Some thoughts on Pokémon Go
Let me preface this by saying that I love Pokémon Go so far. I haven’t been able to play much, being abroad and all and limited to free Wi-Fi zones, but it’s a fun game. Not sure how long I’ll be playing it as it’s kind of a grinding game and I have a history of getting tired of grinding in games after a certain point. Of course I also have a history of coming back to these games periodically (cough, Diablo 3, new season, cough) and that might happen with Pokémon Go as well. We will see how it goes, but for now I like it.
And so do a lot of people.
And, conversely, a lot of people hate it (fair enough, no game is for everyone) and the people who play it. From some corners it is met with skepticism, ridicule, and even violence. And it’s this backlash from non-players that I find most interesting. For years I’ve seen campaign after campaign trying to get people (not just kids) to go outside and play, and walk, and exercise. Suffice it to say these campaigns have been less than successful.
In comes Pokémon Go, a game that actively promotes and stimulates people (not just kids) to go outside and play, and walk, and exercise, and a very vocal group decries this as horrible. Now that people are finally going outside and making their presence known eyebrows are being raised. Man, those are a lot of people out on the street, parks, landmarks and residential areas all of a sudden. I get that this can be overwhelming, but isn’t this what we’ve all wanted for years? That people go outside again? Yes? No?
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