Pou

With LDPlayer, you can easily run Android games on your PC. This installer allows you to download the emulator together with Pou, adapting the controls for keyboard and mouse so you can play it on Windows. No special knowledge is needed, since the tool will automatically install everything you need to play.

Take care of your virtual pet

Pou is a very addictive game where your job is to take care of a small brown alien creature called Pou. The game is like a Tamagotchi for Android, but with a layer of customization and mini-games that gives it much more life than simply pressing a button to feed a pixel. Pou will be hungry, get dirty and bored, and will age, so you have to decide how to take care of it and how to help it grow. Every time you open the game, you'll find your Pou in the state you left it in: it might have a low hunger meter, need a bath, or simply want to play for a while. Feeding, cleaning, and keeping it happy will level up your relationship and progressively unlock new content.

Enjoy tons of mini-games

To earn coins and be able to buy upgrades, clothes, or decorations, you'll need to play with your pet. Pou features several mini-games with quite varied mechanics, from puzzles to reflex games, which serve both to entertain you and to accumulate in-game currency. These aren't particularly difficult mini-games, but they serve their purpose, and some are more addictive than expected. Plus, not only will you earn coins to buy food, toys, and new decorations for its house, but you'll also shake Pou from its boredom.

My impressions after trying Pou

Coming back to Pou in this day and age is largely nostalgic, but the game holds up well for what it is. The experience is relaxing, stress-free, and inspires that touch of affection for your pet that makes you remember to open it to see how they are doing. It's not a game that will keep you glued to it for hours on end, but it works perfectly as something to check in on every now and then.

The best and worst of Pou

• What I liked most is its total accessibility and how well-calibrated it is for playing during a moment of downtime.

• What I liked least is that, for current standards, the game can feel a bit simple visually.

Download Pou for free and see if you still have the same nurturing instinct you had the first time a little brown creature looked up at you from the screen with those eyes.