Pokémon Go
Niantic and The Pokémon Company
Are you sick of Pokémon Go coverage yet? It’s totally cool if you are, but I just want to say that this game is pretty much changing my life.
For those of you who didn’t grow up with the games, the cards, or even the TV show, the general idea is you capture these creatures called Pokémon, and you battle them against each other, make them stronger, etc. Pokémon Go is an app that allows you to capture Pokémon out in the world (hence the Go in the title). Places of interest are known as Pokestops, where you can collect items. Gyms serve as ways for teams (red – Valor, blue – Mystic, and yellow – Instinct) can vie for territory. And eggs can be hatched by walking distances (2km, 5km, and 10km).
Admittedly, the game has gotten off to a rocky start. There really is no tutorial on how to play. There have been numerous server and connections issues that can make gameplay frustrating. You’ll lose items that you’re about to collect or fail to catch a Pokémon when the game freezes up. There are people taking advantage of people out wandering to find Pokémon one night. Most recently, a man was in an accident while playing the game while driving.
However, despite both player and technical downfalls, the pros outweigh the cons for me.
I wouldn’t describe myself as an active person. I hate exercise, to be honest. Summer is also my least favorite season. I hate being hot and sweaty; it turns me into a lethargic, slug person. Unfortunately, I’m currently dating a person who is the exact opposite. The Cute Boy™ loves summer. He runs or bikes several miles every day, and for him, the hotter the temperature, the better. But I’ve walked around nearly every day since the game came out. I’ve agreed to play tennis (something I have never done in my entire life) for the sheer ability to find more Pokémon on our way to the tennis courts. My legs have been in a constant state of soreness for the past week and it actually makes me feel sort of…good. While my brother was visiting, I actually suggested we go on a 30-minute walk to the nearest subway stop rather than wait for the bus. Me. Those words came out of my mouth.
It’s a strange feeling.
The community is also pretty amazing. It’s not terribly hard to spot someone playing. Typically, any person with there phone out while they’re walking has the app open. I’ve been stopped on the street by someone letting me know, “Hey, there’s a Machoke up there across the street.” Or someone asking, “Is there a Kingler that way? I can’t seem track it.”
Businesses are even getting in on the action. Areas of interest that have Pokestops can have a “lure” placed on them. These lures last for a limited time, but increase the chances of finding Pokémon. I’ve seen restaurants offering 10% off for anyone who places a lure nearby that patrons can access and I just came across this description for a roller derby event being promoted on Facebook:
If you’re looking for somewhere to play this Saturday afternoon and evening, Boston Roller Derby is hosting a double header at Simoni Rink right on the Somerville/Cambridge line! The rink is a Pokestop and there are three in the immediate area, and we’ll be dropping lures for the fans and are trying to set up a charging station, as well. Come pick up some Pokemon, get some good food from the food trucks, and watch some badass roller derby! (I’ll be in the middle, wearing pink as a Non-Skating Official).
People have no qualms at all talking to other players and it’s great. A few nights ago, I hit up a local park after dinner. It was probably 10pm and the park was filled with 50+ people, just hanging around and playing Pokémon Go. Some people grouped up with portable chargers and I overheard another group making plans to order a pizza. A few minutes later, a car drove by, blasting the Pokémon theme song and honestly, hearing 50 people start laughing made me feel all warm and fuzzy.
I’ve seen hot dads with their kids, tracking Pokémon around playgrounds and baseball diamonds. I’ve witnessed college-aged groups of people crowded on street corners to catch a high level Pokémon. I’ve seen couples, hand-in-hand, cheering as they successfully take over a gym.
Honestly, it’s hard to find a comparable phenomenon. I can’t remember the last time something like this has captured such attention from such a varied range of ages. The Pokémon franchise began in 1995, with the original Gameboy games being released in 1996. That’s two decades of creating games and merchandise and TV programs. That’s twenty years of creating lifelong fans. Hell, my brother is twenty-two, which means that Pokémon has existed for practically his entire life.
Despite the string of curses I often let out when I lose my chance at catching a new Pokémon because the game freezes, or the irritation of being unable to log into the game while I’m out because of overloaded servers, actually playing the game trumps those negative aspects. And I’m hopeful that in time, things will smooth out as Niantic (the company behind the game) makes changes to deal with the high volume of players or as the number of users tapers off after the initial viral sensation dies down.
