[Mobile] Pokemon Go for Android and iOS NEWS

Official website: http://www.pokemongo.com/Old topic related: https://forum.romulation.net/threads/pokemon-go-for-android-due-release-in-2016.64310/Source: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jul/10/pokemon-go-armed-robbers-dead-body

Pokémon Go: armed robbers use mobile game to lure players into trap
Missouri suspects used app’s geolocation feature to target ‘unwitting victims’, says police after another incident saw game lead player to dead bodyArmed robbers used the game Pokémon Go to lure victims to an isolated trap inMissouri, police reported on Sunday.At about 2am in O’Fallon, Missouri, officers responded to a robbery report that led them to four people, all local residents aged 16 to 18, in a black BMW in a CVS parking lot. The occupants tried to discard a handgun out of the car when an officer approached, said Sgt Bill Stringer. The officer then identified the four people as suspects of similar armed robberies described in St Louis and St Charles counties.The adult suspects were charged with first degree robbery, a felony, and had bond set at $100,000 cash, Stringer said.Stringer added that police believe the suspects used the phone app, which directs users to capture imaginary creatures superimposed onto the real world, to tempt players into secluded areas where they could be easily robbed. At a certain level in the game, he noted, players can congregate at local landmarks to join teams and battle.“Using the geolocation feature,” Stringer said, “the robbers were able to anticipate the location and level of seclusion of unwitting victims.”In a separate statement, a department spokesperson added: “you can add a beacon to a pokestop to lure more players. Apparently they were using the app to locate [people] standing around in the middle of a parking lot or whatever other location they were in.”A statement from police quoted from a news article to explain the allure of the game: “Seeing a Pikachu on the sidewalk in front of you is a fan’s digital dream come true.”The department added a warning, however. “If you use this app (or other similar type apps) or have children that do we ask you to please use caution when alerting strangers of your future location.”Pokémon Go warns players to keep aware of their surroundings during their virtual treasure hunt, but after only a few days since its release it has already led people into a string of bizarre incidents. People have ended up in hospitals after chasing nonexistent animals into hazardous spots, and schools, a state agency and Australian police have warned people not to break the law or endanger themselves while “Pokemoning”. The game has also led wanderers to at least one home misidentified as a church, a venue the app considers a public space.In Wyoming on Friday, the game led a teenager to a dead body in a river. “I just got up and went for my little walk, a walk to catch Pokémon,” 19-year-old Shayla Wiggens told local KCWY news. The pursuit led her to a highway bridge over the river, where she jumped a fence to approach the water. She spotted two deer near the water’s edge, and then a black shirt and pants – a corpse lying prone in the water, 6ft to her left.The Fremont County sheriff’s office said in a statement that it was investigating the death, but that they do not suspect homicide. “The death appears to be accidental in nature,” said undersheriff Ryan Lee. Though the water is only 3ft deep where the body was found, investigators said the man possibly drowned.Wiggins said the discovery of a corpse would not deter her from returning to the game. “I might go get a water Pokémon,” she told CNN. “I’m going to try.”

Source: http://www.polygon.com/2016/7/10/12139492/side-loading-pokemon-go-onto-your-android-device-may-bring-malware

'Side-loading' Pokémon Go onto your Android device may bring malware along for the ride
Security firm explains how to identify and remove the infection
By Owen S. Good on Jul 10, 2016 at 11:07a @owengoodCybersecurity analysts say they have discovered a malware-infected version of Pokémon Go for Android devices, which is of particular concern to those in regions where the extremely popular game has not yet launched and users are installing versions downloaded from file-sharing sites.Proofpoint researchers found an APK (the Android app file format) of Pokémon Gocarrying the remote-access exploit called DroidJack. Symantec discovered the malware in late 2014 and describes it as "a Trojan horse for Android devices that opens a back door on the compromised device [and] also steals information."This exploit is not in any official app-store version of Pokémon Go where that game has launched — currently only the United States, Australia and New Zealand. However, users in other regions looking to get in on the craze could potentially encounter this infected edition.Proofpoint's writeup on the malware includes detailed screenshots and descriptions of how to know for sure if your device has been infected. Proofpoint notes that "we have not observed this malicious APK in the wild" yet, but added it was found on a known malicious file repository about three days after Pokémon Go's launch in Oceania last week.Though Symantec gives DroidJack its lowest threat rating at the moment, it has a renewed potential to spread thanks to Pokémon Go's popularity and free-to-download format. Some websites have posted guides on how to "side-load" unofficial copies ofPokémon Go, and the file has been shared directly among users."As in the case of the compromised Pokémon Go APK we analyzed, the potential exists for attackers to completely compromise a mobile device," Proofpoint wrote. "If that device is brought onto a corporate network, networked resources are also at risk. ... Bottom line, just because you can get the latest software on your device does not mean that you should."

