{"id":6709,"date":"2016-07-12T17:33:12","date_gmt":"2016-07-12T09:33:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/?p=6709"},"modified":"2016-07-12T17:33:12","modified_gmt":"2016-07-12T09:33:12","slug":"gotta-catch-em-all-pokemon-go-in-the-philippines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/primer.com.ph\/blog\/2016\/07\/12\/gotta-catch-em-all-pokemon-go-in-the-philippines\/","title":{"rendered":"Gotta Catch \u2018em All: Pokemon Go in the Philippines"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s already taken over people\u2019s lives in the US, Australia, and New Zealand. It\u2019s the latest craze that\u2019s sweeping the globe: Niantic\u2019s Pok\u00e9mon GO.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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IT\u2019S ALMOST READY TO take over the world of mobile gaming. Pok\u00e9mon GO, an augmented reality (AR) game lets users feel like they are capturing live Pok\u00e9mon. Image courtesy of <\/em>Pok\u00e9mon Go Philippines<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

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But what exactly is Pok\u00e9mon GO, and why have Filipinos been posting or sharing memes and videos about it?
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What is Pok\u00e9mon GO?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

First things first: what is Pok\u00e9mon GO? In this blog post<\/a> on their website, creator Niantic Labs described the game in the best possible way. It\u2019s an app that lets Pok\u00e9mon fans and gamers explore their neighborhoods and cities to capture Pok\u00e9mon.<\/span><\/p>\n

It utilizes your smartphone\u2019s camera, GPS, and internet connection (WiFi or data) to create a world within your smartphone where these cute Pok\u00e9mon exist. To date, it is only available in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand on iOS and Android devices.<\/span><\/p>\n

So why is it a big deal in the Philippines?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

A lot of Filipinos are big on games like Pok\u00e9mon. With Pok\u00e9mon GO not being released at the same time as the US, Australia, and New Zealand, people were understandably anxious and frustrated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Players eventually found a way of being able to use Pok\u00e9mon GO in the Philippines even if it has not been officially released. People downloaded an APK from the internet, installed it on their smartphones, and changed their location to New Zealand (the closest of the three countries to the Philippines) in order to play.<\/span><\/p>\n

This, however, has overloaded the game servers in New Zealand. It made Niantic, the developer, pause their rollout of the game globally to make sure everyone gets a chance to play the game.<\/span><\/p>\n

To date, John Hanke, CEO of Niantic, has said that the international rollout will be put on hold until they fix their server issues. However, a report on The Wall Street Journal said that the game might roll out in Europe and Asia soon enough.<\/span><\/p>\n

Right now, all we can do is wait and hope. In the meantime, here\u2019s a trailer from the creators of Pok\u00e9mon GO:<\/span><\/p>\n