No, don’t bother checking the calendar – it’s not April 1st. Starting today Call of Duty: Modern Warfare really is selling “Tomogunchi” virtual pets for your in-game wristwatch. Infinity Ward actually teased they were working on this last summer, but I think most people kind of assumed they were joking.

　　As with classic 90s virtual pets, you’ll have to take care of your Tomogunchi if you want them to grow up strong, but their needs are a little bit different than what you might remember – Tomogunchi eat Kills, Objectives, Killstreaks, and Wins. In other words, don’t worry, you won’t have to constantly be checking on your pet, as you can take of them just by playing well. And if you don’t play well, goodbye Tomogunchi. You can check out a Tomogunchi trailer, below.

　　Here’s everything you need to know about your new virtual pet:

　　Tomogunchi Basic Care: From Egg to Adult

　　Meet Tomogunchi: your new freshly hatched friend who’s the most fun to be with! Strapped to your wrist and craving almost constant attention, your very own Tomogunchi is ready to become your favorite cyber-pet in any combat zone!

　　Purchase the Tomogunchi Bundle then during your loadout selection, go to the Weapons tab, locate the Watch Select menu, and equip your new pal: The only way to feed and evolve your virtual pet is to equip it on your wrist, so put it on before you play! In a moment, once you take to the combat zone, you’ll soon spot your critter struggling to crack open from its initial Egg form.

　　Over time, your egg explodes, and out of it appears the adorable Baby Tomogunchi! Assuming you can keep it alive, the Baby grows into a Child, a Teen, and then into a full Adult. Are there multiple pet forms and options to discover?  We aren’t saying. Which type of pet will YOU get to take care of?

　　Don’t Let Your Pet Get Upset: Monitoring Moods and Evolution

　　Monitoring Your Tomogunchi’s Moods is the key to your new critter being the happiest cyber pet in all of Hackney Yard! But you can’t just ignore your Tomogunchi while capturing a Domination flag or gunning down an enemy Operator. You need to engage with your pet as you play!

　　Look at your watch screen to the right of your Tomogunchi to see four little faces -- these represent your pet’s emotional states: Hungry, Dirty, Unruly, and Sleepy. Feed your new friend into contentment by figuring out which emotional state you need to change. Then head into combat and begin a rampage to feed your Tomogunchi providing sustenance in the form of Kills, Objective Scoring, Killstreaks, and Wins.

　　Oh no! Failure in the most basic of care duties results in your Tomogunchi going from happy to neutral, to sad, and finally… to the grave!

　　Bonus Charge: The Evolution Contribution

　　Look underneath your Tomogunchi to see the “bonus charge” -- the horizontal meter your pet sits on. This represents a bonus method of evolving your pet more quickly than normal. Every pet has a different way to fill the bonus charge meter – it could be Captures, Killstreaks, Plants, or Top Three Wins -- figuring out which one your pet prefers is key to keeping them both satisfied and evolving at an even-more rapid pace!

　　Man, I’m bad enough at Call of Duty multiplayer as is – I feel like I’d completely melt down if I had a tiny critter depending on my success. Meanwhile, the wait for Modern Warfare’s Warzone battle royale mode, which was rumored to come out today, continues.

　　Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is available now on PC, Xbox One, and PS4. What do you think? Will you be getting a Tomogunchi, or do you not need any extra distractions?