Pokémon Go Is Not The Best Pokémon Game, But It Is Revolutionary

Available on Android and IOS. Released July 6th, 2016. Price: free.

Pokémon has a big franchise when it comes to card games, video games and products in general. The popular Japanese cartoon has made billions of dollars in a worldwide scenario. The first Pokémon game was made in 1996 as a role playing video game for the Game Boy console. It came out with two versions, the Pokémon Green and Red in Japan. The game was simple black- and-white screen, a one person player catching Pokémon and fighting in gyms for items. The game was based on the 150 original Pokémons from the cartoon, making the players identify with the franchise.

The popularity of the game made the franchise create the Blue version and sell it worldwide. Pokémon has evolved throughout the years and consoles. From being part of the Nintendo 64 to the modern Wii U Pokémon games brings people from all ages with new Pokémons. On July 6, 2016 Pokémon franchise has taken another step above their competitors. The Pokémon Company partnership with a company called Niantic and Nintendo to launch the first Pokémon game made for smartphones with the original 150 Pokémons out of 721. The new game is called Pokémon Go. The game is design for Android and IOS for free. The game is rated E for everyone.

The main purpose of the game is to catch different Pokémon in the real world. This is a close way to have virtual reality games where you are part of the game and interact directly with it. Pokémon Go uses a GPS system to interact with Pokémons around the area that you are located. The nearest Pokémon are showed in a small square in the GPS map. It shows you how close you are from a Pokémon depending on the footprints right below the Pokémon. Once you are close with the Pokémon, the footprints disappeared and a Pokémon or Pokémons will show up on your screen. The way you catch the Pokémons is by throwing pokeballs to them. The Pokémons have a strength level given randomly.

The Pokémons may or may not be catchable depending on the strength level they have. Once you catch a Pokémon, you may want to increase their level to fight against gyms. The gyms are based on three different teams that you as a player are eligible to pick after reaching a level five as a trainer player. Your player’s level will increase with experience by catching and powering up pokemons. Once you pick a team you can battle other players that are defending the gyms. The three teams are Valor in red, Mystic in blue, and Instinct in yellow.

Pokémon Go is not the greatest Pokémon game, yet the game is revolutionary and unique. There are some reasons why Pokémon Go is not the greatest. The first reason that I found is the lagging problem that the servers have. Pokémon Go was a huge expectation for fans of the franchise as a game. Nintendo released on September 2015 an advertisement of the new game Pokémon Go. The video showed the interaction of people as players of the game and the features of the game.

Fans of the franchise including me were excited to see the advancement of the game. The video showed new
features that no other Pokémon game had. On July 6 of 2016 that the game was released, millions of people downloaded the game. The expectations of the success of the game overlapped and caused the servers to lag. People were having trouble to log in the game and even downloaded from the app store. After seven days of the release of the game the servers are still having some trouble to function 100 percent.

People may be able to log in but when there is a busy area like in a city with a lot of players the servers might lag. The next reason why Pokémon Go is not the greatest comes by the way people catch Pokémons. Originally the Pokémon games you usually receive a Pokémon as a start and you battle the wild Pokémon to catch them. That way your Pokémon get experience by fighting other Pokémon. In Pokémon Go, the way to catch the Pokémon is just by throwing a pokeball to them. At the beginning it is easy to catch Pokémon but once you are a higher trainer level, it becomes harder to catch Pokémon since they become stronger. The game gives you items to make it easier to catch Pokémon. Those are obtained in Pokestops which are located in towns, parks or business for free. You as a player are able to buy items in the shop by purchasing them with a credit card. It is still hard to understand why Pokémon Company didn’t make it a battle between Pokémon to catch them all.

The third reason why Pokémon Go isn’t the greatest Pokémon game is because of the gym battles. In previews Pokémon games, a battle between two people was a strategy game. The trainers would choose their best Pokémon and battle on one on one. Each Pokémon had 4 different attacks that depended on their experience level. Each Pokémon would attack once per turn until one of the Pokémon was defeated. The trainer that defeated all other Pokémon from the other trainer would win. You were able to pick your next Pokémon right after one Pokémon was defeated.

In Pokémon Go, you can battle against the gyms that are spread around places. You fight as a player in order to conquer the gym for the team that you belong. The fight is among six Pokémons that you pick before the match starts. Once you select the Pokémons the match starts and you need to press the other side’s Pokémon to attack simultaneously until you defeat it. Once you defeat one a next Pokémon arrives. You win the game if you defeat the other side’s six Pokémon. There is no strategy what so ever in the battles. You just need to press as much as you can the enemy. That makes the battles weak since you can’t arrange different attacks. On the other side, that feature makes it more real since in the cartoon Pokémon attack each other simultaneously until one can’t keep up.

The last reason why Pokémon Go isn’t the greatest Pokémon game is because of the absence of functions that the original advertisement showed. The video shows a lot of functions that the game doesn’t have yet. The video is one of the reasons of why the game took popularity among people. I was disappointed when I played the game and none of the features were shown. Some of the features that were shown were trading Pokemons with other players, battling random players other than gyms, an exact number of the location of the Pokémon, and timed challenges to catch legendary Pokemons. None of this features are applicable for the game.

The positive side of the game is that it’s a game designed for smartphones. That means that it is cheaper and faster for the Pokémon system to do updates. They can update the game like other multiplayer app games such as Supercells’ Clash of Clans. They keep up with new items and updates of their online games in an often basis so the players won’t get bored. Also Pokémon Go is the first virtual game app that uses a GPS system to play. That will bring new games to the market as well as new technology to improve the original game. Another fact that I liked about the game is the fact that they used the original 150 Pokémons to bring people from all ages. The graphics of the game are good since we are bringing Pokémons to the real world. You can see good details of each Pokémon through the phone’s screen. There can be more improvements in the map design but at the same time it is the first of its kind.

Pokémon Go is not the greatest Pokémon game, yet the game is revolutionary and unique. It might not have the features that everyone expected. However, Pokémon Go is a game that makes you as a player a more outgoing person in order to catch the Pokémon. The game was designed for people to exercise and socialize. The times I have played the game I have experience both parts by socializing with other Pokémon trainers catching pokemons at the park. At the end as I mentioned the game is a multiplayer smartphone app. That will lead for the game better improvements and eventually will catch up with the expectations of the fans.