# Pocket Frens: Self Care Dog — user reviews > 87 indexed App Store user reviews of Pocket Frens by Future Nostalgia Studios, Inc, rated 4.80/5 from 318 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-frens-self-care-dog/id6740995233/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-frens-self-care-dog/id6740995233.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 285 · 4★ 23 · 3★ 5 · 2★ 2 · 1★ 3 ## What do users think of Pocket Frens? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 👍 Comforting and cozy game - 🐕 Cute and fun dog companion - 🎨 Beautiful pixel art graphics - 🤗 Helps with self-care and consistency - 🌱 Relaxing and calming experience **Cons** - 🐛 Game reset issue causing data loss - 🔇 Howling sound feature disliked by some users **Commonly reported bugs** - Game reset issue causing data loss **Most requested features** - Add a cat version of the game - Implement more customization options for the dog ## Newest reviews (15 of 87) ### 4/5 — Love this game but… *2026-08-21, version 1.0.45* I really love playing Pocket Frens, but I wish there was an option to choose my character's pronouns. Right now, I'm only referred to as he/him or they/them, and I would love to be able to use she/her. Please consider adding this in a future update! ### 4/5 — Pretty good *2026-05-06, version 1.0.45* They need to update the environment though, manly the garden for me its still snowing when its spring rn (+ the window) 😭 while the rest of the areas like the park etc aren't snowing.. Also just an Idea but I think it'd be more fun if the items u receive from lvling up or wtv u could actually have right away instead of just being added to the shop to buy? Idk that's just my opinion, other than that like I said its a pretty good game & I definitely recommend checking it out. <3 & another idea is adding more toys for the dog to play w/ not just the tennis ball I honestly find the tennis ball kinda boring ### 4/5 — Quite nice *2026-02-19, version 1.0.45* I decided to try the monthly subscription to see how it is, and at least offer some support, even if maybe temporarily. A few points: 1> Not entirely sure/unclear about the benefits that come with subscription other than build 2> build selection quite limited 3> cost for monthly subscription is sort of high in relation, you might do better by lowering and having more people subscribe out of support, since the app is overall quite nice! 4> Struggling accessing hamburger menu (location could be better?) and it could be cool if the hamburger menu was accessible on more than one screen 5> I am concerned that the building song is familiar? I am under the impression it sounds like the a song from the game The Sims. Be careful about that! I do think overall this is a nice app. Good job! Do consider checking how Finch runs it’s basics vs perks for subscription for inspiration. ### 4/5 — Pretty good *2026-02-04, version 1.0.44* It is very fun and there’s more to do than just your own set tasks. The only thing I don’t see any use for is the dog park. I am very confused by it because every time I go it is empty and I’m not sure the point of it. Other than that it’s quite entertaining in short increments throughout the day. ### 4/5 — i love it *2026-01-22, version 1.0.44* i love this game and the graphics are sooo cute but i wish there was more to do. it’s hard to build up the bonding time bc they rarely ask questions and there’s not many activities. i wish there was more to do ### 5/5 — Love it *2026-01-18, version 1.0.44* Great fun little app where you care for yourself at the same time as caring for your dog. Highly recommend ### 5/5 — Adorable! *2026-01-17, version 1.0.44* I love this app and it’s so adorable! My only problem with is the tennis ball meter is always low and I don’t know what to do to fix it, I take my dog to the dog park and the dog is always playing with them, but the meter never goes up. What do I do to fix this, am I doing something wrong? ### 5/5 — Pet Companion That Encourages Selfcare *2026-01-14, version 1.0.43* I’ve only been using Pocket Frens for a couple days now, but it feels slightly nostalgic and is really scratching an itch I didn’t know I had. It has a bit of a Tamagotchi vibe with you taking care of your dog, but also offers a way to encourage you to stick to your goals and create healthy habits. Other features are: a mini journal, breathing exercises, a focus timer, and a few other helpful ways to boost your self care, even if only a little. I really don’t have any complaints so far, but would love to see more clothing and toy options you can buy for your pet, the option to have different types of pets (think cats, parrots, hamsters, or even fantasy creatures like unicorns or dragons), and the option to pick your home at the start from maybe three options (I do understand you can purchase premium upgrades, and am fine with this, but I believe that two or three “plain” homes with different colours and furniture in different spots would be nice to choose from at the beginning, leaving themed or specific items for the shop). I also