I still play Pokémon Go. 

No shame.  I often ask myself on what’s going to hit 40 first between my age and my level in the game, it’s gotten to the point where the XP requirements for the next one are that gargantuan.  It’s literally taken me nearly ten full months to go from level 34 to 35, but I’m also not in the middle of an actual city where I can play to my heart’s content.  But the fact of the matter is that I still play, even if mythical gf and all my other friends who once played, don’t.

Turns out my brother has picked up the game, as introduced to him by his wife.  Although he is at pleeb level 25 compared to his wife and I, it was all I needed to know that I could have some actual human beings to play along with while I was down in Texas last weekend.  And as would have it, one of the days we had some time would be one of the game’s newer monthly featured modes, known as a Community Day, where a particular Pikachu would spawn like crazy for three hours, so it would be the perfect opportunity to stock up on them if a player’s had some difficulty in catching them in the first place.  Also XP gain rates are boosted during the time, to sweeten the deal for those less enthused about the featured Pikachu.

So we headed over to a still-in-existence mall, where we could have plenty of space to roam, Pika stops to spin, and most importantly, the air conditioning to not be walking around in a hot Texas summer day, and I was going to take part in my first Community Day.

At first, I was doing my usual thing of trying to be discreet about playing Pokémon Go, displaying my mastery of clandestinely throwing curveballs with one hand.  But then it became very apparent that all throughout the halls of the mall, especially as the clock started ticking closer to the official start of the event, that the vast majority of people milling about, were all also playing Pokémon Go.  So there was no more need for pretenses, and it was off to enjoy the game with the community.

Continue reading “Imagine if Niantic started doing community days sooner?” →