The Tamagotchi Osutchi and Mesutchi are the first Tamagotchis that can marry and have babies. The Osutchi raises a boy, the Mesutchi a girl, and connecting the two produces a new generation. This instruction guide in English covers their 10 icons, marriage, the TMP system and generations.
What are the Tamagotchi Osutchi and Mesutchi?
Released in Japan in December 1997, the “OsuMesu” (たまごっち オスっち・メスっち) take their names from the Japanese words osu (male) and mesu (female). They are two separate devices, sold separately, with different characters but identical functions. The idea: raise your Tamagotchi, then find someone who owns the other model and marry them.
They introduced two features that became standard on modern Tamagotchis from the Connection onwards: marriage and the 10-icon layout.
- Size: roughly 5.6 × 4.8 cm, larger than the original Tamagotchi and the same size as the Tamagotchi Connection.
- Connector: a removable cap on top hides two small metal contacts, used to slot the two devices together for marriage.
- Screen: taller but narrower than on the other vintage Tamagotchis.
- Characters: 31 per device, and 49 in total across both versions. That is the largest cast of any vintage Tamagotchi.
- Batteries: two LR44 button cells, like every vintage Tamagotchi.
Care: what differs from the original
Basic care works much like the original Tamagotchi. Here is what changes.
The meter
It shows the same information in a different order: hunger, happiness, discipline, then age and weight.
Food
The foods change with the character’s TMP level. This is purely cosmetic; the effect is the same.
| Group | Meal | Snack |
|---|---|---|
| TMP 1 | Rice | Candy |
| TMP 2 | Canned food | Cupcake |
| TMP 3 | Onigiri | Dango |
| TMP 4 | Bread | Strawberry cake |
| Ojitchi and Otokitchi | Mushroom | Sake |
| Sutebotchi and Tsuketchi | Cupcake | Sake |
The flag mini-game
Your Tamagotchi holds a white flag on its left and a black flag on its right. When it raises one, press the matching button: A for white, B for black. A game runs for 5 rounds and you need at least 3 correct answers to win.
Calls and discipline
When it calls you, your Tamagotchi moves to the middle of the screen and faces you. A sharper, louder beep marks a discipline call. The good news is that the OsuMesu are more forgiving than the other vintage models: they make enough calls per stage for you to fill the discipline bar even if you miss a few.
My Tamagotchi refuses to eat: it is sulking
Miss a hunger, happiness or discipline call and it may start sulking and refuse meals. To settle it down, give it a snack or win a game; happiness itself will not go up.
The two special icons: TMP and Marriage
The TMP icon (Tamagotchi Power)
This is the 8th icon, a smiling face wearing a crown. It shows:
- the character’s TMP rank, from 1 to 4;
- the generation, on a second screen: the counter starts at 1 and goes up each time the parents have children and leave.
Every character belongs to one of four TMP groups. The rules to remember:
- two parents of the same TMP produce babies of the next TMP up;
- two parents of different TMP produce babies at the lower parent’s TMP;
- serious neglect at the child or teen stage can knock the next evolution down a TMP level.
Reaching the TMP 4 characters therefore means marrying Tamagotchis of equal rank, generation after generation.
How do you marry an Osutchi and a Mesutchi?
The Marriage icon (the 9th) only works once your Tamagotchi has been an adult for at least a day. When it is ready, it dances from one side of the screen to the other to music.
- Take the caps off both devices and slot them together from the top.
- Select the Marriage icon and press B on both devices.
- If the connection works, both devices beep and “OK” appears.
- Press B again to start the wedding animation.
- Do not pull the devices apart until the animation ends and the baby appears on both screens.
The two babies born from a marriage are always identical, and which species they are depends on the parents.
After the birth
- The parents stay for at least two full days, then disappear shortly after midnight. That is when the new generation really begins.
- Meals: the parents feed the baby whenever you feed them.
- The rest is on you: cleaning up and treating illness are your job. While the parents are around, the baby falls ill 2 to 3 times a day.
The Osutchi and Mesutchi characters
- Babies and children: the same on both devices.
- Teens, adults and seniors: different between the Osutchi (boys) and the Mesutchi (girls).
- The seniors Ojitchi (grandfather) and Otokitchi (grandmother) cannot marry.
- Sutebotchi and Tsuketchi are the only adults unable to marry.
End of life
Your Tamagotchi dies if it reaches the end of its life without marrying, if it racks up too many care mistakes, or if it is one of the characters that cannot marry and runs out of time. The screen then shows a gravestone, with small graves by day and ghosts at night.
- Press C to see its age and generation at the time of death.
- Press A and C together to bring up a new egg.
Frequently asked questions
Can you play with just one Osutchi or Mesutchi?
Yes, you can raise your Tamagotchi normally. But without the other model to marry it, it will die at the end of its life: running multiple generations needs both an Osutchi and a Mesutchi.
Can an Osutchi marry a Tamagotchi Connection?
No. The OsuMesu connect by physical contact between the two devices, while the Tamagotchi Connection uses infrared. They can only marry each other.
My Tamagotchi is dancing on screen, what does that mean?
That is the signal that it is ready to marry. Connect it to a device of the other model through the Marriage icon.
What is the difference between the Osutchi and the Mesutchi?
The functions are identical. Only the characters change from the teen stage onwards: boys on the Osutchi, girls on the Mesutchi.
Want to start a Tamagotchi family? Browse our vintage Osutchi and Mesutchi units and our Tamagotchi Connection models, their descendants. You can also read all our Tamagotchi guides.