Current Fads: The Pokémon Go Craze Pokémon Go, a location-based augmented reality game, has been sweeping not only the nation, but the entire globe, since its first release in July of 2016. The game gets players outside catching, training and battling the infamous characters called Pokémon with others players in their area using GPS location devices on smart phones. With an average of 9.5 million daily users here in the United States alone, it’s rare to find a person that is not familiarized with the real-life simulated mobile game. (Wagner, 2016) It is fairly common to see congregations of people engrossed in their phones, hovered around a statue marked as a Pokestop in hopes that they catch the best and strongest Pokémon they can, or
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Pokestops and Gyms are usually located at landmarks. These landmarks can be statues, monuments, museums or even graveyards. Many times, players have no idea these landmarks even exist in their hometown. The game promotes exploration, and then in turn, teaches its players about the history around them. This even has the potential to drive players to become a part of the community. For example, some of the most common places to find Pokémon in the Boston are The Public Garden, Christian Science Plaza, and The New England Aquarium, to name a few. (Erdekian, 2016) Each of these locations give players an opportunity to learn more about their city’s history and architecture. In addition, the ability to read maps on the application is also an educational aspect of the game. (Dicker, 2016) Reading maps and taking directions are key aspects of adulthood. Because the game is a location based augmented reality application, players are literally catching Pokémon on the same streets that they would walk to work or school on, which is great for the younger players, giving them much needed experience in map reading. Not only does Pokémon Go promote education using landmarks and maps, it also gets players outside exploring. Playing the game outside means seeing plants, wildlife, and land formations such as waterfalls, streams, or rock formations that one normally wouldn’t see. This gives players get a chance to learn about the nature that surrounds
Pokestops and Gyms are usually located at landmarks. These landmarks can be statues, monuments, museums or even graveyards. Many times, players have no idea these landmarks even exist in their hometown. The game promotes exploration, and then in turn, teaches its players about the history around them. This even has the potential to drive players to become a part of the community. For example, some of the most common places to find Pokémon in the Boston are The Public Garden, Christian Science Plaza, and The New England Aquarium, to name a few. (Erdekian, 2016) Each of these locations give players an opportunity to learn more about their city’s history and architecture. In addition, the ability to read maps on the application is also an educational aspect of the game. (Dicker, 2016) Reading maps and taking directions are key aspects of adulthood. Because the game is a location based augmented reality application, players are literally catching Pokémon on the same streets that they would walk to work or school on, which is great for the younger players, giving them much needed experience in map reading. Not only does Pokémon Go promote education using landmarks and maps, it also gets players outside exploring. Playing the game outside means seeing plants, wildlife, and land formations such as waterfalls, streams, or rock formations that one normally wouldn’t see. This gives players get a chance to learn about the nature that surrounds