App for Android Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.nianticlabs.pokemongo
Note: It's free to play with micro transaction using Google Store Voucher, post-paid mobile phone billing (certain provider), and credit card. Not all devices are supported and not all region/country can play thus why not everyone's Google Play Store account will have this on their list.

Read Poke Go term of use:As mentioned in the disclaimer and term of use; get yourself a LIFE and HEALTH INSURANCE before playing!!!!! :P

Read also :
1. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3683933/Australian-safety-campaigner-concerned-Pokemon-cause-injuries-distracted-players.html
2. http://www.news.com.au/technology/home-entertainment/gaming/pokmon-go-is-already-responsible-for-armed-robberies-the-discovery-of-a-dead-body-and-injuries/news-story/e54b70e88fc88094329466616ab3c2a1
3. http://metro.co.uk/2016/07/09/people-are-getting-injured-playing-pokemon-go-already-5996067/
4. http://nypost.com/2016/07/09/pokemon-go-is-afflicting-players-with-real-world-injuries/
5. http://www.inquisitr.com/3290701/the-injuries-from-playing-pokemon-go-are-really-beginning-to-pile-up/
6. http://www.news.com.au/technology/home-entertainment/gaming/pokmon-go-is-already-responsible-for-armed-robberies-the-discovery-of-a-dead-body-and-injuries/news-story/e54b70e88fc88094329466616ab3c2a1

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2016/07/10/5-important-safety-tips-for-pokemon-go/#3159c12e3b90

5 Important Safety Tips For 'Pokemon GO'
Dave ThierPokemon GO is not like most other video games. It’s an “augmented reality” game that sounds you out into the real world to catch all your little creatures, and that means there are different concerns for those hunting Zubats on city streets than in their own homes. Pokemon GO is terribly fun, but it’s safe to say that it’s more dangerous than sitting at home and playing a traditionalPokemon game on your couch. So exercise caution: there have already been reports of minor injuries playing the game, and it’s going to take effort to make sure that we don’t end up with something worse. Here are some tips to help you play this thing safely:Stop to catch your Pokemon: Most of Pokemon GO can safely run in the background, or at least with little attention being paid to it. Walking for eggs and experience you can do without looking at the screen, and it’s pretty easy to just grab pokestops as they come up. Catching an actual Pokemon, however, requires a bit more attention. You’ve got to find the thing on your screen, you’ve got to flick a ball at it, and sometimes you’ve got to flick another ball. Protip: this is when you’re going to walk into a tree, or worse. Not that I’ve done that. So make this be the one action you don’t perform while actually walking. Stop, move to the side, catch your Pokemon, and move on. You might look weird, but there are worse things.Stay hydrated, wear a hat: It’s July. It’s hot. You see some rustling grass around the corner, you nag another Doduo, you see some more, you keep moving, and sooner or later you’re a mile away from home and succumbing to the early stages of heat stroke. This was the biggest problem I encountered in my first two days of play: I was having a great time, but getting pretty dehydrated by doing so. So take all the normal precautions you might if you were going on a hike or something: bring a water bottle or plan to walk by places where hydration will be available, wear sunscreen, and wear a hat. Pokemon GO is currently available in the United States, Australia and New Zealand, so this tip is mostly for those in the northern hemisphere, judging by what I’ve seen on the Internet about the weather down under.Remember that your phone will buzz: Again, catching a Pokemon is the most involved thing you’re going to be doing in this game. Very little else requires you to keep your eyes glued to your screen while you do it, and so don’t keep your eyes glued to your screen. If you just want to you can just walk, let the app run in the background, put your phone down and wait for it to buzz when a Pokemon is near. Or take a look at the map, identify some rustling grass and put your phone away until you get there. You’ll know when the Pokemon is near, and then you can stop to catch it. The goal is to avoid moving while you’re staring at your phone, and the game makes it easy enough to do.Don’t wander into police stations: Unless you’re a cop, I guess, but then it’s not really wandering, is it? Pokestops and gyms show up in all sorts of places, and not all of them are the sort of places you want to just show up in unannounced. One police department had to tell people to stop coming inside to play the game, advising them that Sandshrew would still be there later. One of the best parts of Pokemon GO is that it sends you to all sorts of places you wouldn’t end up at otherwise, but some common sense is required as well. Remember that nearly everything you need to do in this game you can do from the street.

