In case you hadn’t heard, there’s a little known game rolling out across Europe called Pokémon Go. Merging the real world with a virtual one, it’s turning out to be a worldwide smash. As Europe braces itself for some serious mobile battery drainage, tired legs and a bunch of virtual monsters, we’re going to provide you with some quick and easy Do’s and Don’ts to get you started.
But before we get started, what is Pokémon Go? Pokémon is primarily a video game created by Nintendo in which the user traverses the game world looking for little monsters a.k.a. Pokémon. Once you catch these Pokémon, they usually battle each other, and the idea is, you want to collect as many Pokémon as possible hence the game catchphrase “Gotta catch ‘em all”. Pokémon Go is a mobile game which combines gaming with technology from Google Maps and one’s mobile phone GPS and involves the player traversing their local streets and monuments looking for Pokémon.
Do learn the very basics –
Pokémon = pocket monster
Pokéstop = usually a real world landmark which can be interacted with on your phone when you are close by. Gives you eggs, Pokéballs and other game items
Pokéball = a ball that you can throw at Pokémon to capture them for training
Gym = a location on your map where Pokémon battle each other
Egg = an egg which hatches a Pokémon
Do watch your surroundings. It is very easy to become engrossed with your screen and lose awareness of your surroundings, especially as the game has an Augmented Reality (A.R.) function, whereby your phone camera is used to present the real world on your screen.
Do pick your team wisely. In Pokémon Go, you are given the option of joining one of three teams, once you have reached a high enough level. Definitely coordinate this with your friends and colleagues, as it could prove fun teaming up to take on other teams in your neighborhood.
Do wait for your experience points to build up before getting involved in battles. One of the greatest traits of this game is the fact you can battle other people for control of your city.
Do go and check out all the monuments, parks and notable locations your city or town has to offer. This is where most Pokémon can be found, and you might even learn something new about the local area.
Don’t go for walks without having any eggs incubated. In game, you will collect eggs, and these eggs hatch depending on you walking a certain distance. It’s great way to exercise with a pay off at the end. And don’t try and trick the game, it will detect if you are in car and won’t count this towards your distance travelled for hatching eggs.
Don’t forget to charge your phone and activate the in-game Battery Saver. The game eats battery rather fast.
Don’t download any unofficial versions of the game. With fervor for the game reaching an all time high, impatient gamers are downloading the game early via a number of other sites. Whilst the game could well work, there have been reports of unusual permissions being granted by users’ mobile phones. Wait for the official release via the iTunes Store or Google Play.
Don’t play whilst driving. You will have an accident, probably cause a massive motorway pileup, and if you survive, you’d be turned into a terrible meme.
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