3 Things I learned playing Pokemon Go
I know I am VERY late to the party on this one so bare with me.
Last night a friend of mine convinced me to join in on his adventure while he played Pokemon go. He was crashing on my couch for the evening so I said why not and we started our adventure out of my apartment and towards Central Park. I had very little exceptions for the evening thinking this game was not quite for me and starting the walk in a quick summer thunderstorm didn't help the mood. As we adventured around NYC I learned quite a bit and met some cool people along the way. Here's what I learned...
1. I learned you can have face to face social interactions in a virtual world.
In Pokemon go there are "hotspots" where you can find groups of Pokemon, you can identify these spots by groups of people in this case about 25 +/-, running around on their cell phones and gathering in one spot then quickly dispersing. As I observed my friend who I have known for 6 years and never seen in a gym or play a sport, sprint from location to location around the Museum of Natural History, I noticed the amount of social interaction between the people playing. They would ask each other, "where are they, what level are you on" and start up game based conversation that turned into real conversation. The amount of social interaction between the players in this hotspot blew my mind.
2.It's not just teens playing this game...
Who I met playing this game was also not what I expected. On one of our runs around the Museum we met a couple from Japan, a hedge fund analyst, a few teenagers, about 6 different 30 somethings walking their dogs and "taking a break from the wife and kids" and many more. Once you got past the brutally awkward fact you are both outside running around looking for Pokemon, everything seemed very normal. They were not all nerdy types either, groups of girls (shocking amount), foreign and local, goths (you know the ones who dress in all black ripped leggings and studded belts with scary tats), Gay, Straight, Black, White, Asian, and everything in between, point made.
The coolest one to me was 3 or 4 father and son teams playing together.
What a cool activity before bed.
This game has everyone of all backgrounds socializing.
3. Active and Fun
We walked over 6 miles last night. Through the park, up and down blocks, upstairs, downstairs, we put in work. This game gets you moving especially when you are chasing a specific type and need to get to a location before they disappear. This game has brought Face to Face social interaction and exercise into gaming.......What a time to be alive.
Can't lie, game is fun. No, I will not be leaving CRE to catch em all nor will I be leaving my office to do so but I did have a good time and understand why this game has taken the world by storm. Give it a try, never know what you will learn trying something new.
"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths." -Walt Disney