For the last paragraph, getting sent to police stations as pokemart's POI is trivial compared to my case. The pokemarts POI on mine are mosques around town. Being non-Muslim in a Muslim majority country, IT'S NOT OK! I don't even go to church playing my phone or using the camera phone to take selfies or pictures, let alone use it to scan for pokemon inside. :rolleyes:Furthermore, I'm not sure they'll be ok with non-Muslims going into mosques, and even worst for gaming reason!!! That's being disrespectful, even idiots would know THAT'S NOT OK. I'd be angry if someone goes into the church to play game or in this case - hunt pokemon even if that person is Christians. If the pokemon can be found in the parking lot of the mosques that's probably fine, but still it's going to be very awkward, however if inside the hall?! Or worst in the middle of the prayer hall!!! The only time I've been into a mosque was when the residence around a mosque carried me in after I got into an accident just meters from it. In normal situation, there are rituals one must perform before entering, e.g. cleansing, etc.I can't possibly say, "Excuse my intrusion and rudeness. But I'm trying to catch a Pikachu!" Can I? Really GameFreak!!! You shouldn't have made religious buildings as POI for pokemarts.Then there's the Poke Gym, mine sends me to random houses in slums with an average household income of $50, playing a $500-$600 tablet in the middle of it, is like holding a flashing neon sign advertising myself to be mugged.GameFreak might as well send players to the middle of a firing range or into a crocodile infested swamp or better yet, into ISIL territory!!! At least, you'd know ahead of your fate.

Source : http://www.news.com.au/technology/home-entertainment/gaming/here-are-the-eight-best-tips-and-tricks-to-enhance-your-pokmon-go-gaming-experience/news-story/2cf579d9852294324f90f1a21fece179

Here are the eight best tips and tricks to enhance your Pokémon Go gaming experience
Matthew Dunnnews.com.auIF you have finally given into temptation and decided to join Pokémon Go, congratulations on the best decision you will ever make in life.While budding Pokémon Trainers might be well on their way to collecting all 151 Pokémon in the augmented reality game, those new to Pokémon Go might be struggling.Having already done a basic explainer for the game, we have decided to take things one step further and offer the best tips and tricks to get the most out of your experience.1. Pikachu can be your starter PokémonAfter downloading the game, you will be asked to customise your avatar before capturing your first Pokémon from the options of Bulbasaur, Charmander or Squirtle.While most people will likely opt for the Pokémon they selected in the original Game Boy version of the game, practising some patience will allow you to select Pikachu.To make this happen, you will have to physically run away from Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle when they are offered as your starter Pokémon options.The game will not be happy with your decision to not choose one of three Pokémon and will try and present you with the three options again.Don’t be fooled by these feeble attempts to make you choose and run away again.You will need to do this a total of three times before the game realises you have no interest in the pleb Pokémon.By the fourth time the game presents you with the options, Pikachu will be included.2. There is an art to capturing Pokémon with the PokéBallDuring the initial stages of the game, capturing Pokémon in the wild is relatively easy — just make direct contact with the virtual creature with your PokéBall and it’s yours.However, as the game progresses the Combat Power (CP) of Pokémon found in the wild increases.This means they will be more difficult to capture, with some higher ranked Pokémon able to escape PokéBalls.To capture these stronger Pokémon, you will need to press and hold the Pokéball, which will make a ring appear around the creature.As you hold the button, the ring will start shrinking around the Pokémon and when it reaches its smallest circumference, you should throw the Pokéball for maximum success.It is also worthwhile paying attention to the colour of the circle around the Pokémon.A red circle will indicate capturing the creature will be extremely difficult, a yellow circle means it will be hard, while a green circle means you should have little to no problem.Another sneaky option is turning off the augmented reality aspect of the game.While this will remove the novelty in seeing the Pokémon in the real-world, it will stabilise them in the centre of your smartphone screen, which will make them much easier to catch.
The footprints indicate how close you are to a Pokémon.Source:Supplied3. How to know where to capture PokémonYou’ve managed to capture your 14th Doduo for the day, but want to get outside to see what other Pokémon are getting around your local neighbourhood.By looking at the bottom right of the screen you can see silhouettes of the Pokémon in your vicinity.Footprints next to the silhouette will indicate how close you are to that particular Pokémon — one footprint means close, three means further away.Once you are aware of the Pokémon in your area, it is a matter of heading to their exact location, which demonstrated on the map through the use of rustling leaves.4. There is no easy fix for hatching eggsIn addition to capturing Pokémon in the wild, the game offers players with eggs containing creatures.In order to make these eggs hatch, you will be required to walk a certain distance.Unfortunately, the game has been designed to ensure you cannot cheat the system to make the egg hatch quicker.As the app tracks your movement with GPS, a stationary run on the treadmill will not help your cause at all.Additionally, the app is smart enough to know when you are driving your car or catching public transport and has speed limitations built into the app.This means jumping in your car and driving the block will not hatch your egg, you’re only option is covering the kilometres on foot.
Don’t feel bad seeing this warning, trade that duplicate for candy.Source:Supplied5. Send duplicates to Professor WillowIt’s inevitable that you are going to see the same Pokémon over and over again.While instinct might suggest its best to ignore duplicates, it is worth your while capturing them as you can send them back to Professor Willow.By clicking the PokéBall and then selecting the Pokémon sub menu, you would be given the choice to transfer your creatures to Professor Willow.This will present you with a messaging warning that if you decide to complete the transfer it cannot be undone.It is best to ignore this warning as sending Pokémon to Professor Willow will see you rewarded with some candy, which can be used to strengthen or evolve your other creatures.6. Not all Pokéstops are created equalPokéstops are an integral part of the Pokémon Go experience as they provide players with items necessary to succeed in the game.In addition to allowing you to restock your PokéBalls, these stops will give you valuable items such as potions, egg incubators and lure modules.These Pokéstops are often stationed at well-known cultural spots including statues, public buildings and bars or cafes.While players don’t have to enter the location to receive the goods, not every Pokéstops is created equal.As a rule of thumb, the more well-known a Pokéstop’s actual landmark is, the more likely it will contain lucrative items for you.
Tick the box and reap the rewards of battery life.Source:Supplied7. All about that battery lifePokemon Go is a high battery use application, which means your battery will disappear faster than you would like.Thankfully, the game is aware of this and has a battery saving option built into the app.To enable this, you tap the PokéBall at the bottom of the screen, choose settings and then click the circle next to “Battery Saver”.This will dim your screen and slow the refresh rate of the app, making your phone last much longer.8. What joining a gym means for your gaming experienceOnce you reach level five in the game, you can join one of three teams and start battling other players in PokéGym.You can now decide to protect your gym from other teams or head to theirs in order to take over.Successfully protecting your own gym from enemy attacks will reward you a daily package containing currency, which can be used to purchase items to help your quest.Taking over a competitor’s gym is much harder as you will have to keep beating other players to lower the “gym rep” down to zero.Achieving this will make the gym “neutral”, which will allow your team to take ownership.