appreciate the Daycare option in the app, as many of us have had our Tamagachi perish while at school or work, and being able to have our pet cared for while we’re otherwise occupied is quite relieving. A good app all in all, and I do hope my ADHD butt is able to stick with it for longer than a few weeks! ### 5/5 — 10/10 *2026-01-14, version 1.0.43* As someone who struggles with mental health, it has been extremely hard for me to find an app that I am able to click with and stick with. I have tried numerous apps over the years, and I can say that this one is the only one I have found so far that engages my brain in a way that helps me feel better. I love the way this app plays. The features are really nice, and easy to understand. ### 5/5 — heavy missed nintendogs *2026-01-13, version 1.0.43* this app is really really cute. i have finch but pocketfrens feels warmer(?) it's more interactive. i love the set up for focus mode (the rainy window🖤) and the walks are like nintendogs if yk it. u can play fetch and write mood updates and diary entrees and chat up ur pup too. i think it's ai but its cute, and they get personality traits based on how u interact w them. so its a like realistic nature vs nurture kind of vibe. premium is just to change a couple items in ur crib so u got most features in the app w/o it which is cool. also u can retake the quiz in the beginning over an over by exiting the app and it'll refresh the adoption pup options૮ ・ﻌ・ა🌟 u can rename them but the age type and traits in the beginning stickwu🎶 @creator ty for making this app🖤 ### 4/5 — Cute !!! *2026-01-12, version 1.0.43* Beautiful game Feel like there’s so much potential to Maybe add playing with your pups more, training in commands like sit More items to buy and customise gameplay Meeting other players at the dog park ### 5/5 — The Sweetest Friend *2026-01-11, version 1.0.42* This app has been a great way to track my emotions and feeling. It would be helpful if you need to remember things that have happened to you to tell a therapist. You can also talk to the dog itself and it will respond in kind ways. It is very good when you need to vent and not feel like you’re speaking into a void. ### 4/5 — my opinion : day 3 of downloading *2026-01-10, version 1.0.42* I downloaded this game after seeing a TikTok ad, and I don’t regret it. I can see why it’s super fun : with the virtual diary / mood board, feeding, bathing, walking your pet, adding friends etc. But I do wish there were more pet options ( from what I gather rn there’s three - the galgo, Labrador, and shiba ) which is understandable stable for a small team but it would be great to see more options in the future Aside from that, I do wish you could train your fren more : with animations from that ( eg saying sit in the chat box = pet sits ), or that there was more clarification surrounding how to help your pet : my lil guy got even more shy on day 2 and I’m keeping all of his bars full so I’m unsure why this happened. Just a lil more clarification could be good surrounding that! Overall, great idea, very well executed in graphics terms and layout for a game with updates to come, I highly recommend it. :) ### 5/5 — Fun app *2026-01-02, version 1.0.39* Great app helps me make sure I’m getting all my habit’s together ### 4/5 — cuteee *2025-12-17, version 1.0.38* it’s really fun and cute but your kinda just thrown in there like it doesn’t tell you what it means when your dog says certain symbols and you kinda have to figure things out ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Ai usage *2025-10-07, version 1.0.37* I was honestly so excited when I saw this on instagram as an ad! I thought it was super cute, and I was so excited to use it, and I downloaded. I didn’t realize until reading through the game description that it uses AI. Why? What’s the reason? We don’t need AI and everything, let alone a self care app. I’m honestly super disappointed, and I’m not the only one as I saw another review also asking to use less ai. If you’re unaware or uneducated on what AI is doing to our planet, our water, and the people living near the ai data centers, then you need to do some more research. Ignoring all politics it’s a fact that AI is harmful, and yet people are using it for self care apps? Be so for real. ### 1/5 — disappointed *2025-07-27, version 1.0.29* this game is honestly super boring after the first 20 minutes, nothing to do other than wait for my dog to sleep. plus when i tried to contact the developer with an issue i was disrespected and treated terribly, i really hoped it could be professional but ig not ### 2/5 — Disappointed. *2026-05-07, version 1.0.45* Rated at least 2 stars because of the positive impact this app had on me, left out the rest of the stars because this app has sadly been semi-abandoned by the team in favor for an AI-based fanfiction chatbot app they’re working on and update constantly. The Discord server for this game is very dead and neglected. I am very disappointed that the creators of a mental health app/game would instead focus their attention on an AI chatbot