By now you’ve probably seen people hanging around parks with their heads buried in their phones.
They aren’t unsavoury types, rather they’re would-be Pokémon trainers playing Pokémon Go.
The augmented reality mobile game is sweeping across the globe and according to Curtin University senior research fellow of information systems Vidy Potdar it’s here to stay.
Pokémon Go is the latest in two decades of Pokémon games and cartoons and encourages people to catch ‘pocket monsters’ as they walk.
The game has already taken over Perth with more than 19,000 Pokémon Go fans joining a facebook page.
Businesses are cashing in including Armadale Shopping City, which is hosting a weekend long Pokémon Go event to draw players to the shopping centre.
There has also been controversy and it has prompted safety messages from WA Police.
Last week Armadale Police issued a warning after officers had to swerve to avoid a girl playing on her phone while walking.
Dr Potdar said the game was taking mobile entertainment to new levels with the inclusion of augmented reality but there were both positives and negatives.
“Pokémon Go makes a person mobile, which is a very good health benefit as it is making people walk in search of Pokémons to new and unexplored places,” he said.
“People may visit new areas, which they have not visited before, giving them an opportunity to immerse in their real surroundings rather than being in their gaming room at home.
“Like any other game Pokémon Go is also addictive and this is clearly seen by the number of people hooked on to the game since its launch.”
Dr Potdar said trespassing was also becoming an issue with people trying to enter private properties and there were health and safety issues with people becoming too engrossed with the game to be aware of their surroundings.
He said augmented reality in gaming was now gaining popularity.
“Such games take the gaming experience to a new level by immersing players in the real world rather than just limited to their computers or mobiles,” he said.
“Pokémon Go offers a new experience and is a blend of virtuality and reality, in other words augmented reality.”
