You must be familiar with the Pokemon phenomenon of the late 90s. Pokemon, or simply Pocket Monsters, is a cultural phenomenon that started life as a video game on the Nintendo Gameboy.
The Pokemon franchise has gone on to spawn various video games, cartoons, books and more. It has added billions to Nintendo’s stock value.
The new game Pokemon Go has just debuted for smartphones and unsurprisingly, many people around the world are excited to play it.
The Pokemon games, ever since their debut in 1998, have a basic yet addictive formula. You, the player are tasked with collecting Pokemon, training them and defeating stronger opponents during your journey.
Previously, you could only play Pokemon on your Nintendo video game console or handheld. But now, with Pokemon Go, you can play the game on iOS and Android smartphones as well.
Thats not all. Instead of sitting on your couch, Pokemon Go takes things one step further. You have to hunt for Pokemon, by leaving your comfy little place.
That’s right folks. Pokemon Go is an Augmented Reality (AR) game. Which means that you will have to walk around and hunt for Pokemon by going out in the wilderness, literally. The game relies on your GPS to pinpoint location of your favorite Pokemon.
So if you want to hunt for Pikachu, its best to check the weather and the situation outside.
Officially, Pokemon Go hasn’t been released in Asia, even its cultural home Japan. Only a handful of western countries have it.
But you must be thinking to yourself now, ‘I’ve seen people on my Facebook timeline playing it.’
That is correct. Your friends and family are playing Pokemon Go and you can play it too if you follow the instructions below:
For Android Users
Note: The game requires Android Kitkat 4.4 and up.
For iOS Users
So your local masjid or even police thana might have a Squirtle or two. And you might be tempted to just risk stuff by catching that Charizard at that secluded spot at night.
But this being Pakistan, hunting for Pokemon can quickly turn into a potentially unsafe situation for players who are plying on the roads and glued to their phones, unaware of the safety and security hazards that lie in wait.
Even now, robbers in America have gone wiser and lie in wait for unsuspecting Pokemon Go players at some predefined spots.
So folks, have some fun (and exercise) as you go on a journey to collect all 150 (or is it 250?) Pokemon for yourself. But keep those razor-sharp Pakistani instincts intact as well.
Last but not the least. Happy Gotta catch em all.