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/07/11/tech/pokemon-go-crazy-events/index.htmlSnipped quote from source;

Man's private home turned into Pokémon gym
Involuntarily, some people have seen their homes overtaken by Pokémon trainers.
Boon Sheridan, who lives with his family in an old church in Massachusetts, was surprised to find that his house has been marked as a Pokémon gym: A place where people can train their fictional creatures.Boon Sheridan @boonerang
Living in an old church means many things. Today it means my house is a Pokémon Go gym. This should be fascinating.Over the weekend, gamers have been hanging out in his garden and a constant flow of cars has been blocking his driveway.
View image on Twitter
Boon Sheridan @boonerang
This is what I'm a little leery of. People pulled up, blocking my drive way as they sit on their phones.Sheridan, who has been tweeting about the experience, luckily seems to find it amusing.
He posted a picture of a meeting with the man who in the game "owns the gym": A tweet suggesting that we now live in a world where places can have multiple owners as there are multiple "realities."
View image on Twitter
Boon Sheridan @boonerang
Woohoo! I met the owner of my gym. Nice guy.Westboro Baptist church overtaken by gay-friendly Pokémon
Another gym is the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. The controversial church is currently ruled by a pink Pokémon known as a Clefairy.
Users can give their creatures custom nicknames, and the current leader of the gym at the church seems to be poking fun at the church's homophobic views: The Pokemon has the nickname "love is love."
View image on Twitter
MAX IM A KOOPA @meakoopa
an unstoppable clefairy named Loveislove has apparently seized control of the Westboro Baptist Church #PokemonGO gymThe game assigns real places in the world as locations for in-game places, like gyms or Pokestops that dispense items. These places can be anything from large landmarks like buildings, or something smaller and simpler like a sign.
One of those places is the Darwin Police station in Australia. The Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services had to ask players not to go hunting inside the station.

