Tamagotcha

Singapore has seen a rapid rise in the number of pet owners in recent years, driven by rising affluence and changing regulations (such as the HDB cat licensing framework). According to a 2025 report in The Straits Times, dog ownership increased by 30% since 2019 and cat ownership by 10% in the same period. A 2023 CNA report estimated around 10,000 new owners annually between 2019 - 2022.

However, pet owners may be unprepared for the long-term commitment, leading to cases of buyer’s remorse. This gap in understanding results in higher return rates and abandonment, with the SPCA alone taking in up to 3,500 abandoned pets each year. According to SPCA’s Animal Welfare and Cruelty Report 2024 animal welfare and cruelty cases in Singapore have reached a 12-year high. There were 283 cases of cruelty involving 453 animals in 2024, where abandonment was the most common form of cruelty with 120 instances involving 257 animals.

As pet ownership continues to grow, the risk of more pets being neglected or surrendered escalates, highlighting the urgent need for better education and support for new pet owners.

The What

• Our goal is to better prepare prospective pet owners for the realities of pet ownership, helping them make informed decisions and reducing cases of cruelty and abandonment.

• While mandatory e-learning for pet licensing is beneficial, we believe its content delivery and curation could be further optimised to enhance both animal welfare and knowledge retention.

• We believe this problem is worth solving because improving animal welfare is an important component in making Singapore a more caring and inclusive society.

The Why

• Our team chose to make education around pet welfare and caregiving more effective and enjoyable, through gamification.

• Our game addresses simulates real-life pet care scenarios, making trade-offs clear ( e.g. emotional, financial etc.) and helping players understand the responsibilities before they adopt or purchase a pet.

To validate the problem and our assumptions, we surveyed 116 individuals, including pet owners, vets, and shelter operators. A key insight emerged: many pet owners lacked clear, accessible guidance on handling emergencies. Some struggled to sift through scattered information sources, while others wished they had known crucial details before facing hefty bills or lost pets. Recognising the need for early intervention, we focused on equipping new pet owners with essential knowledge at the most receptive moment—when they first get their pets.

To define our approach, our team of five pet owners brainstormed what we wished we had known and how best to make that information stick. We cycled through 15 ideas, testing lo-fi mockups to validate our hypotheses. Initially, we considered an informational site but quickly realised the challenge of attracting attention amidst an overload of existing content. Our breakthrough came when one teammate recalled the Tamagotchi—a nostalgic yet effective way many first learned about pet care. Inspired by its interactive nature, we refined our concept into a game that subtly instills responsible pet ownership habits.

During testing, a shelter reinforced our findings, noting that prospective adopters often make a "paper commitment" without fully grasping the responsibilities involved. More critically, there is no way to track whether they follow through. Our solution addresses this gap by embedding essential pet care lessons into an engaging and educational experience.

How testing really moved the needle was in how the feedback forced us to think much more deeply about the way we communicated the content, designed trade-offs the user had to make as well as emphasising the consequences of decision-making.

The final product, Tamagotcha, is an interactive mobile game designed to educate new pet owners through real-life decision-making scenarios. The game blends entertainment with practical learning, helping players navigate common challenges in pet ownership while making crucial trade-offs between financial constraints and their pet’s well-being.

Key Features:

• Guided Pet Ownership Journey: Players begin by selecting a pet companion, such as Snowy (a cuddly, affectionate dog) or Nala (a feisty, fearless cat), setting the stage for their responsibilities.

• Life & Money Mechanics: The game introduces a limited number of "lives" to simulate the risks of poor decision-making and a coin-based economy to emphasize financial trade-offs in pet care.

• Scenario-Based Learning: Players face realistic dilemmas, such as whether to install safety mesh on a second-floor apartment to protect their cat from falling. Choices impact both the pet’s safety and the player’s remaining resources.

• Decision Consequences: Every choice affects the pet’s well-being, reinforcing responsible ownership. Players must strategize how to allocate resources wisely to keep their pet healthy and happy.

By immersing users in engaging, consequence-driven gameplay, Tamagotcha equips pet owners with the knowledge and preparedness needed to make informed decisions—before they face these challenges in real life.

In the immediate future, we plan to collaborate with at least two animal shelters to pilot this game as a screening tool for potential adopters, with the goal of reaching at least 200 prospective pet owners within the next three months. Success will be assessed based on shelter feedback and engagement metrics, ensuring the tool is both effective and user-friendly.

Beyond this initial phase, we envision expanding the game’s role as a public education tool. By partnering with agencies and advocacy groups, we aim to integrate it into adoption processes, licensing requirements, or broader public awareness initiatives. Ultimately, we hope this tool fosters a more informed pet owner community and contributes to reducing pet abandonment rates in Singapore.

Looking further ahead, we see potential in exploring how other mandated courses could be enhanced through gamification.

• Kyi Yeung Goh

• Nitya Menon

• Ruchel Phua

• Samuel Loh

• Valerie Yap