---
title: "New Nintendo Game Lets You Catch Pokémon by Sleeping"
description: "The Nintendo-owned Pokémon Company announced a game called \"Pokémon Sleep,\" a somnambulistic followup to its massive smartphone hit."
date: "2019-05-29"
modified: "2019-05-29"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/pokemon-sleep-nintendo"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
  - "Health & Medicine"
  - "Sleep"
tags:
  - "pokemon"
  - "smartphone"
  - "the digest"
  - "video game"
---

# New Nintendo Game Lets You Catch Pokémon by Sleeping

![The Japanese video game company announced "Pokémon Sleep" today, the natural conclusion to its massive smartphone hit.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/pokemon-sleep-announcement.png>)
*\<em\>Image: The Pokémon Company\</em\>*

## Gotta Catch All 'Em Z's

In 2016, you couldn't visit your local park or even cemetery without running across a group of Pokémon Go zombies slouched over their smartphones, trying to catch obscure virtual monsters. And now, the Pokémon Company is officially bringing the experience to your sleeping hours as well.

Yes, the Nintendo-owned Japanese company [announced "Pokémon Sleep" today](<https://twitter.com/Pokemon/status/1133542985855930368>). Details are still sparse, but we do know that the new app will track the amount of time players spend sleeping using a new device called a Pokémon Go Plus Plus.

## Sleeper Hit

The Pokémon Go Plus Plus has a built in accelerometer which detects when you're sleeping, and can share that info with your phone via Bluetooth.

"Several Snorlax were consulted on this, in case you were wondering," the company wrote in an [announcement tweet](<https://twitter.com/pokemon/status/1133542985855930368>).

The Pokémon Company also announced Pokémon Masters, a separate standalone smartphone game for iOS and Android that focuses on three-versus-three Pokémon battles.

Pokemon Sleep will be released in 2020.

**READ MORE:** [Pokemon Sleep Is A New App That Helps You Sleep Better](<https://www.gamespot.com/articles/pokemon-sleep-is-a-new-app-that-helps-you-sleep-be/1100-6467211/>) \[*GameSpot*\]

**More on Pokémon:** *[This AI Draws Horrifying New Pokémon](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/neural-network-pokemon>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)