New game million. Why is the world going crazy with Pokémon Go

20 years later, Pokémon are reborn

The generation of the 90s well remembers the massive fascination with Pokemon - pocket monsters of Japanese origin with unique superpowers. Then, in the wake of the popularity of the animated series of the same name, an entire industry developed: collectible cards, comics, toys. 20 years later, Pokémon are reborn with Pokémon Go, developed by Nintendo and Niantic Labs.

How it works

Pokémon Go is an online augmented reality geolocation game that launched on July 6th for iOS and Android. The game is currently only available in the American, New Zealand and Australian App Store.

After the game is downloaded and installed, the user launches it and turns on the camera. On the screen, he sees what is happening around him, and the application, meanwhile, inserts Pokemon there. Moreover, if two people stand in the same place, they will be shown the same Pokemon, but only one of them can catch it. You can play without turning on the camera, then a map with objects and a player's avatar will be displayed on the screen.

For capturing wild Pokémon, they give "stardust" or "candy" - a special game currency. Both of them increase the fighting strength of the Pokemon, and candies help to advance it up the evolutionary ladder. Pokémon of different users can then participate in training battles.

Where are Pokémon hunted

With the introduction of Pokémon Go, video games have taken to the next level. Now users need to go out and interact with other people, and gaming adventures entail real ones. For example, a teenage girl from Wyoming was looking for a water Pokemon in a river and found a corpse, an American Marine caught her first Pokemon while serving in Iraq, and Jonathan Therio hunted for Pokemon in the ward of his wife, who was about to give birth.

American volunteer fighting ISIS with the Kurdish militias caught his first pokeman on the Mosul front line. #poke pic.twitter.com/PMbdYaIYqJ

The Big Pharaoh (@TheBigPharaoh) Jul 10, 2016 Free transfer

American cafes and shops used the game as a marketing ploy, inviting visitors to "catch Pokemon". In many such places there were “ GYM's"Or" PokéStops "are places for replenishing in-game resources.

But in the Holocaust Museum in Washington, monster hunters were not welcome.

"It's not allowed to play the game in a museum that is a memorial to the victims of Nazism," museum spokesman Andrew Hollinger told the Washington Post. "We're trying to figure out if the museum can be removed from the game."

Pokémon have been seen in a funeral home, in a cemetery, in a police station, in a strip club. "I don't even know which is worse: the Pokemon in the funeral home or the fact that I see it there," wrote a journalist from Boston magazine.

What does it threaten

The popularity of the new game was taken advantage of by criminals: in Missouri, a gang of robbers placed a special game item on the “PokéStop” to lure Pokémon. As a result, 11 teenagers became victims.

Australian Sonny Truen lost his job in Singapore due to Pokémon Go. In a sneering Facebook post, he wrote that Singapore is not a desirable place to live because a new game is not available there.

Truen wrote that Singapore is full of "stupid people" and the national IQ will drop if he leaves the country. The man was fired after Singaporeans complained about the message to his employer, online real estate agency 99.co. There are also a lot of stories on the network about how people stood in the middle of the roadway, because there were Pokémon.

In Sydney, Australia, in pursuit of a rare Pokemon, a crowd of more than a thousand people occupied a suburban area, interfering local residents sleep throwing trash and drinking alcohol. In response, eggs and water bombs fell on them from the balconies.

Pokemon Hunters in the Sydney Suburbs Open Source

“The park where everyone hangs out is a playground,” says one resident. “Between 300 and 400 people gather every night to play a game. It's a very small park and the crowd goes crazy. People shout at the top of their voices. smoke in the playground. "

Senator Al Franken of Minnesota wrote a letter to Niantic Labs expressing concern about the safety of personal data of users of the game. He accused the company of collecting user data and potentially distributing it to third parties. He emphasized that most users are children, and the default settings for the application are automatic data collection.

The Senator made seven requests for additional information, such as a list of "third party service providers" with whom Niantic shares information and the reasons for this.

Records and prospects

After launching in the US on July 6, the game took less than 24 hours to top the free and top-grossing App Store charts. One in 20 Americans with a Google smartphone has already installed a game for themselves. In five days, the value of Nintendo increased by $ 7.5 billion.

In the near future, the application with the game may overtake Twitter in the daily audience. According to Google Trends, Pokémon Go has overtaken porn in search terms.

Business Insider

From open sources

On July 7, the game's servers collapsed for a while due to overload, and the interruptions continue over and over again. Therefore, the worldwide launch of the hit toy has been postponed for now.

"For Niantic and the Pokémon Company, the question is whether they can maintain their popularity long time... Some mobile games, such as Candy Crush and Clash of Clans, have used viral startups to build viable long-term businesses, while others, including Flappy Bird and Draw Something, have become instant outbreaks, "writes The Guardian.

