Since Pokémon Go is released in Malaysia last Saturday, it’s been the thing we’ve all been talking about. “We” as in my colleagues, friends and families so that’s a lot of people there. It’s interesting because there’s hardly a game that I could remember off the top of my head that consumes everybody’s mind like Pokémon Go.
I’m writing this post mainly to share my observations based on just one week of experience with the wildly popular game released by Niantic and Nintendo. Just a casual kinda post, mind you and not some full fledged human behavior analysis.
1. Introducing Pokémon Other Than Pikachu To Non-Fans
Like my colleagues (the ones I hang out with only) and friends, we don’t grow up watching or playing Pokémon. To some of us Pokémon = Pikachu. Other pokémon doesn’t exist…until now. So each time we discovered a new pokémon to add to our pokédex, you can imagine the bunch of response that we have. Ranging from “awwww…it’s so cute” to “bloody hell, why is there a dead fish pokémon”.
As we spend more time with Pokémon Go, we started to learn names other than Pikachu like Rattata and Pidgey. I mean, at the rate of their sightings, who wouldn’t remember? When the game first came out, they’re referred to as “the rat” and “the bird”. We’ve been become friends since…
2. Learning New Places In Our Own City
Okay, maybe not exactly new places unless you’re one of the hardcore gamers who would go out of the way to unfamiliar roads to discover pokéstops and catch some rare pokémon. But there are moments in which we were surprised that in our own backyard (so to speak), there are hidden religious establishments that we never knew of until Pokémon Go came.
3. Coping With Level Of Addiction
Now, each human being is wired differently so it’s really interesting to see how each of us behaved around Pokémon Go during lunch hour, working hours, etc. I have colleagues who will leave office building during working hours to catch pokémon nearby. All of us will be burying our heads in our phones trying to catch new pokémon at lunch table. It’s very addicting especially someone had just used a lure module in coffee house. I had spent one lunch slurping my noodle while catching pokémon and collecting pokéballs. I felt bad about it and stopped doing that since.
4. Learning Other People’s True Colors
It seems a bit of a stretch to say this but it applies to people whom you rarely communicate with. For example, the colleagues who you don’t socialize with. Precisely because Pokémon Go is hugely famous and everyone’s been playing the game, it’s a topic of conversation we can have with just about anyone. That’s when you start to notice hidden traits in other people you wouldn’t learn otherwise. I know one who is a huge fan of Pokémon and know each of their names and abilities. Ask him anything, he has the answer. Confession here, I have the slightest idea what Rattata or Pidgey does. And then, I know another one who brags about knowing how to battle with just about any pokémon he finds. Or another who would curse if she gets the error “GPS Signal Not Found” while others still get to go on with the game.
Good or bad, it’s not for anyone to judge.
So there you have it. A simple list of observations on people around me after just one week with Pokémon Go.
World of Yamaguchi Hoshiko 
I think your final point is particularly true of playing any game with a group of people. You learn who is going to do everything to win, who wants to paly totally fair, who wants to exploit the loop holes, etc. It’s always very interesting to watch how people tackle an inconsequential challenge.
I also think how people tackle an inconsequential challenge is a direct reflection of their core values. Still, it’s only a game and the most important thing is to enjoy while playing it.
In general I think it’s a good kind of game, running around catching virtual animals, meeting hopefully nice players it seems to be fun. I’m just a bit worried people get to addicted to it, as if it’s their most important thing in life, but that must not be the majority. I’m a lame Gamer, but I also can “waste” my time for hours with a nice new Game, but after 2 weeks or so, I will reduce the time where I want to play, since I feel remorse ;D
Lol! I’m starting to feel less attached to game after just one week. One thing’s for sure, I’m definitely not the type that will go out to popular places just so I can catch myself some virtual animals. But yeah, it’s fine playing with nice players especially friends who are equally into playing the game.