app, AKA something that takes advantage of mental health and can lead to addiction/psychosis. ### 2/5 — scammed *2026-01-12, version 1.0.43* I was having fun with the app! It’s cute, so I wanted to start my free trial. I go through with it then I realize that it already took my money! It didn’t actually give me a free trial. ### 3/5 — Great Idea but needs work *2026-02-24, version 1.0.45* This is a very smart way for helping people build habits. However I do think the build feature needs to be expanded more as it doesn’t really feel like you have control of your space, more dog breeds should be included as well. There should be NPC dogs as well at the dog park when no other active users are. More food and play options should be added, you want someone to feel motivated to complete their tasks with rewards and while this is a great start it needs more work. ### 3/5 — Constant Kicking *2026-02-02, version 1.0.44* This app is amazing with mental health but one things that keeps happening is I keep getting kicked out of my account, now I've forgotten my password and when I try to press forgot password, it brings me to the dog sitting site with no forgotten password option. It's been months now and it still hasn't fixed. I've gotten in contact with the developer but I haven't gotten any updates for about a few weeks. I really do miss my pup and I wish this will be fixed for any future people who join this. ### 3/5 — Question *2026-01-13, version 1.0.43* Is ai used in this game? ### 3/5 — ai use *2025-10-30, version 1.0.37* i dont like that this app uses ai for the chats. id much rather have a set amount of things i can tell my dog than talk to an ai. it really ruins the experience of using this app for me. i do like the pixel style though, and i really hope its not ai. ### 3/5 — Bad login system *2025-09-22, version 1.0.37* The app was great when I first downloaded it and was able to choose my dog and get some goals complete. However one day I had accidentally opened it with data and when I got back to a place which had wifi app refused to open. Then after deleting and redownloading to reset, tried to log in and just wouldn't let me. Miss my dog! Hopefully they could fix this issue and use less Ai 👍🏾 ### 3/5 — It was great… till I lost all my progress. *2025-09-15, version 1.0.37* I signed in everyday and did all my tasks, but I lost all my progress. So that’s cool… ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — THE BEST THERAPY GAME EVER!!! *2026-07-18, version 1.0.45* I love this game. When you chat with your fren, they make you feel seen and heard. No ads or anything bad so parent’s, this is the best game your child could ever have!!! ### 5/5 — Daycare *2026-05-07, version 1.0.45* I love this app but haven’t been able to send my dog to daycare for over a week. Will this be fixed. My app is up to date ### 5/5 — I actually love my little dog *2026-05-04, version 1.0.45* My dogs adorable and the game is perfect ### 5/5 — The best app ever *2026-04-20, version 1.0.45* It helped me be on task kinda stay a away from my phone but I connected with my frens ### 5/5 — I love it!! *2026-04-10, version 1.0.45* I absolutely love this…I don’t know if I can call it a game, it kinda is, but I’ll say app. I have a yellow galgo named Daffodil, and I love him. Some things that I’d love to be included would be able to have more than one pet (maybe even other animals for pets) more breed and fur color options, more of a way to make sure goals actually get done, and maybe more goals too. I absolutely love the app, I want to make sure I’m not just listing things I want or criticizing, complete props to the creators!! For a team of 2, this is absolutely amazing!! I wish you guys the best, and hope you make more games/apps like this, or add onto this. Thank you so much for helping with my mental health in the form of a digital dog (lol) ### 5/5 — I love this app! *2026-03-21, version 1.0.45* I have ADHD and autism, and forget to use planning apps most of the time. This app has really good notifications that catch my attention and the cute dog encourages me to open it to play with her! I used to use and love Routines but since they took it off the App Store this is my new favorite planning app. ### 5/5 — nice *2026-02-22, version 1.0.45* very cute dog!!!! ### 5/5 — i love himmm *2026-02-21, version 1.0.45* he ### 5/5 — Fun *2026-02-16, version 1.0.45* I love the interaction and getting things done ### 5/5 — This app is so helpful *2026-02-04, version 1.0.44* I struggle with keeping a good routine. Most of the times that I try to, I feel pressured or get lazy and give up. With this app, however, I feel that I don’t need to try in order to do what I need to. The mood tracker feature is also helpful to remind me to sit with my feelings. I have trouble letting myself feel my emotions, but logging them in this app never makes me feel embarrassed the way other apps might. My little “fren” never judges me in any way, and it’s fun to feel like you’re helping a dog come out of their shell. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-23.*