Pokémon Go in Ukraine

Despite the fact that the toy has not yet been officially launched in Ukraine, our compatriots are actively using it. You can download it from here. On the VKontakte social network there are a lot of groups of Ukrainian Pokemon masters who are already getting to know each other and organize meetings in different cities.

Judging by the announcement, a gathering is planned in the capital this Sunday, fans of the game will meet at the metro station "Independence Square" at 13:00.

About nomination

The gaming industry is like the sea. Either the waves rise to the skies, then calm reigns for several months, but life is always in full swing. This sea is also truly unpredictable. Experts expect a storm, but only get a couple of bursts, and vice versa. This is how it happened this year. We will tell you about the most important trends and trends in the industry, natural and unexpected, in this nomination.

3rd place. Achievements of Russian eSports

Russian big sports this year was surrounded by scandals related to the Rio Olympics. Once again, fans and stakeholders were able to make sure that serious international competition is tied to politics, undercover intrigues and machinations. Against this background, esports seems even more transparent and open. In addition, everything is very good with him this year.

Russian players have shown excellent results in tournaments around the world, but the achievements of the Albus Nox Luna team should be especially noted. The guys managed to reach unprecedented heights - by League of legends... Until 2016, not a single team from the CIS countries succeeded. Unfortunately, the British titans from H2k-Gaming, who ANX with a score of 3: 0, did not allow Russian players to rise higher in the standings. But throughout the championship, journalists noted that Albus Nox showed a really beautiful and professional game.

An equally important event was in Russia. Yes, not the first time. Cybersport already entered the All-Russian Register of Sports in 2001, but it was removed from there in 2006. Hopefully the re-inclusion will be final. Moreover, it is quite natural. Suffice it to recall how large-scale League of Legends was at the VTB Ice Palace in Moscow and how much attention it attracted from the press.

Not only gaming, but also sports publications write about virtual battles in detail. If the International Sports Federation settles the issue of including the relevant disciplines in the program of the Olympic Games, then it is possible that Russian teams will defend the honor of the country already at the Tokyo Olympics.

2nd place. VR

Its offensive was predicted by science fiction writers, gamers all over the world dreamed of it, and now it has arrived - the era of virtual reality. VR helmets have ceased to be an impossible fantasy, prototypes that are shown to heads of corporations behind closed doors, and exhibits from exhibitions. Now these are very specific gadgets that anyone can buy in the store.

True, contrary to our expectations, the revolution as such did not happen. Of course, a new field has appeared for all sorts of experiments, which the leading developers are in a hurry to take advantage of. Most likely, in the coming years we will fully appreciate the potential of the current generation of helmets. But in 2016, virtual reality failed to turn the industry upside down.

To be convinced of this, just look at the sales forecasts. SuperData estimates that neither the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, nor PlayStation VR were able to reach the million-unit mark in 2016. It's not even close. Sony was the most successful with its PS VR, which the magazine Time included in the list of the main inventions of the year. 750 thousand PS4 owners wanted to purchase a new accessory for their console, since it costs almost half the price of Oculus and Vive, and besides, it does not require a powerful computer. But even that figure is not impressive compared to initial forecasts of two million helmets sold in the first three months after release.

Shot from the game Batman: Arkham VR.

Anyway, about VR. Admired, praised, scolded. This is not just a trend, but the beginning of a new stage in gaming industry.

1st place. Pokemon go

It seems that the word "hype" was invented specifically to describe all the madness that was happening in the world in the first months after the release of the mobile game from the studio Niantic... Pokémon were literally everywhere. They were caught by your friends, acquaintances, colleagues at work, they were talked about on the Internet, on TV, on entertainment and serious radio stations. It seems that even the grandmothers on the benches remembered Pikachu, which they had not heard of from children for fifteen years. The world is engulfed in Pokemonomania.

$ 14 Million in a Week, $ 200 Million in a Month, Stock Growth Nintendo by 86%. became the most downloaded mobile game in the United States and one of the most successful games in history. It will be studied by students in marketing, and developers - perhaps the same Niantic - will try in vain to repeat its phenomenal success.

However, the phenomenon is also a phenomenon that it is unique. It will not be possible to replay it by simple repetition. But the development of ideas is quite possible. Pokemon GO has rendered a huge service to the mobile and not only gaming industry: it has proven the viability and relevance of augmented reality as a format. Several new AR games are already under development. Who knows, maybe one of them will change the picture of the world even more.

Pokemon GO and AR development deservedly receive the title of the main trend of 2016.

