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Death is the final stage of a Tamagotchi's life cycle. When the death sequence appears, the Tamagotchi will be lost forever. The user must restart their game afterwards, either by pressing buttons A and C together, or by pressing the Reset button on the back of the device.
Causes
There are several factors that lead to the death of a Tamagotchi:
- Care Mistakes are the most common factor. Allowing too many care mistakes to accumulate would trigger the Tamagotchi's death. The threshold of how many care mistakes are needed has increased with modern releases; for instance, the Chou Jinsei Enjoi Tamagotchi Plus and related releases require only five care mistakes in a single growth stage to invoke death.
- Sickness is another current common factor. Leaving a Tamagotchi ill over an extended period of time will cause the Tamagotchi to pass away.
- Old Age is a factor limited to older releases. In this case, each Tamagotchi character has a specific life span, and how you care for it will determine if it is expanded or shortened. As the life span grows longer, the Tamagotchi will become much more needy for food and attention, until it finally passes away. This factor has been negated on modern releases; Tamagotchi pets will now live for as long as the user cares for it and prevents Care Mistakes. The average Tamagotchi lifespan is around 7-12 days.
- Predators is a factor limited to the Tamagotchi Ocean and Mori de Hakken! Tamagotch. In this case, a Tamagotchi can die from being attacked by another creature. The Tamagotchi Ocean features a polar bear, while the Morino Tamagotch features a human foot or a frog.
- Lack of discipline is a factor limited to the Tamagotchi Ocean. Kuragetchi, Otototchi and Kingyotchi will die shortly before they are due to evolve regardless of what care they were given if their discipline meter is below 5/7.
Overview
Classic Pets (1996 - 1998)
The original pets featured the Tamagotchi to stop moving on-screen, looking upset. The Tamagotchi will start to beep in the pattern of an electrocardiogram (heart rate monitor), slowing down as time passes on. If the Tamagotchi is a healthy adult, it will lay an egg just before the end of the sequence. Afterward, the death screen will appear with the sound of a flatline. On the Ocean, one longer beep plays when the death screen appears followed by another longer one two seconds later, while on the 2017 rereleases of the P1 and P2 the flatline sound will play during the egg-laying part.
On the classic Tamagotchi, Tamagotchi Angel and the Morino, the evolution animation, albeit without any sound, plays just before the death sequence begins. On the Morino, if a predator mortally injures the Tamagotchi, the animation will overlap the last frame of the attack.
There were minor variations of the process itself between releases. The classic Tamagotchi and the Mesutchi and Osutchi both featured the character looking upset with a skull flashing beside them. The second generation Tamagotchi removes the skull on international releases, and shows the character in their bed (if they sleep in one). The Tamagotchi Ocean and Mori de Hakken! Tamagotch showed the same animations, but with no egg-laying and generally taking about half as much time to complete.
Deaths variate between regions in later Tamagotchi virtual pet releases near the end of 1998. The two original Tamagotchi pets, in their original Japanese form, showed Obaketchi next to a headstone with a large cross on top. The first generation English release showed an angel among sparkling stars, while the second generation showed a UFO flying away. The Japanese version of Tamagotchi Ocean showed an underwater headstone with a seaweed-like Obaketchi, while the English edition shows a submarine. The Morino Tamagotchi showed a hedge with a cross (a hedgestone) with a bug-like Obaketchi. Mesutchi and Osutchi both show a small graveyard between 6am and 6pm. Between 6pm and 6am, they show a headstone with Obaketchi (whose appearance is different between the two pets, having pigtails on the Mesutchi).
Tamagotchi Angel
The Tamagotchi Angel features two deaths. If the Angel passes away of old age, it will have a "good end" death, featuring the Angel crying and then pressing the B button shows the sequence of an Angel (represented as a dot) ascending to heaven. A starry sky appears on English versions, while the Japanese has the screen scroll away to the word "Thanks!". Turning out the lights repeatedly when the Angel is awake, or consistant neglect results in a "bad end". The death may be instanenous, or may occur after multiple unsuccessful administrations of medicine if it gets sick first. On English toys, the Angel will flicker back and forth into a black egg while a set of deep, droning beeps play and the words "Bye bye!" appear. On the Japanese edition, the Angel turns into Deviltchi and features the character looking back and forth next to a tiny skull.
