As I'm sure you've noticed, there's a new smartphone app that's caught the world by storm: Pokemon Go.
I'm fairly confident that if you're reading this, then you, too, downloaded the game and began your quest to catch 'em all.
There are several gleaming qualities to this game that spurred its raging success in its first week of deployment, which I will talk about, and one specific reason why I believe this game reached the apex of the smartphone community.
1. It's an easy game to play.
Literally anyone can play this game. It was obviously designed to appeal to the masses and the first step toward that is making a user-friendly game. I've seen all sorts of types of people playing: young, old, big and small. You name it, they play it. Mainly, you play by walking around, but you can even play while sitting on your couch watching TV or laying in your bed. All it takes is the swipe of a finger and a working server, which is the hardest part.
2. The 3D design and animations.
Admit it. You know that Charmander popping up when you first begin the game is adorable, as are several of the other Pokemon available to catch in the game. The creators did a very nice job rendering the first generation of Pokemon, and as many would say the best generation, into a smooth 3D collection of creatures. In addition, the Pokemons' movements are crisp and give users a good idea of what they would look like in real life. Yes, Magikarp flops around very pathetically, but that's because it IS pathetic.
3. Speaking of real life...the camera.
The aspect of incorporating the camera into the game sets it apart from every other game I've ever played on my iPhone. If you don't already know, when you tap on a Pokemon to enter the catching scene, your camera will open and put the Pokemon where your camera points. Found a Squirtle in the bathroom? It could be in your bathtub. Weedle in the grocery store? It's probably in your shopping cart. They go wherever you're pointing the camera, which adds a highly unique dimension to the game.
4. The exploration aspect.
The game encourages players to explore their area to find new Pokemon. Sure, you can sit at home and gather Pidgeys all day. But there is a radar on the screen that alerts you that different Pokemon are nearby, piquing the interest of players, and ultimately causing them to go search for these Pokemon. Many times, the rarer Pokemon will be in more unexplored areas. Sometimes, you'll even find more than what you were looking for...(I.E. a dead body, check the news)
5. Exercise.
Yeah, you read that right, exercise. I know plenty of people that dread exercise when they don't have to, but this game gives many people a good reason to get up and go outside, which has been shown to improve mental health and overall happiness. Interesting, right?
6. It differs from console games
Most gamers are quite familiar with the format of a traditional Pokemon game. Very structured, set region, designed plot, yadda yadda yadda. What attracts so many people to Pokemon Go is that it's pretty much the exact opposite of that. There's hardly any structure the game, the region is, well, the world, and there's absolutely no plot whatsoever. This contributes to it being an easy game to play, but is another reason why it's gained such renown.
These reasons are all pretty logical explanations for the game's rise, but I firmly believe the most important reason is very different from all the others, and that is:
7. The game was tailor-made for this generation
Think about it. It's so obvious. This generation grew up on these Pokemon. This generation was the first to widely use smartphones. This generation was the first POKEMON GENERATION. Naturally, Game Freak would target this game toward this generation, it makes the most sense that way. This generation knew what real Pokemon were (like Pikachu). This generation grew tired of the failed attempts at new generations of Pokemon (they literally made a pile of garbage a Pokemon, it's called Garbodor). So what did Game Freak do? They put out an entirely different Pokemon game that had the original Pokemon in it. The result: they crushed it. Young kids and teenagers just don't get it like we do.
I'm happy the game was created, and without that last reason, I don't think the success of the game would have been so wild.
