Training Gear: Digimon Link Pendulum Progress Ver 3

Original Release:
June 22 2026

Type:

Full Game Expansion

Platform:

Digimon-Themed Vital Hero

Summary:

Welcome to the special anniversary release of Training Gear: Digimon Link. This is the definitive edition of Digimon Link, combining all the features of Digital Monster, Digivice, and Real Digital Monster Ver. into one interactive experience.

This release celebrates the one-year anniversary of Training Gear: Digimon Link and represents the closest realization of what I, Comic Munch, imagined the Vital Bracelet would be when I first saw its announcement in 2021: a true combination of traditional care-based V-Pet gameplay and the adventure of pedometer-based Digivices.

This version, Pendulum Progress, expands and evolves all aspects of Training Gear: Digimon Link:

• Evolved Care System: An original, layered reinvention of the classic Hunger and Strength meter systems.
• Evolved Happiness Meter: Your Digimon's happiness is now tied to your Bond, determining many elements of the game.
• Evolved Evolution Mechanics: Evolution is now based on Bond level, returning to the classic care-mistake system and the feel of the anime.
• Evolved Battle Mechanics: Your Digimon's attribute now grants passive HP, DP, or AP as you grow in strength.
• Custom Stat Building: Train your Digimon toward an attack strategy, defense strategy, or a combination of both.
• Evolved Digimon Pendulum: Pendulum Power now scales in strength with your training.
• New Pendulum Power: Enjoy "Team Strike," a Pendulum attack that lets both of your Digimon join the battle at once.
• Evolved Feeding: A wide selection of food, each with unique effects on your Digimon.
• Evolved Survival Simulation: With rationed food, strategically plan when and how to feed your Digimon to keep them from starving.
• Evolved Odyssey: Find food by beating enemies in Odyssey, monitor your Digimon's health, and utilize multiple healing items.
• Evolved Digivice Mode: Meet specific step requirements to unlock "Burst Evolution" and receive a special food item to devolve.
• Evolved Personalities: Digimon are now born with a personality type that persists until death, affecting the raising experience.
• Evolved Jogress Options: Toggle Jogress on or off. You are no longer forced to Jogress with Digimon in storage.
• Evolved Battery Saving: Optionally turn off screen lighting and sound during automatic cycle training.
• Evolved Heart Rate Monitor Nullification: The Heart Rate Sensor no longer affects gameplay or activates during training.
• Evolved Training: Training results are now based 100% on movement; the Heart Rate Sensor no longer influences results.
• Evolved Date Screen: View the month in text format alongside the day.
• Evolved Praise and Scold: Praise and Scold now play a significantly more impactful role.
• Evolved PVP: With custom stat building, passive attribute gains, and Pendulum Powers working in VS DIM battles, you can raise a unique Digimon with your own custom battle strategy.
• Evolved VS DIM: Access the VS DIM function directly from the main menu and input your Pendulum Power before entering battle.
• Evolved QOL: Battles feature reduced wait times, and Pendulum inputs are registered three seconds after you land on them.
• No more Dim Card limit. Now you can use Dim Cards across devices unlimited times.

Warning: The restore file is not universal; each installation generates a unique restore. To ensure you do not firmware-lock your device, do not ever write over the Dims you used to install Digimon Link, Once installed store the DIM with the restore file saftely with your other Dims and again, DO NOT WRITE OVER IT.

Philosophy of Pendulum Progress:

I remember when I received my first Pendulum Progress as an import for Christmas in 2002–2003. Before that, my only V-Pet experience was the original Ver. 1 Digital Monster a friend gave me, and I was genuinely impressed. The Pendulum Progress was a significant evolution: larger sprites, stats that grew with training, evolution routes determined by the time of day, in-game battles, and the Pendulum system for power scaling. That experience defined my expectations for Digimon V-Pets, followed by the Pendulum X—which blew me away with its item system and board-game-style Adventure mode—and finally the Digivice iC.

The Digivice iC (released in 2006) was the last LCD V-Pet toy to give me that "blown away" feeling. While recent additions like the Digimon Ver. 20th and Digimon X are cool, no recent release has matched the "wow" factor of the early 2000s, when the line was regularly evolving and experimenting. Even the Vital Bracelet, while physically interactive and fun, lacked that spark.

On a gameplay level, I found the VB-BE series greatly lacking. It had exercise incentives, but the fun features Bandai built in the early 2000s were gone. The VB felt like an odd middleman between a Digivice and a V-Pet, offering only the bare minimum of both.

This is where Training Gear: Digimon Link—and specifically Pendulum Progress—comes in. Since Ver. 1, I have wanted to bring that early-2000s "wow" factor to the Vital Bracelet by introducing original game loops born from my deep knowledge of the franchise. With an even deeper care system, an overhauled food system, and an expanded Odyssey, this update is truly what the Vital Bracelet could have been had it been developed during Bandai's most innovative era.

Pendulum Progress Development Adventure:

This expansion is the most advanced and complex release Cyanic and I have tackled. As we push further into technical depth, the challenges increase; the fact that this release was delayed is a testament to that complexity. We usually finish a release with around 30 beta builds, but this one reached 70. We have truly pushed the Vital Bracelet systems past the limits of what Bandai originally intended.