Debirutchi no Tamagotchi
The Debirutch no Tamagotch features two possible deaths akin to the Angel, however death through neglect can only be achieved by allowing Devil Power to accumulate. A death caused by having the Tamagotchi's DP remain above 90 for too long shows a screen with an angry bat and the words "Bad End". The Tamagotchi may automatically transition to this screen, or stay in place for a bit waving farewell and waiting for user input to poof into a bat and transition to the bad end screen. If the Tamagotchi departs due to old age, they will begin to cry similar to what occurs on the Tamagotchi Angel. Pressing the B button causes a curtain to descend, and will reveal the message "Good Friend" alongside a bat when it rises again. Clione Deviltchi will occasionally be escorted away by a pair of Chestnut Angels before the Good Friend screen.
Tamagotchi CD-ROM (Japanese)
On the Japanese Tamagotchi CD-ROM, the Tamagotchi stops its current animation and goes back to the central device in the window. A heart monitor starts playing and gradually gets faster until the flatline plays, as the Tamagotchi thrashes about looking sick and an eared-ghost carrying a scythe circles around the device. If the Tamagotchi is going to lay an egg, it will do so before the flatline. Once the flatline occurs, the ghost will vanish, a shutter will come down on the device's screen for several seconds before coming back up to reveal the Tamagotchi's gravestone and ghost, the latter quickly absconding off the window and disappearing.
Vintage releases where the Tamagotchi leaves rather than dying
The Genjintch Tamagotchi, English Tamagotchi CD-ROM and Yasashii Tamagotchi follow similar ending sequences. The Genjintch and Yasashii Tamagotchi are some of the few Japanese releases prior to the iD to not die.
On the Genjintch, the Tamagotchi goes into a rocket that launches into space at the end of its life, leaving only the kanji for "end" (完) on the screen afterwards.
On the Yasashii, the death sequence consists of the Tamagotchi preparing to leave in a UFO. Once it has done so, the screen begins to transition from a shot of the UFO, a final message and some blinking hearts, as the buttons' lights begin to flicker.
On the English CD-ROM, the death sequence is quite short and is over in a matter of seconds; - the UFO from the intro simply descends onto the Tamagotchi to let it in, heads back into the sky and leaves a constellation-like angel figure behind. Despite the appearance of the angel, the Tamagotchi will leave a postcard indicating that it is still alive and has just moved back to its home planet. These postcards contain a number of farewell messages from the Tamagotchi that detail its life living with the player or after leaving Earth, and vary between breeds and the reason for departure. Another death sequence happens when the player sends the Tamagotchi home themself. A purple spaceship descends onto the Tamagotchi to let it in, heads back into the sky and leaves a sadder version of the angel.
Modern Pets (2004 - Present)
Tamagotchi Plus/Connection
With the release of the Tamagotchi Plus, the sequence of death adjusted. The new sequence features the Tamagotchi falling on the floor as a Skull appears beside them. An unusual, haunting beeping sound is heard between six and thirty times before the Tamagotchi begins to float up the screen while a flatline sound is heard. On Japanese versions, the character slowly moves towards the grave until the flashing stops and Obaketchi descends.
Japanese releases (2004-present)
The Japanese editions kept the original death screen from the classic pets by retaining the headstone and Obaketchi floating around. As of the Keitai Kaitsuu Tamagotchi Plus, a spirit known as the Death God appears, replacing the skull. This does not count toward the Tamagotchi Mini, which still shows an Obaketchi and gravestone in the Japanese 2005 and worldwide 2017 releases. The Japanese FamiTama features all of the family dying together, and shows a family grave with Obaketchi present. The Tamagotchi Plus Color shows the interior of the house, with Obaketchi hovering next to a small altar dedicated to the deceased Tamagotchi.