Read source: https://www.techinasia.com/pokemon-go-no-go-japan-boo-hoo-hooRead also:Man caught up in drug deal while searching pokemon at 3.a.m. : http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/10/man-searching-for-pokmon-at-3am-caught-up-in-drug-deal-mix-up/How criminals lure players : http://www.macrumors.com/2016/07/11/pokemon-go-launch-car-accidents/

Source: http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20160712_16/

'Pokemon Go' mobile game explodes in popularity

A new smartphone game, "Pokemon Go," has exploded in popularity in the United States, creating a major social impact.The free, augmented reality game featuring pocket monsters, or Pokemon, was developed by Nintendo and a US venture firm.It uses a smartphone's GPS to make a cartoony map of a user's neighborhood and basically anywhere they go.The phone's camera transmits a real-time view on the screen of what the user sees. But Pokemon are interspersed randomly throughout. When the player comes within range of one of the animalian creatures, it shows up on the phone's screen.Players capture the Pokemon to earn points. They can also battle their Pokemon with others.The app has spread rapidly in the United States since it was released last week, with the number of downloads from a Google website surpassing 5 million. It's at the top of popular app rankings.A research firm says Pokemon Go is on pace to outperform Twitter in daily active users. And it hasn't even been released yet in most of the world.The game requires players to move around town to acquire items and earn points. But the downside of this exercise is that some people are reportedly bumping into road signs or wrenching their ankles.US transportation authorities have been on Twitter urging players not to walk into things as they seek out Pokemon.

Source: http://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2016/07/12/485719468/a-letter-to-pok-mon-go-players-from-an-ingress-fan

A Letter To Pokémon Go Players From An Ingress Fan
BARBARA J. KINGLast week, The Pokémon Co., Nintendo and Niantic Inc. jointly released the augmented reality game Pokémon Go.Played via a smartphone app that pulls in a mapping function, this is a "real world" game that requires players to consult the Pokémon Go map of their neighborhood (or wherever location they are visiting), then capture Pokemon characters. By visiting certain sites, including historic landmarks, the play is enhanced; some activitiesbecome possible only at higher levels of achievement in the game.Monday's Washington Post headline says it all: "Pokémon Go Craze Sweeps the Nation."Suddenly, it seems that Pokémon Go players divided into three teams are everywhere,#PokemonGo is the cool new hashtag on Twitter, there's speculation about the game as a new tool in the toolbox fighting against childhood obesity. There's even a hope that "archaeoegaming" will benefit public science and history as more families discover cool sites around them.But wait a minute!Ever hear of Ingress?Ingress is played by millions of people in more than 200 countries, divided into two teams set up around a storyline involving what's called XM or Exotic Matter. It's augmented reality, it's mapped and interactive (to achieve certain goals players have to work together), it features 16 levels of achievement with "portals" all over the world to visit up close (and capture from the opposing team).This design overlap is no coincidence: Ingress, too, is a Niantic game. Niantic CEO John Hanke said this last month to The New York Times about Pokémon Go:"There's a lot of Ingress in it — the idea of building it around certain locations, and those locations are what give you the things that you need to play the game and where the action takes place."Some Ingress agents, as players are called, play the game in a sustained way and take it very seriously. Stephen Wood of Arlington, Va., a level 16 player, has (as of Sunday night) visited 9,068 unique portals and walked 7,465 km (4,638.5 miles) in the four years he has played Ingress on the Resistance team (the Enlightened is the second faction). Wood described for me in an email message why it's so much fun to play:"For starters, it's such a well-designed game, the view of the Ingress map from your phone is both beautiful and elegant. The game receives constant tweaks, and improvements keeping game play fresh and compelling. Although the game can be played solo, it is enhanced by playing cooperatively; I've made some wonderful friends since I started playing. Besides being an incentive to get outside and walk — before the game I'd been far too sedentary — it's also a great way to get to learn about local history or, when traveling, to spot points of interest."For years, Wood had invited me to play Ingress. I was pretty skeptical. I'm not a gamer at all, and I figured in my free time I'd rather get out in nature while disconnected from a screen, or stay in and read books.But a few months ago, I started to think: "Why not?" As an experiment, I joined the Ingress Resistance team in February. My stats right now don't remotely compare with Stephen's: I'm only level 7, having visited 784 unique portals and walked 81 km.It's been way more fun than I ever expected. I don't care much about the XM storyline but I'm delighted to be more aware of parks, public art and historic landmarks than I've been before. For example, Tyndall's Point Park in Gloucester County, Va., is a small area with trails and historical signs only 3 miles from my house — but I'd never noticed it much. Walking on the banks of the York River and reading about a 200-year sequence of forts on the very land where I was standing was a cool experience that I owe to Ingress. And I've done other similar things both close to home and away on travels.Some aspects of Ingress give me pause — or worse. Early on, locations inside Germanconcentration camps were turned into portals, a gross error that was quickly corrected. In 2013, the average Ingress player was a 30-year-old male who spoke English as a first language. More women, though, are playing the game all the time, and the internationalization of the game is quite intense. One of the regular Ingress "live events" is coming up this Saturday in Tokyo.Another issue: My husband and I frequently visit Colonial National Historical Park, especially the Yorktown battlefields near our house. We enjoy observing the turtles, small mammals and birds in a series of ponds and streams. Now, though, I sometimes feel pulled toward gaming — the park is peppered with portals that glow blue (Resistance) or green (Enlightened) on the small screen!I don't want to be that person who travels with family or friends to a beautiful park or vibrant city with my face planted in my phone, firing away at enemy portals. Granted, I did smile at the name of the Facebook group called "Wives of Ingress Players Praying Portals Die" — but I know that when gaming addiction happens, it's no laughing matter.Pokémon Go isn't all roses either. As the Washington Post notes, incidents of robberies and injuries are being reported.So, writing this piece is my way of sending out some words of novice-gaming wisdom to all the new, excited Pokémon Go players out there. Go out and explore, and don't let anyone tell you you're wasting your time. It's fun and there are real benefits.Just don't succumb to the lure of the small screen so much that you miss the real world on its own terms.

