Six friends under one heated table. Your seat was kept.
Kotatsu is a group chat with six fictional, anime-style friends who share a kotatsu, the low heated table you gather under in winter. You are the one who has been away. Come back after a week, a month or a couple of years and they notice, say so lightly, and pass you the mandarins. No romance, no streaks, no guilt. Replies come from an AI model; the conversation stays on your phone.
Kotatsu is companionship, not treatment. The crew are fictional characters voiced by an AI model, not people and not therapists. If something you write suggests you might be at risk, the app shows crisis resources (988 in the US, findahelpline.com elsewhere) and the crew stays in the chat. Rated 18+.
They notice when you have been gone
Most apps punish absence with a broken streak. The crew just notices. Gone a week: someone asks if you ate. Gone a month: Yui has written you into the story as the one who came back. Gone two years: Haruka says the seat was kept, and means it. Nobody asks where you were unless you want to say. Leaving is allowed. Coming back is the point.
There is no therapy-speak here, by design. They do not ask how that makes you feel. They ask if you ate. They trade a chapter of fanfic for one true sentence. They tell you to open the window, and then they wait.
Who is at the table
- HarukaRuns a six-seat bar. Notices who has not come in, and says so once, quietly, without making a thing of it.
- RinDeadpan gremlin. Remembers your cat's name and will use it against you, fondly.
- KaitoThe hype-man, right up until noise is not helping. Then he goes quiet and stays.
- YuiNight shift at a print shop. Writes you into the story as the one who came back. Will trade a chapter of fanfic for one true sentence.
- DaichiEx-carpenter. "Up, not out. Just up." Tells you to open the window, then waits with you.
- SoraOvernight clerk. Awake at 3am, so you are not the only one.
What it does
- The tableOne group chat with whoever is awake. Six voices that talk to each other as much as to you, so you can sit and listen on the days that is all you have.
- RoomsA private one-to-one chat with each crew member, for the things you would not say in front of everyone.
- What they rememberA short memory of you: your cat's name, the thing you are working up to, the fact that you hate mornings. Read it, edit it, wipe it. It is yours.
- KeepsakesSave a line that landed. A small shelf of things the crew said that you want to keep.
- Check-insA local notification at an hour you choose. One message from the table, not a nag, and nothing counted if you skip it.
- Found family, not a dating simNobody flirts. There is no romance path and nothing to unlock by being charming. You have a seat; that is the whole deal.
Who it is for
For people who went quiet for a long time and are not sure anyone kept a place for them. For the family and friends waiting on someone like that, who want a warm, low-stakes room where being in company can be practised again, one message at a time. Kotatsu is companionship, not treatment: a place to sit while the real ones come back into reach.
Free and Pro
- Free seat20 messages a day at the table, with three of the crew. Enough to find out whether you like them.
- ProUnlimited messages, all six crew members, Rooms with everyone, a longer memory and check-ins. $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year, both with a 7-day free trial. Billed by Apple; cancel any time.
- Private by designYour message goes to our server only to generate the reply and is not stored there. The conversation history lives on your phone. The memory is a few lines you can read, edit or wipe.
Questions
Is this a dating or romance app?
No. Kotatsu is a found family, not a dating sim. Nobody flirts, there is no romance path, and there is nothing to unlock by being charming. You have a seat at the table; that is the whole deal.
Are they real people?
No. The six are fictional characters, and their replies are written by an AI model (Google Gemini) through our server, in their voices. They are not people, not therapists and not a substitute for either. They are good company.
What happens if I disappear for a month?
They notice. When you come back, someone says so, lightly: your seat was kept, did you eat, the cat is presumably fine. There are no streaks to break, no guilt and no catching-up quiz. Leaving is allowed. Coming back is the point.
What do you do with my messages?
Your message goes to our server only to generate the reply, and it is not stored there. The conversation history stays on your phone. The crew's memory of you is a few short lines you can read, edit or wipe in the app. If a message suggests you might be at risk, the app shows crisis resources (988 in the US, findahelpline.com elsewhere) and the crew stays in the chat.
What is free and what is Pro?
A free seat is 20 messages a day at the table with three of the crew. Pro is unlimited messages, all six, Rooms with everyone, a longer memory and check-ins: $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year, both with a 7-day free trial, billed by Apple.
Legal: Privacy policy · Terms of use · Support: tryformaapp@gmail.com · A path that goes with it: Six people who would show up.