Tamagotchi releases from the Tamagotchi iD to the Tamagotchi P's feature two possible variations of death. From the child to teen stages, if the user severely neglects the Tamagotchi, it will become ill. If the user does not select the "Clover" icon in time, the Tamagotchi will pass away, leaving a shrine and an Obaketchi. At the friend/adult stage, the Tamagotchi will get upset, pack its bags and attempt to run away. If the user doesn't stop the process by pressing the "Clover" icon, the Tamagotchi departs, leaving a screen showing a letter with wings. The iD L shows a helicopter carrying a letter while the P's, 4U and 4U+ also show a letter with wings.
If the special gravestone has been purchased on the Keitai or Akai, or on several of the color releases such as the Tamagotchi m!x, a pair of Chestnut Angels will escort the dying Tamagotchi upwards. A black screen will descend like a curtain on the Keitai/Akai, but no flatline sound will play and it will cut straight to the grave scene as another Chestnut Angel descends, replacing the Obaketchi. On the m!x, the screen will be completely black apart from a pale-colored Obaketchi with a beak. On the Tamagotchi Meets, the death screen features a gravestone in the back yard with a small ghost floating around it. Two ghosts will be present if the deceased generation were twins.
English releases (2004-present)
English releases are often criticized for their heavy alterations to Tamagotchi death. The Tamagotchi Connection Versions 1 to 4.5 have a different death tones that plays rapidly before it plays the flatline sound (which is much shorter starting in Version 4) and a black screen descending like a curtain instead of showing the Tamagotchi character heading towards to the grave while the screen flashing and replaces the headstone and Obaketchi with an image of an egg with wings moving up and down. On Versions 1 to 3, it appears on the bottom of the screen for a few seconds before coming to the center. On Versions 4 and 4.5, the black screen cuts straight away to the egg with wings at the center and it moves faster than in previous versions. The egg appears smaller with an added halo in the European release of the Tamagotchi Connection Version 1. The English 2005 edition of the Tamagotchi Mini shows Tamagotchi Planet rotating on a black background with a couple stars, while its 2017 re-release keeps Obaketchi and the gravestone. The Tamagotchi Connection Version 5 and the Tamagotchi Connection Version 5 Celebrity show the Tamagotchi family getting angry (with anger symbols replacing the Death God) and leaving for Tamagotchi Planet in a UFO. The section where Obaketchi is replaced with stars. The recent English Tamagotchi releases as of the Music Star feature the Tamagotchi getting angry at the owner (with an additional suitcase in later releases) and leaving. An envelope will appear on-screen, moving back and forth, and the words "Bye Bye" and "Push A + C" appear underneath.
Oden-kun Tamagotchi
On the Oden-Kun Tamagotchi, after the death tones stop the screen will switch to a scene of the Oden-kun character God descending from the sky and then going back up with the character in tow, and the flatline sound will begin to play shortly after. The usual flashing screen sequences then play, with the grave replaced by skewered oden and a bowl of oden appearing after Obaketchi descends.
On Video Games
Tamagotchi (GB), Game de Hakken!! Tamagotchi 2, and Game de Hakken!! Tamagotchi Osucchi to Mesucchi
The first two Tamagotchi Game Boy games share a similar death sequence consisting of the Tamagotchi collapsed on the ground dying with a skull flashing next to it while the heart monitor sounds play, gradually getting slower until the flatline sounds, and then, while sad, mournful music plays, a montage of the character in 3 poses is shown before fading away to a screen showing the dead character (next to a gravestone on the Japanese versions), who then, after a few seconds, floats about as ghost on the Japanese versions or an angel in international releases. On the first game, the screen rapidly flashes black during the initial sequence, while on the second game the initial sequence has a foggy border and fades straight away to the character as a ghost in an animated background with falling leaves or floating bubbles after its poses as most adults have different gravestones.
If a Tamagotchi dies from old age, it will be shown peacefully lying on its back as it passes (Kusatchi actually wilts instead and Kaitchi lays almost out of its shell), but with no flashing skull, and the death beeps may briefly stop so that an animation of the Tamagotchi laying an egg can play before the flatline. This egg will immediately be placed in the player's care following the actions taken at the memorial screen with the sad, mournful music, except with different poses from the first. If the Tamagotchi does not lay an egg, that egg will not become available again and subsequently the maximum amount of Tamagotchi a player can raise before needing to restart their save file will be reduced.