Source: https://news.fastcompany.com/pokmon-go-is-more-popular-than-twitter-among-us-android-users-4013678

Pokémon Go is more popular than Twitter among U.S. Android usersA few days ago, analytics company SimilarWeb reported that Pokémon Go was on track to overtake Twitter's daily active user count on Android. As of Monday, about 5.9% of Android users in the U.S. are playing Pokémon Go daily, which SimilarWeb says is more than Twitter's daily user base.Pokémon Go, by the numbers
5.9%
Percentage of Android users playing Pokémon Go daily
10.8%
Percentage of Android users who have installed Pokémon Go
33.4 minutes
Time spent playing Pokémon Go daily (iOS users)
21 million
Total number of daily active usersData sources: SurveyMonkey, SensorTower, SimilarWeb
Data is from July 11, 2016 and only covers U.S. users.

Source: https://news.fastcompany.com/heres-a-list-of-places-that-have-asked-people-to-stop-playing-pokmongo-so-far-4013605

Here’s a list of places that have asked people to stop playing “Pokémon Go” so far• The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, reports the BBC.• Arlington National Cemetery:Arlington Cemetery✔@ArlingtonNatl
We do not consider playing "Pokemon Go" to be appropriate decorum on the grounds of ANC. We ask all visitors to refrain from such activity.• A police station in Darwin, Australia, reports the Independent. MG

Source: https://news.fastcompany.com/now-a-car-crash-is-being-blamed-onpokmongo-4013692

Now a car crash is being blamed on “Pokémon Go”Amid the headlines over robberies, injuries, and other mishaps, it was inevitable that the most popular mobile game in the universe would end up causing a car accident. A driver in Auburn, New York, was playing Pokémon Go when he crashed into a tree on Tuesday night, police tell Auburn's The Citizen."Auburn Police Chief Shawn Butler said the driver sustained lacerations to both legs and was disoriented, but was not seriously injured," reports The Citizen. A statement from the police department said that the driver "admitted to actively playing the 'Pokémon Go' game while driving causing him to become distracted and run off the roadway into a tree."

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/07/13/us/pokmon-go-helps-marines-to-catch-suspect/index.html

Pokémon Go helps Marines to catch suspect
Alison Daye, CNN
Updated 0116 GMT (0916 HKT) July 14, 2016Story highlights

• Pokémon GO is a reality game that is rapidly gaining global interest
• The idea is to walk and catch Pokémon but it has been used in "inappropriate"areas according to some

(CNN)Whether you're a Pokémon Go enthusiast or not, only a few are blissfully unaware of the new smartphone game which has taken over everywhere.Now, it has helped two unsuspecting gamers to catch out an attempted murder suspect.
The reality-game-meets-exercise app was instrumental in aiding two Marines to help local police officers catch an attempted murder suspect. Seth Ortega and his roommate were playing Pokémon Go close to Fullerton Park in California when they noticed a suspicious looking man approach a mom and her three kids.
Seth, who grew up playing Pokémon games and is a lifelong fan, told CNN: "The suspect was being charged as a child annoyance."
Seth also commented on his Facebook page that both he and his roommate, "were able to keep a calm head and not let things escalate".
Following the incident, the Fullerton Police District were keen to remind Pokémon Go users to exercise caution when playing the game.
View image on Twitter