It is almost impossible to predict what awaits us in 2017, because trends are unexpected things. No one knew that in 2016 the most discussed topic would be a mobile game about pocket monsters. And in the new year, the initiative can be taken over by anything or anyone. The whole next year we will tirelessly discuss the Nintendo Switch, Hideo Kojima's new game, and the development of virtual reality. But which of this will become the main trend, we will find out at the end of the year.

Through exchange / trade. This is very good news for people from the other side of the earth who have their eyes on Pokémon that are characteristic of certain regions, such as Australia's Kangaskhan, for example. Niantic CEO John Hanke revealed at the annual San Diego, California Comic Con that the team is really working to add commerce, new workout options, along with customizable Pokestops and more Pokémon from the latest generations of Nintendo. They are also thinking about adding a breeding function for Pokémon.

What's new in Pokemon Go?

The most interesting thing that will soon be presented to players is the customizable PokeStops. According to the description of Hanke himself, the idea is that gamers will be able to receive items that will act like (which, when activated, summons and keeps nearby Pokemon on the blue points of PokeStops), but will modify the PokeStops themselves. For example, it would be possible to turn a PokeStop into a treatment location, essentially making it a temporary PokeCenter. And it will also be possible to make the PokeStop attract a certain one, for example, like an all-electric Lure (a bait that electric Pokemon will "bite" at). And you can also choose which items will be available on PokéStops for trainers.

New Pokemon in Pokemon Go

Of course, everyone is eagerly awaiting the arrival of new Pokémon from the latest generations. And they will appear soon, confirmed Hanke. On this moment 151 Red and Blue Pokémon monsters are involved in the game. And CEO Niantic said that the team is looking for interesting ways integrate new characters into the Pokémon Go world. It all sounded like the company didn't have a clear timeline for when this would happen and what it would look like, but it makes it clear that the emergence of new Pokémon will not be just a batch update with the addition of entire subsequent generations.

Trading in Pokemon Go

Hanke also noted that the (trade) function is currently in development. Trading has been an integral part of Pokemon since the first generation of games, and its introduction in Pokemon Go is also appropriate. Probably, each player has a monster with a cool skill level, but it would be cool on a walk with a friend just to exchange with him what you personally lack for further development.

Reproduction in Pokemon Go

Pokémon breeding is also one of the important elements of the series. This will be a smarter way to generate Eggs for the players.

New workouts in Pokemmon Go

Improvements in training will be very welcome too. Until now, the only way to upgrade Pokemon in Pokemon Go is to catch a Pokemon of the same kind and exchange them for seeds, which are used to increase the CP power. Fighting in your own Pokémon team in your "Gym" is also "training" in the game, but in essence it only gains experience and improves the performance of the "Gym" itself. An advanced training technique that provides alternative ways to improve your Pokémon's skill level will come in very handy.

Even if you have to wait months, if not years, until the developers launch new Pokémon or other new features, true fans of the game will not have time to get bored.

If your friends and acquaintances began to disappear from home for several hours, and then talk about the "captured stadiums" and "hatched eggs", then you should know: everything is in order with them. They just overwhelmed them too new wave pokemonomania, as it happened in the early 2000s. Only this time, the hobby literally swept the whole world.

What happened?

On July 6, the new Pokémon Go game about Pokémon, developed for mobile platforms, was released. It took her only a week to conquer the world: Pokémon Go became the most popular mobile game in the history of the United States, it burst to the top of the App Store charts and is getting close to it in Google play, and in the media every day there are notes about Pokémon.

The secret behind Pokémon Go's popularity lies in its augmented reality technology. The player uses the camera and geolocation system to search and catch Pokémon on the streets, in parks, and so on. After that, the player can train and develop their Pokémon, as well as engage in battles with other trainers.

This is what it looks like: a pokemon is sitting on a lawn by the side of the road.

Who is behind this?

Pokémon Go was released by the Japanese company Nintendo, but the Americans from Niantic Labs helped it in this. Niantic Labs was founded in 2010 as an internal Google startup, but gained full independence in 2015.

Ingress, the first project of Niantic Labs, is also an MMO game for mobile platforms that uses the rules of augmented reality. In it, players, divided into two teams, fight for influence over "portals" - objects of cultural significance. The player can walk up to a statue or monument and "capture" it in the game. Due to its complexity, the game never gained popularity among a mass audience.

In Pokémon Go, the developers took into account Ingress's bugs: they simplified the game and added several new features. As a result, Pokémon Go had the effect of an exploding bomb: as in the late 1990s and early 2000s, today everyone is talking about Pokémon again.

What's the point of Pokémon Go?