A Tamagotchi who has died of old age, won a number of contests and lived a healthy, well-trained life may be admitted into the Hall of Fame. Despite having apparently passed away, an animation plays showing the Tamagotchi happily being taken into a UFO to go back to its home planet with the intro music playing.
In Game de Hakken!! Tamagotchi Osucchi to Mesucchi, the death screen is completely different from the previous two games. Before heading there, the Tamagotchi simply dies in their room and flickers into disappearance. No heart monitor or flatline sounds are heard in this game. Instead of showing a dying character floating as a spirit, the game will take you to a different screen showing a deceased character (about to be buried) next to a headstone with a large cross (similar style as in Morino Tamagotchi but bigger) and the spirit of a character in 4 different poses flashing in the sky in a dark background along with darker, creepier, and still very sad music than the last two games in the background.
The Game Boy trilogy is notorious for how easily a Tamagotchi can be killed. Feeding a Tamagotchi a mere two snacks within several in-game hours will make it sick and feeding it snacks repeatedly will eventually kill it, and even Tamagotchi who have lived a very healthy life may spontaneously die if the normally-hidden stress stat stays at 100 for more than an in-game hour. Deaths apart from starvation or sickness being determined by the stress mechanic, however, does mean that should a Tamagotchi have its stress kept low enough and is kept full and healthy it may live as long as its stress remains below 100.
Gudetama
On the Gudetama, the death process starts with the Tamagotchi doing a dance. Pressing a button will trigger the C-Click Reaction and the Tamagotchi will be taken away by chopsticks, placed in a microwave and cooked into an egg dish. Pressing A and C or the reset button will restart the unit, although no progress will be lost
Preventing Death
If the unit must be left unattended for an extended period of time, it is possible to prevent death by pausing it, which is done either by pressing A and B simultaneously, or leaving it on the clock set screen. A Tamagotchi's growth stops while in pause mode, so it may be preferable to put it to sleep by setting the clock to midnight or a similar time. If a Tamagotchi enters the death sequence it is normally possible to intercept it by pressing the Reset button at the back, and choosing "Download". This method does not work on vintage pets as the "Download" and "Reset" screen is not present and pressing the button resets the unit, or on most modern Japanese releases as the start of the death sequence is an event that saves the device's progress.
If a Tamagotchi has previously died on the Keitai, Akai, Hanerutchi, Entama or Uratama, given that the player has had a member of their new Tamagotchi pay their respects to the deceased one in the memorial section of the notebook icon, they will be able to select the notebook icon to have the Tamagotchi's spirit chase away the Death God during the first part of the death sequence. This will only work once per deceased Tamagotchi.
On the V5 and V5.5, pressing the A button 100 times during the first part of the death sequence will stop the Tamagotchi from dying or running away.
On the color releases, if the player selects the clover icon during this part of the death animation they will be able to summon an ambulance to drive the Tamagotchi to the hospital and save it. This can be done an unlimited amount of times. If the Tamagotchi is an adult and is planning to run away, they will stop packing up and flowers will appear in the back yard. On the Tamagotchi 4U and 4U+, if a Tamagotchi tries to run away, choosing "Scold" will cause it to leave immediately, while choosing "Talk to" three times will prevent it from leaving. If it does leave, the user is given 24 hours to find it. If "No" is chosen, or if 24 hours have elapsed, a letter will appear on screen and the Tamagotchi cannot be brought back. However, if "Yes" is chosen, an animation will play of the neighbourhood being searched before the Tamagotchi is found camping in a tent at the park and returning home.
Trivia
- In Japanese releases, when the Tamagotchi passes the screen is replaced with a ghost beside a tombstone. This was altered for western releases like the international P1 (despite the angel), international P2, and English CD-ROM and as of Version 5 where instead the Tamagotchi returns to Tamagotchi Planet.
- Despite heavy alteration in English-language releases, the programming of death remains the same in all releases.
- Tamagotchis cannot die in My Tamagotchi Forever; instead they graduate and leave home.