Follow
FullertonPD PIO✔@FPDPIO
Please Pokémon Go responsibly...#PokemonGo#PokemonGoResponsibly#DontPokemonGoDistracted#DontPokemonAndDrivePokémon Go's profile has risen at lightning speed, giving WhatsApp, Instagram and Snapchat a run for their money. Users are spending over 43 minutes immersed in the game, according to data company Graphic. Not bad for creator Nintendo's first venture into online gaming.
There has been controversy over the game which has taken users to areas considered "extremely inappropriate" such as the Unites States Holocaust Museum and Arlington National Cemetery.If you don't know how Pokémon Go works, there is now help at hand. Classified adverts website Craigslist has just listed a Pokémon Go enthusiast willing to help you get your game on.

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/07/11/politics/politics-pokemon-go/index.html?iid=ob_article_footer_expansion

Pokémon GO consumes everything, including politics

By Eli Watkins, CNN
Updated 2259 GMT (0659 HKT) July 11, 2016(CNN)Like Snapchat and Candy Crush before it, young people adopted Pokémon GO -- and the political class followed in their wake.The game exploded into near ubiquity over the past several days, leading lawmakers and others to try and get in on the attention.
California Democratic Rep. Judy Chu tweeted about the game in an attempt to prod Republicans for opposing gun control legislation.
"Anyone else on #PokemonGO? I've found a #Squirtle & a #Pikachu in DC, but I'm still looking for a Republican willing to vote on #NoFlyNoBuy," she wrote.
Judy Chu✔@RepJudyChu
Anyone else on #PokemonGO? I've found a #Squirtle & a #Pikachuin DC, but I'm still looking for a Republican willing to vote on#NoFlyNoBuyDemocratic Rep. Gwen Graham, apparently blaming her interns for getting her in on the craze, posed for a picture with a Poliwag.
View image on Twitter


Rep. Gwen Graham✔@RepGwenGraham
Our interns tell me there's a Poliwag in the office! #PokemonGONever ones to stray away from a fight, one of the most feared military forces in the history of the world made a joke about Pikachu.
"Get off the firing line, Pikachu! That's a safety violation!," the official Twitter account of the U.S. Marine Corps wrote.
View image on Twitter


Follow
U.S. Marines✔@USMC
Get off the firing line, Pikachu! That's a safety violation!Ahead of her party's national convention next week, a Republican digital director sent a screenshot of a plant-type in Cleveland.
"Gotta catch 'em all," she told CNN's Phil Mattingly via Twitter.
12 Jul
Phil Mattingly✔@Phil_Mattingly
first story I see on Cleveland local news is about Pokemon GO.#everythingisterrible Follow
Sam Osborne @SamanthaO
@Phil_Mattingly gotta catch em all #RNCinClepic.twitter.com/nGqUVUaZGf4:22 AM - 12 Jul 2016
Unfortunately for many in the media, one political journalist beat a lot of her colleagues to the punch as reporters descend on Cleveland.
Follow
Rosie Gray✔@RosieGray
who's going to do the first "Pokemon Go at the convention" piece? or has it been done already?"Who's going to do the first "Pokemon Go at the convention" piece? or has it been done already?" tweeted Rosie Gray of BuzzFeed News.

Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/pokemon-chasing-investors-send-nintendo-shares-soaring-1468228206