Niantic Labs has relied on collecting Pokémon. Remember the motto of Catch Them All? So here this principle works in full: players of even the first level can carry 250 (!) Pokémon with them. Another thing is that first you need to find and catch them.

Once you create your trainer, you will be prompted to catch the first Pokémon. After that, you go outside to look for others. They are found in parks, courtyards, side streets, and even churches. Some Pokémon can be found almost anywhere, while others will have to run around. For example, water-type Pokémon live near bodies of water, while electric Pokémon (like Pikachu) can be caught during a thunderstorm.

When you reach 5th level, you will be asked to choose one of three factions. Now you can engage not only in hunting, but also in battles with enemy trainers and Pokémon. So, in order to capture the stadium for your team (it brings the advantage in the form of experience, coins and stardust), you must defeat the defender Pokémon, which was set by the opponents. If you won, then bet on the defense of one of your Pokémon - preferably stronger and stronger.

In general, this is all a beginner trainer needs to know - walk around the city, catch Pokémon and sometimes fight. The first tutorials have already appeared on the web that will allow you to understand all the intricacies of Pokémon Go.

How can I play this?

At the time of launch (July 6), the game was released on iOS and Android in the USA, Australia and New Zealand. On July 14, the game became available in Europe, and in Russia the official release is promised before the end of the week. But the most impatient can do it now.

For Android owners: you just need to download the .apk file to your device and then launch it. Don't forget to turn on your internet connection and geolocation. Be careful - a version of the file with embedded malware is already being distributed on the network.

For iOS owners: it's a little more complicated here. You need to create a new AppleID with a link to a real American address (such can be found on the web). After that, the game can already be downloaded through the App Store. Or you can wait a few days.

If you nevertheless installed the game, please note: the connection to the servers may sometimes freeze, since the regional servers have not yet been activated in Russia.

Why is Pokémon Go talked about at every turn?

First, Pokémon are still remembered in Asia, Europe, Australia and North America... This brand is well-known, new seasons of the animated series are released and published board games... According to rumors, a real race has begun in Hollywood for the right to bring Pokémon to the big screen.

The second reason is the incredible precedent for augmented reality technology - something Ingress could not even dream of. While game and gaming device developers were passionate about finding the perfect virtual reality formula, Pokémon Go took and brought augmented reality to the masses. Without a doubt, such projects will soon start popping up like mushrooms after rain. Augmented reality can become a new entertainment industry with its own standards and attitude towards games. What are the only complaints from users about bad weather, because of which it is impossible to go fishing for Pokémon!

It's raining, so I can't go and play video games outside 🙁

The third reason is self-promotion. Many users may argue: "Yes, this is a sale article, again a stupid advertisement for Pokemon!" It's much simpler - Pokémon Go doesn't need additional advertising. The site of the popular forum Reddit has been filled with stories from the game for many days already, Twitter and Facebook now and then come across pictures from the curious habitats of Pokémon, and Vkontakte hashtag #pokemongo remains one of the most popular.

News feeds here and there report unusual circumstances surrounding Pokémon Go players. There are a whole lot of them - from the case where a young girl, while hunting for Pokémon, found a corpse by the river, and ending with outright ducks like the news about the largest accident in the United States, which was the fault of the driver who caught Pikachu.

19-year-old Shyla Wiggins from Riverton found the body by the river during a morning walk in search of Pokémon. This was confirmed by the sheriff of the district police.

Attackers also noticed Pokémon Go. According to the police department in the small town of O'fallon, Missouri, criminals have carried out armed attacks on victims, who are searched for using the game. The robbers marked “pokestops” on the map (places where you can get game resources) in remote and remote places, and then attacked teenagers 16-18 years old, taking away values. When looking at your smartphone, do not forget about vigilance!

Players and netizens continue to share funny and unusual incidents related to the game. Some of them involve significant risks.

You shouldn't catch Pokemon near the train tracks.

Fans of the game are tired of walking around the city and bumping into obstacles in the form of houses and fences. They synchronized the phone with a laptop and launched a controlled drone, with the help of which they catch the drones. Now, to play video games, you don't need to leave your home again.

Some establishments are already luring visitors with a Pokemon game:

Some people remembered an excerpt from the TV series "Black Mirror", in which the heroine cannot understand why everyone around is standing with smartphones and filming something:

* * *

Pokémon Go can be viewed in many ways. Someone got another reason to walk around the city, someone felt like a trainer from their favorite franchise, and someone can no longer see these Pokemon (an add-on for the Google Chrome browser has been released, which allows you to block mentions of Pokemon). However, we must admit: Pokémon Go has become a cultural phenomenon and one of the main phenomena of 2016. The main merit of this game is that it made the smartphone screen a window to another world - and our own reality became a little more fantastic.