你的“蛙儿子”今天回家了吗？

A user plays Travel Frog on a cellphone on Wednesday. [Photo by CHEN ZEBING/CHINA DAILY]

Travel Frog was the most downloaded free app on the Apple Store on Sunday, while the mobile game has been among the most searched topics on Sina Weibo this week.
周日，“旅行青蛙”这款游戏登顶苹果商店下载次数最多的免费应用排行，同时也成了本周微博上的热搜话题。

The game centers on a frog that goes on trips around Japan and sends back postcards, and sometimes local delicacies. Players are required to do very little: They can grow and collect clover in a virtual courtyard as in-game currency, and help the frog pack for a journey.
游戏中的小青蛙在日本各地旅行，会寄回一些明信片，有时还会带回当地的土特产。玩家们要做的事情很少：他们可以在虚拟的庭院中种植并收集三叶草，作为游戏中的货币使用，并帮助小青蛙收拾旅行的行囊。

Many people have praised the game for its slow pace, saying it taps the trend among younger generations in China to search out "Zenlike" activities.
不少人为这款游戏的慢节奏点赞，称其符合中国年轻一代寻求“禅意”活动的趋势。

"I wish I could be the frog I raised in the game as I would like to be able to go on a trip whenever I want," said Ge Yuan, 30, who works in Shanghai’s Taihe economic zone. "It’s like the life of a monk who lives life following his heart."
“我希望能成为游戏中自己养的那只蛙，可以在任何时候来一场说走就走的旅行，” 30岁的葛元（音译）在上海泰和经济发展区工作，他如此评价这款游戏。“就像一切随心的僧侣一样生活。”

Yuan Linghuan, a postgraduate student at Tongji University in Shanghai, said her friend introduced the game to her three days ago.
上海同济大学研究生袁玲欢（音译）称她的朋友三天前向她推荐了这款游戏。

"Everything is unexpected in life, just like the game. Whenever I launch the game, I don’t know whether the frog is at home, reading, eating or writing letters," the 25-year-old said.
“生活中的一切都不可预料，就像这款游戏一样。我每次打开游戏，都不知道蛙在不在家，是不是在读书、吃饭还是写信，”这名25岁的学生说道。

She said the design of the game is cute, while it requires no skills in fighting, which is good for female players.
她表示，这款游戏的设计很可爱，也不用打打杀杀，很适合女性玩家。

"It’s not a game that you will get obsessed with, as there is no ranking list among players," Yuan added. "All you have to do is to open the app to see if your frog is at home or on its journey, and it’s not necessary to spend a lot of money buying gear to equip the frog for his travels, which differs from other role-playing games."
“玩这款游戏不会上瘾，因为游戏中没有玩家排行榜，”袁玲欢补充道。“你需要做的就是打开游戏，看看蛙是在家还是出门旅游了，也不需要花很多钱买装备让青蛙在旅途中带着，这点和其他角色扮演游戏都不同。”

Like others players, Yuan said she feels like an elderly parent waiting for her children to return home.
袁玲欢和其他玩家一样，觉得自己就像个等孩子回家的“老母亲”。

"I feel like I’m the mother of the frog in the game. It’s really interesting for a single girl like me, and raising the frog is a way of relieving stress," she said.
“我觉得自己就像游戏中小青蛙的妈妈。对于像我这样的单身女孩而言，真的很有意思，而养蛙也是种发泄压力的方式，”她表示。

Many players regard the game as their spiritual sustenance, especially youth living alone, according to Ma Xiquan, a doctor of clinical psychology at Shanghai East Hospital.
上海东方医院临床心理科医生马希权表示，不少玩家将这款游戏视作心灵寄托，尤其是独居的年轻人。

"The frog brings a sense of satisfaction to the players," he said. "The game simulates the relationship of a traditional Chinese or Japanese family. Players can satisfy their emotions through the process of taking care of the frog."
“小青蛙给玩家们带来了一种满足感，”他表示。“游戏模拟了中国或者日本传统的家庭关系。玩家们能够通过照顾青蛙这一过程，满足自身的情感。”

Ma said the game reflects the low social demands of the players, and characteristics of the game that resemble a Buddhist lifestyle tally with the personality of people pursuing an easy life.
马希权称这款游戏反映了玩家们的低社交需求，而游戏的特点与佛系的生活方式类似，符合人们追求简单生活的个性。

Developed by Japanese company Hit-Point, the game was included as a free download in the Apple store on Dec 6 and became an internet hit after being introduced to China in early January.
这款由日本公司Hit-Point开发的游戏于12月6日作为免费应用在苹果商店上架，今年1月初引入国内后成为了网上的一大热门话题。

The game is available for iOS and Android systems, but the Apple store only offers a Japanese version while Android has Chinese and Japanese.
这款游戏在iOS和安卓系统上皆可运行，但苹果商店只提供日文版游戏，而安卓平台则有中文和日文两个版本。