Unfortunately, the Cute Boy™ is slightly ahead of me in experience right now and I can’t have that, which means I have to lace up my sneakers and do a circuit or two around the nearby university campus.
Pokémon Go is available on iOS and Android.
I’m really happy with all the buzz. I mean, Pokemon was a huge part of my late childhood / early teens. As a shy and awkward girl who had trouble making friends I managed to interact with my classmates through the Pokemon games.
I think Pokemon Go can help people with depression. Some days it’s hard to find a reason to go out or anything to feel excited about. The game is providing them that something.
While I’m not playing (my phone isn’t compatible) I do feel happy to see people playing it.
All I know is that my husband has never so much as touched a Pokemon game, and he’s really enjoying this. We go all over town exploring together, while he tracks down “the rat thing” and “the stupid bat” and obsesses about hatching his eggs. Our Uber driver yesterday was an elderly British gentleman who cheerfully told us he had installed it yesterday and caught two.
As for me, having grown up with Pokemon, Pokemon GO is simplistic, but still novel and entertaining, and for the way it’s making so many people get out and interact, I think it’s great.
‘hot dads with their kids’ << Okay, but are they hot only because they play Pokemon Go with their children?
But yeah, I'm addicted, too. I live on top of a Pokestop, and I can catch at least 30 a day without getting off the couch. I've heard of libraries and bookshops buying and dropping lures for their patrons to enjoy.
And now we need someone to write a Battle Gym meet-cute…
My family is having a blast with it. None of us had ever played, my husband started it first (and introduced the kids, ages 3 and 5), and now we’re all hooked. My husband and I had some free time last Friday after an appointment and we totally had a “Poke- date” in the afternoon where we explored a new part of our city, catching Pokemons and grabbing fun snacks and drinks along the way (we totally ran into so many other- super friendly- folks doing the same thing), and while my kids were already pretty happy to go on a walk, now they’ll even forego precious TV time in order to run around our neighborhood hitting Pokestops (and hanging out at playgrounds along the way). The camaraderie is also delightful- my 5 year old starts conversations with everyone he thinks might be playing, and we’ve met lots of our new neighbors that way!
It’s also been way more motivating than my Fitbit ever was. Need an extra 1/4 km to hatch that Poke-egg? Sure, happy to take an extra spin around the block. I could park close, but if I park at the back of the lot, I can reach the Pokestop! I’ve had to get online and work a lot the past week, and so my husband will go out for these hour-long walk/runs to catch Pokemon while I do that instead of watching TV together. My poor dog is exhausted- he’s never had this much exercise in his life!
As much as I need the exercise, I loathe the summer heat and its attendant sunburns. Consequently, I spend most of my summers indoors. I’m old enough that when Pokeman was released it didn’t interest me at all. This, on the other hand, intrigues me a great deal. Unfortunately, I’m recovering from surgery and am still weeks away from being sufficiently active to participate. Hopefully, the hiccups will be remedied by the time I’m able to play.
I’m playing with my kids at the moment (both of whom have autism, and I mostly introduced them to it because, hello, social communication and interaction inroad). My son is a little bit more resistant, but he tends to be the tougher nut to crack. My daughter, however, is a total convert. Every time we get in the car, she asks for my phone, because we’re going hunting. We spent an hour the other night with me basically being her Pokechauffeur as she went on a mission to find out where all of the Pokestops in a 10 mile radius were (we found several). I played with it a little at the beginning to get her started and she has already far surpassed what I could figure out. I caught her maniacally pacing the other day because that damn egg was going to hatch dammit. She’s having fun, and I support fun. Also, she caught a Pikachu yesterday. She now feels like the queen of all the things.
I wasn’t going to play. Nope, not me. When the show first came out I was already out of university. Then the DH got the game and was already on level 2 by the time I got home from work. >:(
Given the number of kids playing, I had to come up with a way to express my frustration when catching pokemon and the game freezing but keep it rated G (ish). I am happy to say I have explained to several kids why Schrödinger’s Balls is an entirely accurate assessment of the situation as we waited for the game to refresh. So add educational to the game benefits.
