PokemonGo, No, OK...

What's the big fuss? I never watched the Pokemon cartoon and my PS2 is sitting in my room collecting dust with Tomb Raider in the drive. Let's face it, Lara Croft is a hot, bad ass chick. Girl power! Though a fun game, I would assume it has been a good two years since I have turned it on.

Pokemon Go was a constant headline with people being attacked and phones ripped out of their hands (CBS) because they weren't paying attention to their surroundings. No, I wasn't going to be one of 'those people.'

I continued to hear my staff talk about it, see it all over Facebook like my cousin driving my nephew around town trying to catch Pokemons and even friends in their twenties playing it while I am driving around San Francisco. What was the point of the game? I didn't understand it. Then again, I'm not a gamer or a 'nerd' as my friend described himself. I use apps that earn me gift cards for Hyatt or Target like ShopKick or mPlaces respectively (5 Apps I Use Before I Get Out of Bed).

With my car packed, the topic of PokemonGo continued.  One attempted to sign up for the app and it was so busy that she was asked to try again in an hour. Amazing. I thought the app couldn't support its demand or it was a way to gather people's information to alert them when there is an opening. Either way, I decided to see what all the fuss was about.

I downloaded the app and customized my profile. Without research or a lot of help, I thought I'd try to figure it out on my own but was warned that it drains your battery. I played around with it a bit, including stopping by my local Starbucks which was a PokeStop and collected items I didn't know what to do with. After one day, I didn't open the app again.

Today, I participated in a TapHunter webinar on the Top 10 Restaurant & Bar Trends. Low and behold, number 10 was PokemonGo. Bars and restaurants are taking advantage of the many participating users with offering discounts and participating in bar crawls for PokeStops and Gyms. I was intrigued. I wanted to learn more.

As soon as I arrived at DW, I saw May, one of my Bartenders, and she helped me understand the game. She told me that she had users at the bar that planned to stay for one drink as they charged their phones with our USB ports found underneath our bar top. One of the items you can collect and add to your Backpack are Incense Lures. When you use one of these items, 'a mysterious fragrance lures wild Pokemon to your location for 30 minutes.' May mentioned that she plays the game too and used an Incense lure at the restaurant to attract more Pokemons as they drank and ate, AND charged their phones. Not bad of an experience, right?

I also learned from May the backstory of Pokemon, who else is playing at the restaurant and many tips. I then spoke to many of my coworkers about it, friends that came to the bar and even Tweeted my first scheduled Incense Lure drop at 6:30 PM tonight. Follow me on Twitter for more info (@bappletree)

Outside my office, there's a PokeStop on Market Street at the Cyclist Meter. I can gather more items every five minutes. I reached Level 7 just today.

I would love for DW to become a PokeStop or a Gym (which I haven't had the experience of quite yet.) I sent in a request. Follow instructions HERE, thanks to AttackoftheFanBoy.com.

To further take advantage of the popular app and community of users, I had to explain what I've learned to my business partner. He laughed a little, didn't want to learn more but trusted me with trying something new. We will soon be offering a special for PokemonGo users. Stay tuned!

I am having a bit of fun with it. People I have spoken to about it just today alone had the same thoughts about it BUT I got one friend to download it today. I took my first screenshot with a Pokemon in the restaurant as we have been tagged in a photo or two on Instagram of Pokemon sightings at DW.

Two things that I really like about it so far is that the PokeStops help you explore your surroundings. For instance, the PokeStop at the corner of Market and 10th Street at NEMA gives you information about the artwork. I would never have known that tidbit. The other thing I really like about the app is that it gets gamer outside and moving. We have too many obese, lazy people in America that sit home and watch television or play video games all day. This gets them out, learning about their own neighborhoods and burning calories. I am all for that. So, yes, OK, I'm a PokemonGo player. I have a lot to learn so don't ask me for tips quite yet. Let's just have fun.

Please be safe playing the game. Always be aware of your surroundings.




Find this on Market Street in front of the Twitter Building.
***UPDATE 9/12/16***
I stopped playing once my Pokedex filled up and I had to pay to get 50 more spaces. I thought, 'Oh, that's how they get you.' I wasn't going to spend money on just playing a game that I don't earn anything from and it drains the hell out of my battery.

Then, I went to my family reunion and my cousin shed some light that I could trade in the extra Pokemons to the Professor and get the candy and clean up my Pokedex. Right there at that table, I started playing again.

I have even played it while on Maui. I am taking Bevo out on longer walks to get some eggs to hatch, catch Pokemon and level up. He deserves longer walks and it's a way to get some sort of activity in. I am currently at Level 17. What about you?


Comments

  1. I also love how it shows you the pictures of where the pokestops are and sometimes even some info on them! Such a cool feature!x boilersuitbabe.com x

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