Pokémon Go is the latest app sensation to arrive on Android and iOS. Pokémon have descended onto this realm and are roaming around Earth in their various little elements, whether it be on land, in a river or down your toilet. So what's it like?
The game itself is essentially a charming, fun exercise geo-caching software disguised with a popular image. It takes the media of catching Pokemon and encourages people to get active and walk around for hours on end in search of rare pokemon in different terrains, a new way of playing games by leaving your apartment and being, well... on the "Go". To catch Pokemon you simply flick a Pokeball at the Pokemon onscreen.
The tech behind the game is actually quite interesting and reminded me a lot of that card minigame on the old Nintendo DS. The game itself uses the inbuilt gyroscopes and pedometers of the smart phone with the assistance of GPS, and uses augmented reality to conjure Pokemon out of thin air and onto the camera. Eggs are hatched by a certain distance walked, dependent on the egg, and players are encouraged to visit historic monuments and iconic landmarks around the surrounding landscape to acquire items.
Gyms are also in the game, and are much like a leaderboard you'd find in any app game, except designed in a more interactive way and engaging to the eye. The gyms are sadly the only form of Pokemon battling in the game as of now, but it is here where the competetive nature of the game comes into play. Once you defeat the gym, you (or your character) becomes the leader. Others can then challenge, whittle down their strength and so on and so forth.
I quite enjoy the game, I'm close to being level 7 as of writing this. It's simplicity and charming design really dial back my nagging dislike for the recent Pokemon games. It isn't particularly challenging, but it's engaging interface and addictive nature is what keeps my desire to play it. And if, by the same effect, I am getting ever so slightly healthier from exercising and walking more, then that is a bonus too.
The game isn't without faults though. Most notably is its buggy nature. In my version, at least, the application itself struggled to load if any other camera-based software was open simultaneously (but not in use); such as FaceTime or SnapChat. But even then it still sometimes strained its way to boot up. I often found myself force-closing the app a minimum of up to 4 times before I could even load in.
Other times, the game would crash or freeze after I either caught a Pokemon or entered a battle. I know this wasn't a GPS "out of range" issue due to it occuring multiple times whilst being connected to WiFi. Speak of the devil, the design can also be a flaw in of itself. If you are unlucky enough to live in a rural village or hamlet, far from a nearby town, particularly in a large country such as Australia, there is a high likelihood you are not going to have any gyms or Pokestops available to you. The same applies to if you visit or live in a place with low data connectivity. In the UK there are a number of towns where 3G is limited and sparse.
Casual games are a relatively new phenomenon that is generally based around smart phones and tablets or browsers. Players will only play these games in infrequent intervals, whether it's between meetings or waiting for a train or sitting on the toilet. Games that are visually engaging, yet simple in design. It's the game's simplicity combined with the modern human nature to fill gaps of time with mindless entertainment (akin to TV) that makes them work.
I call this phenomenon the Tetris Effect. Tetris is widely regarded as the first "casual game", and to this day stands the test of time with variations thereupon. Tetris Battle on Facebook for example. There is most likely another name for it but that's what I call it. Anyway, many games that follow the Tetris Effect generally last and are recieved well, despite often being a re-skin. Examples of this are Candy Crush and Words With Friends.
However many others are considerably "fad-games". Flappy Bird and Miitomo are amongst many that are examples of that. Pokemon Go simultaneously follows and defies the Tetris Effect. The app is designed to encourage exercise, yet in my experience of myself and friends' playing it, the game is usually accessed in between other activities. And this brings me to my main criticism of Pokemon Go: does it have survivability?
I would like to be proven wrong, I find the game very fun myself, but I cannot help but believe it is another "fad game" and will follow in it's Nintendo's smartphone-endeavour predescessor, Miitomo. Already have I heard of people getting rapidly bored by it's repetitive and otherwise challengeless nature. The bugs and crashes only add to the possibility of it being forgotten.
Ultimately though, that remains to be seen. As I said, I find it fun and engaging. It's a glorified and glammed up exercise app, however I think that adds to it's charm. Yet due to it's over-simplification and lack of any challenge that the mainstream Pokemon games introduced (battling et al), there is a strong chance that it may dwindle in usage within a few months. So far the game is restricted to Generation I - no Umbreon for me for now (sobs) - and I've heard rumours of battling eventually being added. So if new features and Pokemon are implemented, the game may last a little while longer, who knows?
“AN INTERESTING APPLICATION NOTABLE FOR ITS ENCOURAGEMENT OF EXERCISE AND EXPLORATION WITH AN AESTHETICALLY PLEASING DESIGN.”
Pokemon Go suffers from intense bugs, restricted environments and an overly simple game design. Despite this, the game is fun and addictive when played. Plus it promotes a healthy lifestyle, and that deserves some credit.