Training Gear: Digimon Link Ver. 2: Pendulum was already the most advanced modification for an official Bandai handheld. Pendulum Progress takes that record even further. This is not a simple Quality of Life (QOL) patch; it does not just swap images or add existing functions. Training Gear: Digimon Link creates original systems, graphics, layouts, and game loops by reverse-engineering the firmware to integrate them flawlessly. I architected an experience that builds upon the game's core fun, and Cyanic reverse-engineered my blueprints with such precision that the work looks official. This is the first full game-expansion mod for an official Bandai device, and I am very proud of what Cyanic and I have achieved.

I am also proud of our development process. Cyanic brought his equipment while traveling, and I stayed up all hours of the night to provide notes, directions, layouts, and graphics in a matter of seconds. We both showed an immense level of commitment, resulting in another piece of professional-quality work.

Intellectual Property & Credits:

Comic Munch - Author, Producer, Game Planner, Graphics & Art, Trailers, Manual, Promo Material

Cyanic - Reverse Engineering, Technical Implementation

Project Authorship, Game Loops and Logic, Concept, Design, and Direction © 2026 Comic Munch. All Rights Reserved.

All original game mechanics, logic, UI/UX mockups, manual, text, art and custom visual assets are the
exclusive property of Comic Munch. No part of these systems may be reproduced or
redistributed without express written consent.

Technical Implementation & Code © 2026 Cyanic.

The underlying firmware modifications and technical codebase are the property of Cyanic,
utilized here under commission and
direction for the Training Gear: Digimon Link project.

Third-Party IP Digimon and all related characters and trademarks are the property of Bandai Namco
Entertainment. This is a non-profit fan project created for the community.

Training Gear: Digimon Link Pendulum Ver. 2

#Training Gear: Digimon Link Pendulum Ver. 2

📚 Digimon Link Archive Entry

Documented Work within the Digimon Link system
Each version reflects iterative evolution of mechanics, care systems, and digital life simulation design.

Original release:

August 26th, 2025

Type:

Full Game Expansion & QOL Mod

Platform:

Digimon-themed Vital Hero

Feature List:

Features originally debuted in Pendulum

Battle & Training Systems:
Pendulum Offense / Defensive battle mechanics
Pendulum training system
Choose three training types: Power, Evolution, Vitals
See Digimon's battle Power Trophy stat increase

Progression & Trophies:
Power Trophies now separated from Evolution Trophies
Power Trophy Digimon Rank system
Interactive Step Requirement system

Adventure & Exploration:
Adventure mode: explore your storage Digimon’s map
Feed Meat during Adventure Mode
Call-to-Action special events system
Random Encounters as you navigate to the boss
Lose steps if you lose and advance if you beat a special spawn

Care & Life Systems:
Return of traditional care mechanics (feeding and poop system)
Auto wake and sleep cycle (Real Digital Monster mode)
Revised Heart Heal system

Removal of not worn status, You will no longer lose VP and Mood
The effects of the HRM have been nullified

VBBE Mod Rollup continuous training loop
Selectable Training
Digimon Alarm
Digimon Roulette
Universal UI background for UI readability
Evolution Requirement Library
12 / 24 / No clock toggle

Returning from previous release:

Unlimited daily training
Praise and Scold Mechanic – manipulates mood and VP
10 built-in wallpapers based on File Island
Battle Heart health system
Trophy Power – Digimon grows in stats as you gain evolution trophies
Training enabled for Baby 1 + Baby 2 stages
Date screen where you can see next evolution and your Digimon’s evolution timer
Instant heal function
VBBE Mod Roll Up instant battle

All features have been built to work on top of and in harmony with the stock VH gameplay.

Full Manual included within download package + Extended graphics by Comic Munch for DIM Modding

NFC functions as normal.

Warning: The restore file is not universal. Each installation generates a new restore. To ensure you don't firmware lock your device, do not write over the DIM you installed Digimon Link with and additionally back it up on a computer.

Comic Munch’s Design Philosophy — Ver. 2 Pendulum

Pendulum is, in many ways, close to what I had hoped Bandai might have released as their debut Vital Bracelet in 2021.
I genuinely love the Vital Bracelet series and what it contributed to my health and daily routine. However, there was still a gap I felt had never been filled, a more traditional care loop. Something that brought back feeding, routine, and even the more grounded life mechanics of earlier digital pets.

There was also a second pull: nostalgia.
I longed for the days as a tween, walking with pedometer Digivices, encountering random battles and progressing through imagined digital pixelated journeys step by step.

Digimon Link: Pendulum is built from that intersection.

It is not only an evolution of Ver. 1, but a fusion of two classic experiences:

Traditional virtual pet raising systems
Pedometer-based adventure Digivices
Modern Vital Bracelet-style progression and fitness integration
Together, they form a unified loop: care, movement, and adventure, intertwined.
So with that,

I hope you enjoy Digimon Link: Pendulum — not just as a SHINKA! to Ver. 1, but as a convergence of play styles many of us grew up with.