Just checked my stats for 9 days of playing – I have walked 57km with the game (which means it was a lot more if you take into account the game freezing) while pregame even with a fitbit I was averaging only 4km per day. Last night, dinner was going to be ready in 25 minutes, so we went for a 20 min walk as there was a lure down the street. So even if the game ends tomorrow, I have increased my level of activity for this week and that is not a bad thing.
The game is really fun and I am over 60 and love gaming. I like seeing the kids outside in groups, walking around, laughing/talking. I also like that there are places to battle and it makes it even more fun seeing kids that you might not have hung around with etc. Love it.
What I dont like are the negativity from some stores – DONT COME HERE IF YOU POKEMON. Kind of like closing the door and turning your lights off on Halloween – BAH HUMBUG!!!!
Game ON!
This sounds like a more high-tech, fantasy-based version of Geocaching, which is my thing; IMHO it beats Pokemon Go in that you get to bring home REAL stuff. But anything that gets our sedentary population out of the house is a good thing! In fact, I’m surprised my kids, who were obsessed with Pokemon through middle school, haven’t picked this up yet.
@EC Spurlock: Funnily enough, I’ve tried to go Geocaching a few times and I always get really frustrated with it. Perhaps I lack the patience to find well-hidden caches, haha.
There was a remarkable article in this morning’s paper about how a burn unit of a hospital is using Pokemon Go as a therapeutic tool. Besides being engaging enough to keep the young patients’ minds off their pain, the necessity of walking around helped to keep muscles active.
I’ve read about several animal shelters using Pokemon Go to encourage volunteers to walk dogs. Several historic sites and parks in my area have set up Pokestops and Pokemon Go nights to bring in visitors.
Drawback of all that playing/clutching the phone in my hand: overuse of certain muscles in my hands and arms. Ouch. On the advice of my massage therapist, I had to cut down my playing.
I actually bought my son a smartphone a couple years earlier than planned so we could play it together. We are off to the park every single day to go hunting together! There is a gym at the local grocery store–I’m hoping my son will come with me next time I need groceries so we can take over the gym together.
My older son refuses to play. He is too “cool” for Pokemon.
We are definitely in the minority here. Neither of us are interested at all and I don’t get the appeal at all. They actually had to put out a warning at work letting folks know not to play during work, which is just sad to me. ah well…enjoy…as long as no one runs into me while playing, I’m good.
I’m truly (happily) surprised with how popular pokemon go! is. Like, I’ve been into pokemon since I was a little kid (I think, because I was a little kid, it had such a formative impression on me), and its AMAZING how popular this game is. Like, when I was in undergrad, some kids my age still played pokemon, but it was mostly still for younger kids. Its pretty exciting how popular Pokemon Go is (though I am eagerly waiting for Pokemon Sun and Moon because, hello customizable main characters! and the new starters are SO CUTE) and its helping me through my very sudden and unexpected unemployment. I live in a city that thinks its a small town, so there are pokestops EVERYWHERE within walking distance. I went into the heart of the city today and it was a SMORGASBOARD. So happy.
Out in Southern California, a woman died after walking off the edge of a sea cliff because she was fixated on her phone playing this game instead of watching where she was walking.
Things like this make me glad that my phone is just a phone.
Amanda, I could have written this article. That’s exactly how I feel about the game. I love that it’s getting me out of my house and my car, and that I can talk to strangers in the street, and not because they’re being creepy!
A pack of (not sullen) teenage boys saw my husband and I playing the other day, and said “Hey, there’s a Magmar over there!” Guys, I had a positive interaction with teenage boys. It’s like a whole new world.
So glad to see a positive article on it, instead of the constant list of people who got in car accidents or found dead bodies. Honestly, I feel like book people (who have often cultivated to skill of reading and walking at the same time) are an ideal demographic for this game.
I think it’s great too! It’s just fun to have an excuse to turn down a block I haven’t been, or hang out in the park with my husband and son. I haven’t even played that much, but we’ve struck up conversations with a lot of people about the game. I’m not a big game person myself, but I am totally willing to go along with something that’s fun, social, novel, gets people outside and is free!