese franchise plans to release a game called “Pokémon Sleep” in 2020 aimed at nothing less than taking the world of video games into dreamland.
“The concept of this game is for players to look forward to waking up every morning,” Ishihara announced at a news conference in Tokyo.
Or as another game executive said, “Pokémon Sleep” would find ways to “reward good sleep habits.”
“Pokémon Go” was one of the first games to use augmented-reality technology when it was introduced in July 2016. Before long, 28.5 million users were roaming the streets at odd hours, eyes glued to their smartphones, even stumbling into unexpected places.
“Pokémon Sleep” by contrast, will track sleep patterns and change the game based on how long the user sleeps, and what time he or she wakes up. The game will be developed with San Francisco’s Niantic, the maker of “Pokémon Go,” and game design firm Select Button.
Part of the motivation behind the new game is the need for a good night’s sleep, said John Hanke, CEO of Niantic.
“We love exploring the world on foot, and that can’t happen unless we have the energy to embark on these adventures,” he said.
The companies involved in making the game released few details of how exactly sleep would be rewarded. Nintendo America, which owns part of the Pokémon franchise, will produce a separate sleep-tracking device called the Pokémon Go Plus. When tucked...
