Whether you’re a lifetime fan of Pokemon, a casual enthusiast (like myself) or blissfully unaware of the Pokemon Phenomenon that started in 1995, the new app, “Pokemon GO” is poised to CATCH US ALL.
Pokemon stands for “Pocket Monsters,” and collectively refers to the 722 known fictional species within the franchise. Trainers hunt for and capture wild Pokemon with spherical devices called Poke Balls. Once caught, Pokemon are under the ownership of that Trainer and will obey his/her commands (unless the Trainer demonstrates a lack of experience). Trainers may then build, train and evolve teams of Pokemon to compete against other Trainers and eventually win fictional Pokemon Leagues.
The release of the newest game in the franchise, “Pokemon GO,” makes all of this a reality, turning Trainers’ phones into a Pokedex (a registry of Pokemon) and allowing them to catch Pokemon through augmented reality. Trainers may then evolve and build their team to battle other Trainers around them.
The best mechanic of this game is the fact it makes you GO OUTSIDE AND EXPLORE THE WORLD AROUND YOU. Gyms in the game are ACTUAL gyms in real life. Landmarks and sites with Historical Significance are Poke Stops, places to refill your stock of Poke Balls and other items needed on your quest to be the very best. You simply never know what hidden gems you may find both in the game and in the real world.
Normally I wouldn’t get caught up in all this as a casual enthusiast, and upon its release, I was a little annoyed with the flood of images on social media, but… This game is so simple in concept and so grand in scale it’s astounding. We’re talking about a GLOBAL massively multiplayer platform that connects people to each other and gets them to leave their homes and interact in the real world, face-to-face. I’ve seen testimonials from people who generally don’t exercise, people suffering from depression and lifetime agoraphobics. This franchise is so loved, it’s inspiring all of these people to get outside and explore. To experience the world around them. I cannot be anything but supportive about that.
On the flip side, there have already been a fair share of incidents, injuries and even crime directly associated with the app (people getting robbed via Poke Stops in my home state of Missouri). However, that shouldn’t deter anyone from playing this game. Just BE SMART and BE AWARE. Every time you start the app it displays a reminder so we can all stay safe and have fun.
So, from someone only casually interested, I highly recommend checking this app out, even if you have no prior knowledge of the Pokemon Universe, because this game is LITERALLY bringing people together and unifying them through a common interest and love. And if that starts a dialogue of a more transcendental and progressively healing nature, then why not let “Pokemon GO” catch us all?