We were downtown tonight for dinner, and it was as if 85% of the people walking around had been taken over by something. Nearly everyone was glued to their devices. People crossed the street and wandered down sidewalks in a trancelike state. Did everyone just get the text of a lifetime, all at once?
No. They all downloaded Pokémon Go, the latest app craze taking America by storm. If you haven’t succumbed to peer pressure and let it take over your phone just yet, you might wander around feeling like you’ve missed something. You probably have. There could be a Pokémon character lurking within ten feet of you, and you’d never even know it. Can you imagine?!
Pokémon Go released Thursday, so it’s had five days to get into the hands of millions of people. Looking around tonight, I’m thinking it’s the most viral thing to hit the streets…possibly ever. Our five year old, Henry, who knows nothing about the game at all (and to be clear, I know only a fraction more after doing a little digging tonight), kept shouting, “There’s one right there!” and pointing at people playing the game. I’m sure he freaked out multiple players, who all started scrambling around looking for the coveted Pokémon Henry was after. Nothing to see here, folks. We’re just hunting Pokémon Go players and trying to understand what on earth is happening. Carry on.
But really, it’s crazy. Not only from a viral, “there’s never been anything quite like this” kind of perspective, but for the fact that humans everywhere are interacting, but not interacting. They are wandering around getting exercise, but also appear to be totally unaware of their surroundings. Not to mention the fact that I witnessed more than one parent (or set of parents) tonight, completely ignoring their children while they were busy playing the game.
I don’t know what to say.
On our way home, we drove past one of my favorite parks. It was FULL of people. Beautiful, right? It’s a gorgeous summer night, and everyone should be out at the park living it up. And they were, in a way. Except that when we parked and I got out of the car to take a look around, my suspicions proved true. I could only spot two people in the entire park who were just there to be at the park. Everyone else was playing Pokémon Go. I wandered around capturing them all on video for a few minutes, and no one ever even noticed I was there.
I sound a little cynical in the video, but I’ve posted it below in case you’re curious about the craze yourself. I’m all for getting outside, exercising, group activity, strategy, etc., but I have a harder time with this one. It just feels like it got out of control so fast. A few days ago, we were all simply strolling through the park for strolling’s sake.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9guZ7g_44w0
After the kids went to bed tonight, I did a minimal amount of research to have even the slightest clue of what the Pokémon Go craze is all about. I found a few helpful articles, including the ones I’ve linked below.
–This USA Today article covers a good bit about the game, including reasons why it “might be a little dangerous.” (See no.5)
-The Economist details a bit about the overlap between real and virtual worlds here.
-Vox Explainers has a good synopsis of the game and its widespread impact here. I found this quote particularly telling:
“The problem: When people get competitive, they can get aggressive. And there have been some reports of people getting into real-life arguments over the game. This is very tricky ground for future augmented reality game developers to tread, because they definitely don’t want real-world violence attached to their products.
Pokémon Go has already revealed some issues, too. Not only did four robbery suspects allegedly set up lure beacons on PokéStops to attract victims, but there are reports of injuries due to the game, and police have had to warn players about going into places they’re not supposed to. Chances are most players will be responsible and won’t run into these issues, but these are notable risks with directly attaching a video game to the real world.” –German Lopez
It isn’t that I can’t get the concept of this incredible fad, but honestly, I’m not sure I want to. I don’t need one more reason to have my phone in front of me. I don’t need to be searchable at all hours of the day. And, more than anything, I don’t need another distraction from the people and places that matter the most to me.
I’m sorry, Pokémon, but with all due respect, I didn’t love you in the 90’s and I can’t love you now. Just no.
mm
I’d love to know your thoughts on the game and whether you’re playing it and why. What do you see as the benefits? Negatives? And have you wandered anywhere lately and felt like you were the only one NOT looking at your phone? Or is it just me and the pregnancy hormones talking on this one?
Molly,
I do play the game. I can’t remember if I got hooked Friday or Saturday. I thought first I would just check it out — see what this thing is all about. I refuse to use the camera function. I just don’t see the point.
I spent a day with a friend walking around from point to point, getting into the hype of it all. Personally, I like that it gives me added motivation to get out of the house. The other day I walked to the park for a bit. In between struggling to connect (the dreaded server issues), I picked up trash. The park was overloaded with kids. Out of the many people there, I would definitely say I was in the minority. There had to be over 200 kids being kids, enjoying the playground to its fullest. I don’t recall any of the established parents paying inordinate attention to their phones. Don’t get me wrong, there were various people playing Pokémon Go. A family on the hunt, a few stragglers — like myself — attempting to challenge the gyms in the area… not many others, though.
My experience by the ferry terminal was something else entirely! So many people collecting items from Pokéstops, setting up lures for Pokémon, or challenging local gyms. At the same time, there was a clearly social aspect to it. Complete strangers –who wouldn’t normally try to start conversations with others — are now greeting eachother. Friendly jeering from all sides. Random tips. Comparing recent catches. Rumors of rare pokemon. Where to find the best.
It doesn’t stop there, though. The conversations continue on. Some friendships are made.
The sense of competition isn’t just about the game though. For me, I am comeeting to see how far I can walk. How many I can hatch. I stagger my incubators so I rarely have two eggs hatching at the same time, giving me more reason to keep walking, keep collecting, keep evolving, etc…
Still, I regularly see people walking with their down. Waiting at crosswalks waiting for the light to turn, not even noticing when it changes in their favor. One person stopped 2/3 of the way through an intersection and motioning for people around him with one hand while focusing on his phone with the other.
TL;DR version: it’s getting people up, out, and talking. It’s also a major distraction.
I appreciate you sharing your experience, Jeremy. Helpful to see the benefits as well as the challenges. It’s been fun to watch news this week and to hear all of the good things coming from it, although I’m bummed about a few of the downsides, too. It seems to be evolving in a good way…maybe people just needed a few days to get the constant play out of their systems. I’ve not had an experience similar to the one I described above since last week. It was just so interesting to feel like I was the only one not in the game. 🙂 Have fun playing!