On July 6th, just a little over 10 days ago, Nintendo released Pokemon Go! for the Apple iTunes and Google Play app stores. Now, the enhanced augmented reality game has made America (and half the world) beyond shameful. I say that because for a lot of people, a game is more important than their lives or families - - a Oregon State man was playing the game with an opponent and he got stabbed instead - - yet the victim continued to go monster hunting despite a knife wound on his shoulder which required 8 stitches. The game requires players to use their GPS and cameras on their phones to locate Pokemons at landmarks and other various locations - - through Pokemon stops (or Poke Stops) and gyms. Once they have a monster in their sights, they either throw a ball to catch it or take a screenshot (the pokemon is on the camera screen as they take it.). There a many instances where multiple players meet at one location where there is a Pokemon to catch (only one player can get it). The game has surpassed Candy Crush Saga as the most players logged in a 24 hour period. Because the game requires you to stare at the phone for extended periods of time while tracking and catching Pokemons, it has evolved in a myriad of incidents which garnered news attention, some good, some bad, some strange and some outlandishly stupid. Businesses have benefited from among the many locations which are Pokemon gyms. However this does not mean cemeteries and sacred museums with a player finding a dead body, should be "gyms" too
The weirdest stories involving Pokemon hunting have been as follows:
1. Two California men fell off a cliff while chasing a Pokemon
2. A police station is one of the "gyms", and a Pokemon player with an arrest warrant checks in during gameplay, only to be arrested when cops recognize him.
3. A Florida man whose property is a "gym", shoots at two Pokemon players. parked outside his residence.
4. Pokemon Go has already caused some couples to the brink of divorce.
5. A New Zealand bartender quits his job so he can work at his new full time job - - chasing Pokemons for free.
6. A hacking group claimed responsibility for taking down Nintendo's servers through a calculated DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack.
7. A rare Pokemon,Vaperon, causes a 11 PM meltdown in New York's Central Park. The lucky one in the crowd who caught Vaperon, ran out of his car with the engine running. (I don't think his insurance company will be happy to hear about that if his car was stolen).
8. An upstate NY man wrecks his car while playing Pokemon. Don't Pokemon and Drive.
9. Three people playing Pokemon were trapped after hours in a locked cemetery. Special thanks to Brian Weinberg for the mention after I posted this article.
The whole point is, it's only a game which you should enjoy as part of your day, not taking up your entire life. At the end of the day, you still have family and work obligations to attend to - - and your life is more important than the game which you are not really being paid to play. I could see to a certain extent that if you received a check from Nintendo every two weeks, then be safe playing it. But remember your family and your health comes first and foremost, If that is a problem for you, then please uninstall the game before it is too late for you.
