Kyle's Corner July 20

Why the Pokemon Go craze is a good thing

Pokemon Go was released on mobile devices in the U.S. about a week ago and it has since swept the country. The premise of the mobile video game, is to catch all of the 90s pocket monsters and to battle them against others to level up. The new mobile game, however, is revolutionary. The game uses a technology called augmented reality that enables the user to see a computer generated image in the real world.

The game uses cell phone cameras to capture the environment and requires the players to use GPS to play the game. Gamers walk around their neighborhood and really anywhere on the map to collect Pokemon, find Poke Stops (where they can get items) and battle at their local gym to level up their Pokemon and fight for their teams.

Pokemon was viewed as a huge fad in the 90s, but obviously it has a lot of staying power to be resurrected in 2016. As a 90s kid, I admit, I loved Pokemon in the 90s and I still love Pokemon in 2016. It seems that adults in their mid to late twenties are running Hollywood, technology and the entertainment industry today and a lot of  90s influence is being seen in their work.

Since I was 6, I love looking at maps and going to obscure places. Pokemon Go encourages people to go to different places and most importantly physically interact with each other.  I have personally seen people playing the game in Graham and Fort Worth and in both locations there is a sense of community being fostered and at least some level of physical fitness involved.

There have been plenty of critics in the media about the game within days of its release. Many are dismissing it as another cultural phenomenon and many are criticizing people for burying their heads into a screen.

I am a huge baseball fan, and I can’t stand when people can’t be where they’re at and watch a ball game instead of playing on their phone. This game, however, is activating people and creating communities where there otherwise might not have been one.

Sure, people are burying their heads into a screen, but they are out and about doing it. They are seeing their local community and they are interacting with their fellow man. With all of the violence, angst and anger in the world it is a good thing to see people coming together playing Pokemon Go.

The media has been quick to jump on incidents that have happened, relating to Pokemon Go. There have been a couple of dead bodies discovered while playing the game. Now granted, that is pretty creepy, but at least the game mobilized people enough to where they found them, right? How is that the games fault?

Another teen playing the game was recently bit by a snake. Another adult stopped traffic and created an accident while hunting a Pikachu. On Thursday, it was reported that another set of players walked off a cliff near San Diego while playing the game. There was also a robbery committed preying off of people’s good intent to just play the game.

These instances are comical and some disturbing, and there is some stupid behavior behind them. With that being said, no matter what you are doing, you should always use some common sense. If people fail to recognize that, then there are consequences.

I for one, am excited about the technology behind augmented reality. I think it is the new wave of the future and I am thrilled that it is getting people off of their butts and active. New HoloLens technology is coming out that will combine elements of augmented reality with virtual reality. With the headset, a person will be able to use motion controls to play the game, and the game will actually appear real in your setting.

This technology is really cool, but the benefits are what really make Pokemon Go a win for humanity. In today’s climate, it is great to see all types of people coming together and getting involved. Hopefully, through the game, we might be able to see people more likely to give back to their community, and foster goodwill within it.

I admit, I am a little embarrassed walking around with my phone playing the game, but I will not shy away from admitting that it’s fun and an overall a good thing for society.