Tech

I tried Pokemon Go for the first time, and I’m not impressed. At all.

2016-07-07 , 11:55 am

Last Updated on 2016-07-11 , 9:39 am

I’m sure many of you guys are Pokémon fans. So am I. I bought way too many Gameboy cartridges, collected all the trading cards – I mean, “I wanna be the very best, like no one ever was” was the theme song of my LIFE.

So you bet I was super excited when I found out yesterday that it was released on the New Zealand App Store. And proceeded to download it immediately.

But sadly – I was kind of let down.

Before I get into it, here’s a breakdown of the game:

It’s like your typical Gameboy Pokémon game, where you can choose between a male or female character.

And also decide what you want your character to wear.

You have to go around to different places (called PokéStops) to catch Pokémon. It’s indicated as a blue marker in the game.

3-Screenshot-of-Pokemon-GO copy — Image: The Pokémon Company

But first, you’ll have to catch your starter Pokémon. You’ll be able to choose from the three original starters – Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur.

To get your starter, you have to flick a Poké ball (or in my case, Poké balls) at it.

Here’s how it looks in the Pokedéx.

And when you’re at a high enough level, you can go to gyms and battle gym trainers.

FullSizeRender — Image: The Pokémon Company

Okay, so now that’s out of the way, here’s why I found it disappointing.

You can’t move around in the game unless you’re moving around IRL

Which is perfectly okay. I mean, that’s what the game was supposed to be about anyway. But when I walked around my estate, there were only 2 Pokémon nearby – a Geodude and a Zubat (and those aren’t that cool). That’s got to be disappointing.

Some people have seen up to 9 Pokémon at a single location though, so I guess it all boils down to luck. Just cross your fingers and hope for the best.

Some PokéStops are placed at misleading (and confusing) locations

The Verge even reported that Australian players tried to enter a police station because the game used it as one of the PokéStops.

Here’s the official statement from the Darwin Police Department:

Image: Facebook (Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services)

LOL.

Granted, users didn’t actually have to enter the station to catch the Sandshrew (they could have done it from outside the place) but still. Misleading.

If you think that only happens overseas, well – you’ll be surprised. One of the PokéStops I came across before the game was shut down was labelled as “twin dolphin statue” – which happened to be found inside a condominium. Trespassing’s no big deal, right…?

The game kills your battery life

Screen Shot 2016-07-07 at 11.31.43 am — Image: Twitter

Even the company has realised the problem, and is said to be “working on it”.

“Some devices may experience battery drain while playing Pokémon GO for prolonged periods of time. We are working on a solution.”

Please do, or we’ll have to stock up on portable charger(s).

You’ll have to spend real money if you want to level up quick

This isn’t surprising, but it’s still a bummer when the alternative is to keep flicking your finger (and missing on occasion).

Screen_Shot_2016-07-06_at_11.21.56_AM.0 — Image: The Pokémon Company

You can’t battle wild Pokémon

Unlike what you do at the Pokémon Go gyms, the only thing you can do when confronted with a wild Pokémon is flick a Poké ball at it and hope for the best.

sub-buzz-11463-1467757390-1 (1) — Image: The Pokémon Company

Many have said the real fun starts when you’re battling gym trainers, so at least you have that to look forward to when it’s officially released here.

If you’re a hardcore Pokémon fan, you’ll still want to try it out for yourself. Even though I found it disappointing, I’ll still be playing it for now – I mean, it’s Pokémon. Just don’t get your hopes up too high, because it’s no Pokémon Sapphire or Soul Silver.

This article was first published on goodyfeed.com