Sunday, 7 August 2016

Catch 'em All #PokemonGo


Pokémon Go Has taken the world by storm, it's the viral game everyone's talking about & playing. Developed by Niantic, Inc., it's a location based augmented reality game. 


The concept of the game was formulated in 2014 by Saturo Iwata, the 4th  president and CEO of Nintendo and Tsunekazu Ishihara, the president and CEO of the Pokémon Company and producer of Pokémon. Ishihara was a fan of Niantic, Inc.’s precious trans – reality game Ingress. The Pokémon Company and Nintendo partnered with Niantic, Inc. which developed and published Pokémon Go on July 6th, 2016.    




Niantic has used the crowd sourced data from Ingress to populate Pokestops and gyms within Pokémon Go. Pokestops provide items such as pokeballs and eggs to players. Gyms serve as battlefield for Pokémons . You have to follow a satellite generated map on your phone which directs you to locations where you catch creatures called Pokémons.


By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51078661

Once you are in the vicinity of a Pokémon , you open your phone’s camera, the Pokémon’s image appears superimposed on your real life surroundings, giving you a feeling that the Pokémon is actually there in front of you. You have to catch the Pokémon by flicking  a pokeball from the bottom of your screen.



By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=51031262



It’s not uncommon to spot players of this game around you with their mobile devices in front of them searching for Pokémons. Since its launch in July, it has become a global phenomenon and shows no signs of slowing.
Here are some interesting stats highlighting the game’s immense popularity:


  • Since its launch , it became the top grossing app in the U.S. within 12 hours.
  • Nintendo’s market value went up by $9 billion within 5 days.
  •   One in ten Americans play Pokémon Go daily.
  • The game is collecting as much as $6 million a day from in-app purchases in U.S. alone.
  • It took Pokémon Go just 19 days to cross 50 million worldwide downloads.
  •  It attracts 21 million users and 4-5 million downloads a day.
  •  The average daily use of the app on Android devices has exceeded Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram and facebook.
Believe it or not! There are some health and mental benefits of playing Pokémon Go:


In order to catch Pokémons , you need to get out of your house and walk. You need to walk to track a nearby Pokémon or to hatch eggs as well. The first eggs require you to walk 2 km or 5 km for the incubation to complete. Driving you vehicle won’t hatch the eggs unless you drive very, very, very slowly. So, this game is acting as a catalyst to get people out and moving. As you move out, you also get to breathe fresh air, which also improves your mood and health.
When people are talking about how technology is moving them away from one another and making them feel less connected socially, this game is in fact bringing people together, providing opportunities for healthy social interaction and a sense of belonging. You go out to a park to catch a Pokémon, you are bound to meet other people out there to do the same. This game is something people of all ages can enjoy. Even parents go out with their children to catch Pokémons and spend some quality time together outside rather than sitting on the couch and watching television.

  • You get to explore your city


While moving around catching Pokémons or visiting Pokestops , you may come across some historical or artistic landmarks which you may have never seen before. In fact, the game has considered the historical, artistic and architectural value of places before selecting them as Pokestops or gyms. Businesses have also benefited from nearby presence of pokestops. Many National parks and museums in U.S. have witnessed an increase influx on visitors.
 Despite its popularity and benefits there have some controversies and accidents involving Pokémon Go and people playing it while driving.



 Recently, authorities in Iran have banned Pokémon Go because of unspecified security reasons. Indonesia has banned Police officers and Military from playing the game. Recently, two men in California fell up to 108 ft. off cliff while playing the game. India has also recorded its first accident in Mumbai where a car was hit by an incoming auto rickshaw. 

 Even Mumbai Police Department has tweeted highlighting the risks of playing this game carelessly.



Excess of anything is bad, and this game is no exception. And there is no doubting the opinion that people shouldn’t play this game while driving and they shouldn’t trespass into restricted areas. As long as people play this game keeping their safety above all and taking appropriate precautionary measures while moving on roads, there’s nothing wrong in this game. So catch ‘em all.
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