Brick Buddies Pulls Hilarious Prank On Virtual Pet Apps
March 31, 2012
Just in time for April Fools' Day, here's a new app that pokes fun at a specific category of apps in the App Store. The target of this app's ridicule is apparently the freemium virtual pet apps that are all the rage these days. The app is called Brick Buddies and, yes, the app lets you be buddies with a brick.
Brick Buddies is that rarest of apps, because, really, is there any other app in existence that lets you pet a virtual brick through a seemingly effortless 3D brick simulation? The idea of Brick Buddies is for you to establish and maintain a healthy relationship with your brick. This undertaking requires you to constantly pet your brick by rubbing your finger on it. You'll know your brick is happy with your pampering when you see hearts emanating from its, er, brickness. Fill up your heart meter to level up and unlock new brick types at predetermined levels.
Just because your brick is, by definition, inanimate doesn't mean you can't feed or customize it as you would a Hatchi or one of those Tiny Monsters. A few of the edibles you can give to your brick are apples, burgers and sushi, while among the items that you can add to its imaginary wardrobe are a party hat, a construction hat and even a tiara. Go figure.
You can get all the available types of food and headgear from the in-game shop, where the currency in use is counted in pebbles. You can buy pebbles using real money, or you can just earn pebbles just by caring for your brick. In particular, enabling location services for the app and then petting your brick in various places can earn you more pebbles more quickly. Like a real buddy, your brick wants to be with you wherever you go.
So, forget those high-maintenance virtual pets patterned after real animals. Brick Buddies promises virtual friendship that is, for the most part, hassle-free. Like the apps that it parodies, Brick Buddies is available in the App Store for free and is laden with options for in-app purchases that may or may not be as heavy as a ton of bricks.