Fan:Rookie's Guide to DVPet

DVPet is a Java fan-game application for the PC based on the original Digimon V-Pets and Digimon World games.

Due to the complexity of the game, there are many questions that constantly pop up. If you need further help, you're always welcome in the Discord.

The official gameplay and control guides come with the game.

The following guide might contain spoilers and cheats.

Time
During setup, you are able to choose from one of four speeds. You cannot change this once setup is over. The speeds are, in order, real time, 5x, 10x, and 25x times faster than real time. It's advised that beginner players start with lower speeds.

A quirk of the real time speed setting is that when you close out of the game, time will continue to run. This mimics a real virtual pet. If you can't care for your Digimon throughout the day, you can change this by clicking the clock icon at the start of the game.

Mood, Obedience and Teaching Chances
Digimon act like real pets and as such, you must praise and scold them depending on how they behave. If your Digimon refuses to train or eat, scold them. They won't refuse the next thing you ask them to do, so make sure you praise them. If they win a training game or defeat another Digimon, praise them. If they defeated a Digimon but disobeyed your orders, scold them, then praise them (the exact order doesn't matter). These opportunities are called teaching opportunities and they're represented by the floating lightbulb icon in the first two difficulty settings.

If you're having trouble keeping your Digimon happy, make sure you're not scolding them when they did nothing wrong. Scolding them when you failed the training game or they're out of energy and can't train will reduce their mood a lot. Some Digimon have more negative personalities and don't earn mood as quickly, so it will be harder to keep them happy. Some Digimon get happy easily but are also very disobedient. While it might interfere with your plans if you're going for a specific evolution, it is part of the game.

Quick tips for raising mood: In a pinch, you can praise them repeatedly. This will also lower obedience but it is helpful if your Digimon becomes depressed or you need it for a specific evolution path. Feeding them their favorite foods, keeping the temperature the way they like it, training them at their favorite time and training their favorite attribute will help with keeping a happy Digimon.

Fatigue
If a black drop shows up in the lower right side of the screen, your Digimon has reached exhaustion. This will count as a Care Mistake in the hardest difficulty and lower lifespan in every difficulty setting.

Each stage has a maximum number of training sessions per hour that they can do. Once the Digimon starts to get tired, you'll notice more hurt/tired sprites being displayed and they'll slow down. Stop and let them rest until they seem lively again. If you are having difficulties, the debug menu will tell you exactly how many training sessions the Digimon has done.

Injuries, Sickness, Poop, Sleep
Injuries are represented by a bone icon on the right side of the screen. Injuries can happen at any time, although rates might vary. This is not a care mistake. Apply a bandage, then apply again once it runs out and the injury will get better.

Sickness is represented by a flashing skull on the right side of the screen. Sickness can happen through a variety of ways. This is not a care mistake. Give them some medicine and they will get better soon.

Both injuries and sicknesses will decrease lifespan slightly.

When your pet poops, they will stack up to 6 times. Clean them as soon as possible because the longer poop is left in the cage, the easier it will be for your Digimon to get sick.

When your pet falls asleep, they will call out to you. Turn off the lights so they can have a nice rest. Leaving the lights on too long will count as a care mistake. Turning the lights on while they're asleep is not a care mistake, it is a sleep disturbance and might be necessary for certain evolution paths or training at their favorite time.

Depression
On rare occasions, your Digimon will become depressed, usually because of very low mood. While this is not a care mistake, it is hard to deal with since they will refuse most things. Focus on raising their mood until they recover.

How do I see all stats?
This is considered a cheat as it involves using outside methods to get more information than you should have, but it is a useful tool for beginner players or players who wish for a more relaxed experience. From the start menu, make sure you have the DVPet window in focus and, using your keyboard, press Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A. You can see all stats in real time.

Can I use my keyboard to play?
Yes. X cycles through options, C enters/accepts and V exits/refuses. This is similar to the physical three button virtual pets. C is particularly useful for training as you can mash it for the Vaccine game, and use it to switch between shields in the Data game.

Can I play on my phone?
Officially, no. The current plan is for an Android version to be developed after the game is considered out of beta and "complete". However, there are ways to stream programs and apps on your computer to your phone, for example, Steam Link. Streaming the app can also let you play in different computers without having to transfer save files. This isn't an official way to play, however, so please understand the developer can't help with any problems you may have.

How do I get colored Digimon/different shells/custom BGs/map mods/another opening song
The game is very easy to mod. You can buy different backgrounds in-game with Bits under the Habitats menu, but if you wish to change the default background, the following method also works. The community has already made plenty of mods for the game, but it's easy to make your own as well. Using a program like 7-Zip. you can extract the contents of the DVPet.jar file that holds all the game resources. This will allow you to see where all the resources are located, how they are named, and all the graphics that are used in game. Once you edit your own mod, or download a community mod, you'll have to open (not extract) the DVPet.jar. Most mods simply consist of renaming the file to what you're substituting and dropping it into the folder, but some mods are more complicated so make sure you read the instructions thoroughly. Whenever you make edits to your game, be sure to back up your saves.

As an example, after downloading a custom shell, rename it blueShell.png and copy it into the .jar folder to replace the default blue shell.

Currently, there are no official colored sprites, but members of the community are making efforts in that regard. If you have a problem with a mod you didn't make yourself, please ask the community member who made the mod before asking the developer.

I found a bug
Please report it in the official Discord.

Is this Digimon in the game?
There is no official list of all Digimon as the game is constantly updated with new ones. There are over 800 different Digimon, including every character from versions 1-6 of the original virtual pets and 0-5 of the pendulums. If you want to check, open the evolution tab, hover your cursor over the search bar, and replace the current Digimon name with the name of the Digimon you're looking for. If the Digimon is in the game, it will show up. This is also a good way of seeing what paths lead to your favorite Digimon. This will, of course, not work if you deleted your tree.sav file in order to discover evolutions on your own, but you can always extract a fresh copy of the game in another folder.

Is this feature going to be added in?
The Discord keeps an updated list of every feature that's currently planned to be included. It is also the place to make suggestions. Keep in mind, this is a one person project, and features take time to be added.