After hearing about and reading about the Pokémon Go phenomenon over the last couple of days, I never actually though too much about it one way or the other. The idea of a game based in augmented reality sounded pretty far out. It wasn’t until I joined a few friends at Billy Club in Allentown for drinks and appetizers that I began to tune into the game. How could I not?
As we sat in the front window, hoards of players walked by, transfixed by the game that they were playing on their smart phones. It was a very bizarre sight to behold. As much as we tried not to pay attention to the transfixed players who circled about in front of us, it was hard not to notice the spectacle. There were people everywhere, staring down at their phones, with faces illuminated in the twilight hour, attempting to capture high ranking Pokémon creatures. The hostess at the station couldn’t believe her eyes, and eventually walked outside to talk to one of the gamers. It was at that point that we headed out the door, to grab a baloney sandwich at the Old Pink.
As we walked across Allen, we noticed that every street corner was occupied by gamers, in search of Chespin, Quilladin, Chesnaught, Fennekin, Braixen, Delphox, Froakie, Frogadier, Greninja, Bunnelby, Diggersby, Fletchinder and Talonflame – just a few of the characters listed in the National Pokédex (upwards of 780 total). As we ducked into the Old Pink, we were flabbergasted to see a bunch of players at the end of the bar who appeared to be drinking and scanning at the same time. We meandered our way down to the middle of the bar and, for the first time all evening. managed to escape the Pokémon Go madness.
For me, the verdict is still out when it comes to my feelings about the game. The hunt had brought people to Allentown who, I believe, were visiting for the first time. There were players of various ethnicities and age brackets. There were guys and gals, jocks and geeks, hipsters and business types… all engrossed in playing. My initial feeling was, if this is what it takes to get people out walking around, socializing (in their own way), and exploring the city, then why not? In light of all of the violence that we have seen all over the world as of late, here was an activity that appeared harmless (for the most part) and a bit intriguing I must confess.
No, I have zero intentions of getting caught up in all of the Pokémon Go hoopla. Alas, I’m a tad older than most of the players that I encountered, who probably grew up in the age of Pokémon. Then again, I played my fair share of video games, and considered myself a decent gamer back in the Mario Brothers days. So who am I to say what is right and wrong? As long as people are enjoying themselves, and not getting hit while crossing the road (yes, it’s happening), then I believe it’s better to be outside exploring Buffalo than sitting behind a computer screen in the dark shadows of a bedroom or basement.