An Unexpected Journey
It was only one week after releasing Digimon Link Ver. 1. I thought the show was all over, and I was preparing to go full energy into another venture. That was until Dtathemes, who was a bug tester in Ver. 1, contacted me and was like:
“Hey, let’s push this further.”
So, with his financial contribution, we contracted Cyanic to reverse engineer the next phase of Digimon Link.

Trivia:

I named Digimon Link by combining two Easter eggs:
Training Gear is the term Japanese fans use to refer to Digimon VPets
Link is a homage to the Digimon Link System from the D3, and also a homage to Digimon Seekers Digimon Linker

Intellectual Property & Credits:

Comic Munch - Author, Producer, Game Planner, Graphics & Art, Trailers, Manual, Promo Material

Cyanic - Reverse Engineering, Technical Implementation

Project Concept, Design, and Direction © 2026 ComicMunch. All Rights Reserved.

All original game mechanics, logic, UI/UX mockups, manual, text, art and custom visual assets are the
exclusive property of ComicMunch. No part of these systems may be reproduced or
redistributed without express written consent.

Technical Implementation & Code © 2026 Cyanic.

The underlying firmware modifications and technical codebase are the property of Cyanic,
utilized here under commission and
direction for the Training Gear: Digimon Link project.

Third-Party IP Digimon and all related characters and trademarks are the property of Bandai Namco
Entertainment. This is a non-profit fan project created for the community.

Training Gear: Digimon Link Digital Monster Ver 1

Training Gear: Digimon Link Ver. 1 Legacy

📚 Digimon Link Archive Entry

Documented Work within the Digimon Link system
Each version reflects iterative evolution of mechanics, care systems, and digital life simulation design

Original release: May 6th, 2025

Type: Full Game Expansion & QOL Mod

Platform: Digimon-themed Vital Hero

Feature List:

Unlimited daily training
Praise and Scold Mechanic – manipulates mood and VP
10 built-in wallpapers based on File Island
Battle Heart health system
Trophy Power – Digimon grows in stats as you gain evolution trophies
Training enabled for Baby 1 + Baby 2 stages
Date screen where you can see next evolution and your Digimon’s evolution timer
Instant heal function
VBBE Mod Roll Up instant battle

New features ported from Pendulum Ver. 2 via update Fall of 2025

Removal of not worn status, You will no longer lose VP and Mood
The effects of the HRM have been nullified

VBBE Mod Rollup continuous training loop
Selectable Training
Digimon Alarm
Digimon Roulette
Universal UI background for UI readability
Evolution Requirement Library
12 / 24 / No clock toggle

All features have been built to work on top of and in harmony with the stock VH gameplay.

Full Manual included within download package + Extended graphics by Comic Munch for DIM Modding

NFC functions as normal.

Warning: The restore file is not universal. Each installation generates a new restore. To ensure you don't firmware lock your device, do not write over the DIM you installed Digimon Link with and additionally back it up on a computer.

Comic Munch's Digimon Link Design Philosophy:

I’ve always been a traditional Digimon VPet fan. I enjoy the Digivices, but my favorites will always be the raising pets, and it’s the charm I found in them that I wanted to bring back into the VB ecosystem.
To do this, I designed game loops and systems as callbacks to classic VPets and utilized one of the more unnoticed systems in the game: the mood system, giving it a visual indicator that was never present before. I then tied in mechanics based around it, like Praise and Scold.

Training Gear: Digimon Link's Origin:

It was the fall of 2024, and yet another one of my VB buttons broke, this time one of my two BEs. While I was upset at the lack of quality and care put into the hardware, I would have never known that my biggest frustration with the VB would lead me to launching an amazing project.

In February of 2025, after seeing Vital Heroes on discount, I decided that I would never buy a replacement BE again. So I ventured out to study the VB modding process and remembered Veak, Heat, and Cyanic’s Upgrade Memory. I thought:
“If they could mod the original Vital Bracelet, why can’t they mod the VH?”
So I contacted Cyanic as a contractor to mod a VH firmware, and the rest is history.

Trivia:

I named Digimon Link by combining two Easter eggs:
Training Gear is the term Japanese fans use to refer to Digimon VPets
Link is a homage to the Digimon Link System from the D3, and also a homage to Digimon Seekers Digimon Linker

Intellectual Property & Credits:

Comic Munch - Author, Producer, Game Planner, Graphics & Art, Trailers, Manual, Promo Material

Cyanic - Reverse Engineering, Technical Implementation

Project Concept, Design, and Direction © 2026 ComicMunch. All Rights Reserved.

All original game mechanics, logic, UI/UX mockups, manual, text, art and custom visual assets are the
exclusive property of ComicMunch. No part of these systems may be reproduced or
redistributed without express written consent.

Technical Implementation & Code © 2026 Cyanic.

The underlying firmware modifications and technical codebase are the property of Cyanic,
utilized here under commission and
direction for the Training Gear: Digimon Link project.

Third-Party IP Digimon and all related characters and trademarks are the property of Bandai Namco
Entertainment. This is a non-profit fan project created for the community.