Joshua StorieI feel extremely under-qualified to be discussing the new craze that is Pokémon GO, so I’ll spare you from pointing that out in the comments section. Nonetheless, my Facebook newsfeed is filled with ecstatic twenty-somethings finding an excuse to be glued to their phones yet again. I had to check it out for myself.
Aside from not knowing anything about any Pokémon besides Pikachu (because who doesn’t remember that chipper, yellow poster child from the 90s), and against my better judgement, I decided not to fight it. I downloaded the app.
Now, when I think of game apps, I think of lulls in the day that need to be filled with some fabricated and addicting sense of “fun.” But Pokémon GO challenges those notions. How? You can’t play it from bed.
I guess in some ways, this is really clever. It forces you to go against the gaming stereotype of sitting in your parents basement and never seeing the light of day, and it encourages you to walk around to catch ’em all. Yay for exercise and social interaction — I think. But I have a few problems with this.
If I’m out and about, chances are it’s for a good reason. So I’m not going to have time to play the game aside from in my bed where it’s unplayable.
Second, it’s a great ploy to rack up your cell phone bill if you’re constantly walking away from the comfortable Wi-Fi signal in order to catch Charmander. And on top of that, good luck using your cell phone for other purposes because this game will drain your battery. Priorities.
Third, walking around to use the app could be problematic. If you’re so focused on catching Bulbasaur, you may just walk into a wall, a tree, another person, or oncoming traffic. Dedication.
And on the other hand, it seems like you can beat the underlying encouragement to walk around and maybe get some exercise while gaming — multitasking at its finest. This could mean playing in your car while trying to beat the distracted driving law. I’m sure we can all expect a few cases like that in the news soon. “But officer, Torchic was just past the intersection, I had to play.” But it could also mean taking more public transportation. That’s right, not only are you spending more money on your phone bill, you’re paying into the city’s transit system even though you genuinely don’t like ETS and you own a car. Plus the time crunch of catching all the Pokemon nearby before the LRT moves onto the next stop only adds to the fun. As do the underground stations downtown that don’t get cell signals.
So while I’m still fiddling around, trying to figure out how to use this thing, I can say my current thoughts on Pokémon GO is good try, but Pokémon NO.
This article was a waste of the 30 seconds that I spent to skim it. “I can say my current thoughts on Pokémon GO is good try, but Pokémon NO.” Well I can say my current thoughts on this writing is Pokemon hell no.
If you don’t like the game, don’t play it. If you’re gonna write about it, why not employ some basic journalism practices and research the subject you’re writing on? Maybe look at both sides of the story? If The Gateway is not going to bother spending time reporting on things that actually matter (see: Black Lives Matter, Brexit, etc), the least it could do is properly research the articles it does publish.
Oh, by the way, millennial self hate is sooo passé.
How do you expect them to report on Black Lives Matter and Brexit without actually being there? Maybe you mean commenting on, but even then, why would anyone care what a couple of Canadian students think about American and British issues? This article is bullshit, yes, but get off your own high horse. Maybe it’ll help you win an election for once.
What a boring, pointless article. If you don’t like Pokemon, and you don’t like leaving the house except to sprint from errand to errand, this isn’t the game for you. Other people are having a lot of fun with it, and don’t somehow feel forced to take ETS to play it. Delete it from your phone and let other people enjoy it.
Wow this is probably the worst article I have read in a long time. Really I mean come on. All of the issues you pointed out about this game can simply be resolved by not being a complete moron. Use your legs instead of riding a bus. Charge your phone at a local coffee shop, bar, restaurant, just about anyplace really. Get outside have some fun. As for walking into things while playing… well… let’s just say if it is not this game that gets you hurt it will be something else in the not to distant future that will most likely lead to your demise.
I completely agree on all points, especially the author is a moron part. Complete and total lack of common sense. Plus, Torchic isn’t even in the game (yet).