GroundControl UwU Virtual Pet Buffer
Image: GroundControl

Earlier this year at the 2024 NAMM Show in California, the guitar pedal manufacturer Ground Control introduced the world to the UwU Virtual Pet Buffer.

This is a new guitar pedal that will not only act as a buffer (boosting your guitar's signal to prevent tone loss across large effects boards) but will also remarkably double as a virtual Tamagotchi-style pet letting you evolve a cat-like creature on its small monochrome OLED screen, simply by plugging in and playing your instrument of choice (thanks Engadget/EmilyHarpist!).

According to the announcement trailer published on YouTube, you will be able to evolve your pet across 30 levels in total (with there being a range of unique animations for your pet to perform). And that's not all it features, as there are also three additional mini-games included on the pedal too, which you can control using the A & B buttons positioned on the top of the device.

These include a Tetris-like falling block-style game named Fishy Blox, a take on the Nokia classic Snake, and another game called Neko Invader.

If you fancy owning one yourself, you can preorder it now directly from Ground Control's website for $139. They are expected to start shipping in March 2024.

[source groundcontrolaudio.com, via engadget.com]