“Dinkle Winkle Jr.” is not something that naturally comes to mind when thinking about what a game would allow you to name your character. With the help of many guidelines and rules, games have been able to monitor and limit certain words/phrases that can be used in a video game. However, this is the complete opposite case with the new release of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream.

Not to be confused with Tomagachi, the old 90’s toy, Tomodachi Life came out on June 6th, 2014, for the 2DS and the 3DS. The game automatically became a hit and grew in popularity due to its unique play style, leading many fans to crave for more content and updates. With the slow passing of time, the game soon died down and was forgotten by most of the public, that was, until the announcement of the demo on March 27, 2025.

With the release of the newest version on April 16, 2026, many fans were able to get their hands on Tomodochi Life: Living the Dream, a social simulation game featuring many different islanders living on your own custom-made island. 

“[I heard about the game because] a lot of my friends play it, and I also saw it on Youtube,” senior Ethan Lee said. “I think it’s interesting on how you can make whatever you want and who you want. I believe there is two different players for the game, some who make their friends in the game and some who just put funny people in it.”

A new feature even allows the player to manually move and create the shape and feel of their island. This also allowed the player to fully customize their islanders’ looks, personalities, names, and even the way they speak. This has led to many players creating famous characters and even celebrities to include on their island, from making Shrek wear a hot pink dress to even having Donald Trump be best friends with Cookie Monster, highlighting the creative levels of so many players. 

“There is one guy [I made] named Skinny, and he is really fat, and then I have this guy who likes ballet who is named Chonky Boy,” senior Charlotte Sweet said. “I have made up a lot of random people for my island that just don’t exist.”

The game also allows the player to shop for clothes, rooms, and even food to give to their islanders, each one having their own opinion on different items. The Palette House, which is one of the newest features added to the game, allows the player to create their own items. From food, clothing, treasures, objects, etc. This opened a whole new section for creativity, from having a chewed piece of gum as a filling dinner option to having a full-on Thanksgiving meal listed as a “light snack.”