Pokemon go has taken the world by poliwag storm. Everyone is playing it and it is the top grossing app since the first week of it's release. It attracted people by being nostalgia memories from their 90s childhood with the convenience of being a free app* (well some in-app purchases for user to choose). It also brought a lot of new people to the world of pokemon. I am stuck wondering if this game does more good than bad tho. What do you think?
The Good
People are outside more and off their asses and moving. People finally have a reason to get out and do stuff. Go to a new location just to see if there are other types of pokemon and pokestops, They might meet others who also love the game and share tips. Tips are needed since the app doesn't explain itself well. They need a walk through tutorial of the game to be made for players to see how to play. I went the first two days and didn't know you had to flip the pokestop to get prizes out of it. Make sure you put on sunscreen before your adventures. I got a small burn when I went out. First time you can do that and get exercise while playing a game.
The Bad
Yeah they are outside, but people are still on their phones. This encourages people to be on their phones more than ever before. It just brought this problem outside. People are zombies when they play. A person with their face down and walking around in circles is the easiest way to spot a user of the app. People need their eyes up to see where they are going. Pokemon, isn't something a group of kids should be getting together to just walk and stare at phones. People need to value their time they have with the people around them, not the number of Pokemon they have in an app. They need to disconnect from their phones and connect and socialize with people.
The app is not even that great. This is a very simple beta version of the app. The gyms suck and pokestops take forever to load. Some pokestops and gyms should be reconsidered of their location and the journey to get there. People grieving shouldn't have to see Pokemon Go trainers walk across a cemetery to get to a stop.
I don't get it why people would pay money for in-app purchases for a game that was so badly made. They are too lazy to walk to a pokestop for more balls or something? Yeah the servers are handling a butt-ton of users, but it keeps crashing. Draining battery and data was a given but the battery usage of the app needs to last longer. I am looking forward to updates of this app. It has potential. The idea of an AR app is in the pre-historic dinosaur stage. Cool to play with one but there is more work to be done.I personally don't use my camera cause I believe it kills more battery and makes catching harder.
I don't get it why people would pay money for in-app purchases for a game that was so badly made. They are too lazy to walk to a pokestop for more balls or something? Yeah the servers are handling a butt-ton of users, but it keeps crashing. Draining battery and data was a given but the battery usage of the app needs to last longer. I am looking forward to updates of this app. It has potential. The idea of an AR app is in the pre-historic dinosaur stage. Cool to play with one but there is more work to be done.I personally don't use my camera cause I believe it kills more battery and makes catching harder.
The Ugly
Safety is a big concern of mine. These days I don't trust people to not fuck shit up for the rest of us. Too many times companies get sued cause their family member was a dumbass for texting, snapping, and soon to be pokemon-going. Yes, I'll admit to using my phone for things in the car but I keep it at a bare min. I know people will try to use their car to cheat. There are rumors of speed limits on the app which limits cars to help hatch your pokemon.
Improvements
It would be nice to see this game improve or even evolve into something better than this. If it wasn't for the nostalgia game, people would rip this beta game to shreds. If the game is going to make people walk around find the safest way to encourage them to do it.
First! The game needs to be able to run the background. I have so many wasted steps untracked since my screen wasn't on with the app open. Running in the background won't already reward me for the steps I already take to hatch my eggs, but encourage people to look up more instead of being poke-zombies. Nintendo created the Pokewalker which does all the things that the app should be able to do. It ca count your steps, help you use your Pokemon to catch another, allow trading and finding items, and help level up your pokemon. The company of the app (Nintendo, Niantic or otherwise) should take that concept of step walking reward system and apply it to the app. People should be rewarded by the number of steps they take. Instead, people are rewarded by loitering around a shop and flicking a circle every 5 minutes.
Second! There needs to be an alert system. Most apps have it. It will pop up like a text so people can look up from their phone. Spend the majority of the time being outside and exploring their town. Yes it is a game and this might make the game too easy to be ignored and forgotten about without the users constant attention. Those are two things game makers don't want to happen. However with the concept of this active game there needs to be a way that all users can play without being glued to their phone.
Third! (Final) I would like to see the since of community on the game. I want to see other players on my map and be able to friend the ones I run into in-person. I want friends be able to contact each other when they are distant and I want all in-person trainers be able to trade items or pokemon. Also I want to give the trainers to be able to choose how much information they feel comfortable giving out if this game becomes more social. Since safety is my biggest concern and this game can be dangerous at times, people should be given the ability to protect their privacy when playing.
I have yet to decide if this game is good or bad. It is entertaining and I am excited to see what new updates will bring.What are your thoughts of the game? Is there anything else to improve?
Please let me know in the comments bellow.
Improvements
It would be nice to see this game improve or even evolve into something better than this. If it wasn't for the nostalgia game, people would rip this beta game to shreds. If the game is going to make people walk around find the safest way to encourage them to do it.
First! The game needs to be able to run the background. I have so many wasted steps untracked since my screen wasn't on with the app open. Running in the background won't already reward me for the steps I already take to hatch my eggs, but encourage people to look up more instead of being poke-zombies. Nintendo created the Pokewalker which does all the things that the app should be able to do. It ca count your steps, help you use your Pokemon to catch another, allow trading and finding items, and help level up your pokemon. The company of the app (Nintendo, Niantic or otherwise) should take that concept of step walking reward system and apply it to the app. People should be rewarded by the number of steps they take. Instead, people are rewarded by loitering around a shop and flicking a circle every 5 minutes.
Second! There needs to be an alert system. Most apps have it. It will pop up like a text so people can look up from their phone. Spend the majority of the time being outside and exploring their town. Yes it is a game and this might make the game too easy to be ignored and forgotten about without the users constant attention. Those are two things game makers don't want to happen. However with the concept of this active game there needs to be a way that all users can play without being glued to their phone.
Third! (Final) I would like to see the since of community on the game. I want to see other players on my map and be able to friend the ones I run into in-person. I want friends be able to contact each other when they are distant and I want all in-person trainers be able to trade items or pokemon. Also I want to give the trainers to be able to choose how much information they feel comfortable giving out if this game becomes more social. Since safety is my biggest concern and this game can be dangerous at times, people should be given the ability to protect their privacy when playing.
I have yet to decide if this game is good or bad. It is entertaining and I am excited to see what new updates will bring.What are your thoughts of the game? Is there anything else to improve?
Please let me know in the comments bellow.
