By Ben Oleksinski
As those in the know will doubtless be aware, there are Squirtle near Dominos, Charmander on the bike path, and frequently, Cubone near Sabourin Field. Even for those who aren’t, it has quickly become apparent that a wildly popular smartphone app has turned Bedford into a menagerie for cartoon monsters that aren’t really there.
Although it has been merely a week since its worldwide release, the free-to-play location-based mobile game ‘Pokémon Go’ has already begun to affect how people view the town and interact with others.
With this virtual trend only gaining momentum as the days go by, it seems that this summer will be characterized by pedestrians staring into their phone screens, completely immersed in a real world exploration to find Pokémon in the game’s digital universe.
‘Pokémon Go’ is the first smartphone release from The Pokémon Company, which has been looking after this multimillion-selling video game franchise since 1998. Created by augmented reality (AR) specialist Niantic Inc, the developer behind Google’s experimental AR games, it’s a massive-multiplayer spin-off from the role-playing series that was once limited to trading cards and Nintendo cartridges.
How Does It Work?
Using the GPS and camera on a player’s smartphone, the game makes it seem as if wild Pokémon are cropping up on the streets in real life. When walking around and exploring, players – or trainers as they are called in the game – are greeted with rustling bits of grass, which signal a Pokémon’s presence. Walking closer using a virtual compass and ‘nearby’ box will allow for [characters] to appear, and tapping on them will initiate a Pokébattle. With the optional augmented-reality turned on, it may look as if a Caterpie is peeking out from the grass just outside the front door, putting players right in the shoes of a Pokémon trainer.
One doesn’t necessarily need to venture out of the house to capture or battle Pokémon, many can be found in one’s home and there is a kind of childish wonderment to discovering a Zubat or two between the television and the sofa.
Out in the World
The real fun, however, comes from heading out on to the streets to see what different sorts of Pokémon can be found in the rustling grass of local neighborhoods, or at various historic sites. Some reports have indicated that journeying beyond your own street is the key to finding rarer types of Pokémon, and it’s also the fastest way to access Pokéstops, a Pokémart-proxy for the game, which offer items such as Pokéballs and ‘Health Potions’ to trainers.
With an abundance of parks, landmarks, and even works of public art, Bedford is a town tailor-made for this new breed of location gaming.
Saying ‘Pokemon Go’ encourages exercise isn’t exactly accurate, as the game has been improperly credited for giving players a workout by walking. For the most part, players still live the same lives they did before, only with technology incorporated just a little bit more. ‘Pokemon Go’ should not be considered an exercise app, no matter how many eggs users have hatched. Players are not going outside because they want to be more healthy, they do so to catch the fictional creatures close by. Also, in the future, there will only be more ways to minimize physical stimulation and maximize results in the game itself.
The same can be said for the criticism that the game puts players in dangerous situations such as walking in the street without paying attention. There is an unhealthy and healthy way to go about doing anything, and it must be seen that such situations arise from unhealthy use, not unhealthy gameplay. In fact, the first thing players see before the app opens is a reminder to constantly be aware of their surroundings. Any accidents should not be put on the game, but rather the player’s own failure to grasp what is really going on around him.
Security
As with any trend, there are some credible concerns relevant to users and observers.
As established, the app needs to know your location through a device’s GPS, and access to its camera in order to play the game.
In addition, the game requires something more personal —[a player’s] full account access” on Google. In its initial release, downloading Pokémon Go would enable it to “read all your email, send email as you, access all your Google Drive documents access any private photos you may store in Google Photos, and a whole lot more. This poses a huge security risk to anyone to uses the app, and not only caught the attention of many users, but developers Niantic themselves.
With the most recent update, the scope of Google permissions has since been limited. The updated app will restrict what information it collects to the minimum required for it to function, but still includes location data, email address and camera access.
Even with promised tweaks, this is a game used mainly by youth, so it is within reason to take further precautions to assure that information gathered will be kept to as little as possible.
The Future?
At this time, it is unclear what the exact impact of ‘Pokemon Go’ will be. It’s just too early on to make any sort of call whether it is changing things for the better or worse. The initial reaction is that ‘Pokemon Go’ is not just another mobile game and it’s not another Pokémon game – it’s an entirely separate creation on the cusp of a new virtual experience.
In combining environmental interaction with childhood nostalgia and a glimpse into the future of widely accessible augmented reality, it clear why the game has swept through our community and the world so suddenly.
So, why stay inside in front of a TV when there’s the possibility of catching a Gastly in a previously unfamiliar local park, behind a sculpture you never knew the name of before? Or the glee of discovering an Oddish unbeknown to those around you, a little secret of the reality that exists only in the palm of your hands? Yes, there isn’t anything material there, but a collective hunt for silly cartoon monsters has brought many out of the house and together like no other mobile before.
Only recently did I share conversation with a family who coincidentally captured the same Pokémon that I had. The two young boys watched enthusiastically as I proceeded to show them my collection and give gave them some tips I had picked up along the way. That’s an interaction unmatched by most social network applications.
When every street corner is a potential Pokéstop, when any passerby could ask, “Oh, wow, are you playing Pokémon Go?!” and become a new hunting pal, it is clear that something much bigger is going on.
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