City’s youngsters are on a gaming high, courtesy the new augmented reality game Pokemon GO that is yet to be officially launched in India. A gathering of Pokemon GO gamers is to be organised at Sanjeeviah Park on Sunday.
The game became a craze world over earlier this year when its maker, Niantic, started testing it in Japan, followed by Australia, New Zealand and then the US. Pokemon, which are small creatures that can be captured by their trainers, was conceived and first created as a video game in 1995. The franchise has since spawned video games, card games and other merchandise. In its latest avatar Pokemon GO, gamers will have to catch Pokemon in a virtual world overlaid on the real world. Using maps to navigate the city, gamers in Hyderabad are exploring the game alongside fellow gamers from across the world, though the game is yet to be officially launched in India.
“I have been playing the game for 10 days now and have introduced many to it. I have seen scores of people engrossed in the game while walking on the city’s busy roads,” said E. Hemanth Kumar, a first-year BBA student.
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Those playing the game have to capture Pokemon and make them evolve into better creatures. They can also battle their Pokemon with others in specific locations called ‘Gyms’ in the game. To play, evolve and progress in the game, gamers can avail freebies like ‘Pokeballs’ from other specific sites known as ‘Pokestops’ within the game.
“Interestingly, most of Pokestops are in temples, mosques and churches,” remarked Akshay Tiwari, a 21-year-old gamer, who is organising the Sunday’s gathering. “There are specific locations in the city, like road number 36 Jubilee Hills and Hussainsagar, for finding certain types of Pokemon. To hatch an egg of the Pokemon we collect, we have to walk a certain distance. Riding or driving does not help us hatch,” he added, speaking the game’s lingo.
Social media is abuzz with discussions, with youngsters posting screenshots of their activity while visiting religious places in the neighbourhood and revealing that they have visited more temples, churches and mosques while playing the game than they ever did before!
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Over 2,000 people have expressed interest to be present at Sanjeevaiah Park, indicating that a large number of people in India have already played the game. “The response has been overwhelming and completely unexpected,” Mr. Tiwari said.