Past few days have been frantic, like always. Most of you guys might have a chance seeing people madly swiping their smartphones in front of their favorite spots or might have heard about your friends talking excitedly about how they caught a Bulbasaur on the stove. Well, if you are still guessing what the hell was happening, then here is our revelation to quench your thirst for an answer.
And the answer is, Pokmon Go. Its a new smartphone game from Niantic Labs and Nintendo. As per the data presented by Digital Vision, just after two days of this apps launch, it was installed on over 5% of Android devices in the US and risen to the top sport on the iTunes app stores free app charts. This also led to Nintendos stock going to their highest value since 1983. The demand for the game increased by leaps and bounds to the extent that they servers crashed regularly. Many people were literally crying over such incidents.
Here in this article, we explain you all about the Pokmon Go Mania and what it is all about. In the meantime, you can get all dressed up in these Pokemon Kigurumis to keep the spirit alive.
What is Pokmon?
Its a phenomenon that began as a Real Player Game for Game Boy about 20 years ago. Pokmons executive director Satoshi Tajiris childhood affection to collect insect-inspired this game, which involved catching mysterious creatures known as Pokmon. These creatures have to be trained before taking them into battle. This led to the diversification of Pokmon into, anime, card games, manga, and various other console games throughout the years.
What is Pokmon Go?
Its termed as a real world adventure which means that it uses both GPS and Augmented Reality (AR) which allows one to hunt and train Pokmon as one is out wandering in his/her neighborhood. The AR functionality uses users smartphones or tablets back facing camera to display Pokmon as though they are quite actually in front of the user, or for an instance, on the washing machine.
How to catch them all?
As you walk around, any Pokmon can appear on the map. In case you spot flurries of leaves, it means you might have a chance to see or even catch a rare Pokmon lurking nearby. The small bar at the lower right corner of the screen is a rather loose guide according to which the Pokmon are in the vicinity. In case there are three footprints, it means Pokmon is further away while one means, it is probably right behind you.
Then you have to tap on the Pokmon, and it will appear in front of you. You have to throw Pokballs by swiping on your smartphone screen. The best time to hit the Pokmon is when the circle around the Pokmon has shrunk.
What to do when someone catches the Pokmon before you do?
The main sheen of this game is that there are plenty of Pokmon wandering everywhere. You can go ahead to find another one if in case someone catches the Pokmon before you get a chance to catch it. You can also guide or help people to find locations with Pokmon or even help strangers to Psyduck infestation nearby. Instead of causing any clashes, this game is bringing way many people together.
Does anyone have to leave the house?
The answer is No. You can choose to spend a lot of Pokcoins and even actual coins to buy Incense that lures Pokmon even to your living room. But this game is also helping lonely and depressed people to go outside while making other people go on a stroll with their dog and play this game along with it.
Where can you find Pikachu?
This popular and most loved electric mouse, the brand ambassador for Pokmon, isnt the so-called starter Pokmon that you find when you start this game.
Some reports suggest that if you start ploughing on past the starter trio in a dedicated tribute to old days of Pokmon Yellow- you may run into Pikachu.
What do you do at the Pokmon Gym?
In this game you can improve your Pokmons stats by training them in two-sided exercise: first, you can pump up or power up your Pokmon by using a combination of Stardust(a thing you receive when you catch a Pokmon) and candy for a specific breed, which makes your Pokemon stronger by increasing their combat points.
Second way is to make them fight. In the start of the game, you can pick any out of three team red (Team Valor), yellow (Team Instinct) or blue (Team Mystic) and your team will provide you instructions regarding which gyms are friendly and which are combative. After you hit level five, you can then take your Pokmon to battle at various gyms, either friendly: ones that are organized by your team or enemy ones where you can fight with local champs of the particular gym of others team.
In order to get to know more about training and fighting in Pokmon Go, here is a guide for you. A successful stint at the gym will fetch you Pokcoins and you can capture the gym too.
What are Pokstops?
Pokstops are like lucky stops for any aspiring Pokmon trainer. Mostly associated with or attached to places of interests like statues, churches, squares, these stops will drop loot like snacks for Pokmon, Pokballs, and medicines for battle-worn Pokmon.
Just tap on the Pokstop when it turns into a series of concentric circles. Spin the central one and savor your loot.
Do you need to spend money to get Pokcoins?
Nope. Nada, Zilch. You dont have to spend anything to earn Pokcoins. The microtransactions or in-game purchases are an extra optional in Pokmon Go. However, you can still visit the in-app shop to buy Pokcoins in bulk which you can then use them to stock up extra incense or potions but most of such items often drop from Pokstops.
Do you have to listen the music?
Absolutely Not. Just switch off the music in the Pokmon Go settings.
What to do when you have caught too many Pokmon that you cant handle them ?
Two things can definitely help you in such situation: you can transfer identical Pokmon to Professor Willow and get candy in exchange that will help the Pokmon to evolve into more powerful form.
Or, once you have a particular Pokmon you are quite interested to improve its stats, you can rename it as per you liking.
Does this game eat your battery life?
Probably it will. So it will be better if you close all other apps, switch your device on to battery saver in Pokmon Gos settings and you can also switch off AR while catching Pokmon or battling at the gym.
Whats the social aspect to the game?
At the present stage, the in-game interaction with different people is limited to battling their Pokmon at gyms. But there are few stories about people teaming up to go for Pokmon hunting and people helping others to find elusive Pokmon.
So, what are you waiting for? Go ahead, download this fantastic game, find your Pokmon and make friends out of strangers.
Pikachu ! Pikachu !