Pokémon-Chasing Investors Send Nintendo Shares Soaring
Craze added $9 billion in market value to gaming companyA new smartphone app that has fans chasing Pokémon characters through real-life city streets has become an unexpected hit. Photo: Pokémon Go
By
TAKASHI MOCHIZUKI in Tokyo and SARAH E. NEEDLEMAN in New York
Updated July 11, 2016 8:24 p.m. ETA new smartphone game that has fans chasing virtual monsters through real-life city streets has boosted the market value of Nintendo Co. by $9 billion in just a few days, as investors cheered the Japanese videogame maker’s first mobile-gaming hit.“Pokémon Go,” which was released less than a week ago, already ranks among the most-downloaded and top-grossing smartphone apps. But its sudden success is raising questions about the privacy and security technologies fueling the game, as well as the physical risks of playing it.The smartphone app lets players scour parks, subway stops and other locations for cute monsters. It uses a technology called augmented reality, which blends digital images with a person’s view of the real world through the phone’s camera. The technology is the main feature behind a coming headset from Microsoft Corp. called HoloLens.The game has been available for devices running Apple Inc.’s iOS and Google’s Android in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand since Wednesday. In the U.S., it has racked up more than two million downloads on iOS devices and is generating roughly $1.6 million in revenue daily from in-app purchases, according to market researcher Sensor Tower Inc.Nintendo shares surged 25% in Tokyo on Monday—a welcome relief for the company after the unsteady launch of its first mobile app, Miitomo, in March. Much attention has swirled around games potentially involving Nintendo’s signature characters such as Mario. Instead, the company’s first hit stems from its partnership with the companies that developed “Pokémon Go”: Pokémon Co., which is 32%-owned by Nintendo, and Niantic Inc., a spinout from Google parent Alphabet Inc.ENLARGE
“Pokémon Go” benefited from media coverage after an announcement last fall the game was under development. A video trailer and press release came out the day before the game launched last week. “We hoped people would be organically excited about it because it’s a new kind of experience and that turned out to be the case, even more than we expected,” Niantic Chief Executive John Hanke said.Sudden crazes are nothing new for Nintendo: It had a breakout success with its amiibo figurines after they launched November 2014. “Pokémon Go,” however, could provide the company with a new, lucrative way into users’ wallets: recurring revenue from in-app purchases. The game, while free to download, sells add-ons such as “pokeballs” costing $1 and more that help catch the animated creatures.Aside from the risk that “Pokémon Go” will turn out to be a fad, the game’s caretakers face challenges emerging in the real and digital worlds.Hannah Sugarman found a Pokémon hovering above the edge of a subway platform in New York City. She decided against trying to nab the creature, especially since it was an average Zubat, not a rare Pokémon. “It’s not one worth risking your life over,” the 22-year-old graduate student said.

Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/hunt-for-pokemon-has-led-to-painful-discoveries-1468255687

Hunt for Pokémon Has Led to Painful Discoveries
Amid chasing monsters, ‘explorers’ have hurt ankles, broken phones but also found kinshipA new smartphone app that has fans chasing Pokémon characters through real-life city streets has become an unexpected hit. Photo: Pokémon Go
By
SARAH E. NEEDLEMAN
Updated July 11, 2016 3:16 p.m. ETMonster hunters chasing virtual beasts around the globe are facing unexpected hazards, like holes in the ground.Since downloading the mobile videogame “Pokémon Go” last week, Dakota Schwartz has caught nearly 150 creatures in his San Francisco neighborhood. He also sprained his ankle at a park trying to capture a particular Pokémon—a brown dinosaurlike beast wearing a skull for a helmet.“I knew there was a Cubone over by the tennis courts,” said the 27-year-old tech-support specialist, who is now using a cane to get around. “I looked down at my phone at the wrong time.”“Pokémon Go” is inspiring a wave of explorers to canvass government buildings, subway stops and natural habitats to find the virtual “pocket monsters.” The game combines location-tracking technology and augmented reality so hunters can seek Pokémon on a digital map and view the monsters blended into the real world by looking at their phones.Staring can be dangerous. Stephanie Frosch walked into a fire hydrant and a street sign trying to catch Pokémon on a Los Angeles sidewalk. She has a large bruise on her left leg.Nintendo's new smartphone game, Pokémon Go, has become an unexpected craze and it's translating in a spike of $9 billion in market value for the company. WSJ's Sarah Needleman discusses with Lee Hawkins. Photo: Nintendo
“I call it a battle mission,” said the 23-year-old YouTube entertainer, who also tripped over a stranger’s dog. “They actually asked if I was playing.”Hannah Sugarman found a Pokémon hovering above the edge of a subway platform in New York. She decided against trying to nab the creature. Besides, it was an average Zubat, not a rare Pokémon. “It’s not one worth risking your life over,” the 22-year-old graduate student said.Beware hunting while riding a bike. Parker James chased a Pokémon on a nature trail near his home in Austin when he hit a bump, sending his iPhone flying. The screen was destroyed.View image on Twitter


Follow
Hannah Sugs @LaughingASong
What if it was a very cool, very rare Pokemon and I got too close to the edge in my excitement.. ? #PokemonGO“I was pretty wrapped up in the moment,” the 23-year-old barber said. Pokémon “was a big thing for me as a kid, and it was an opportunity to relive some of those childhood memories.”The companies behind “Pokémon Go”— Nintendo Co., Pokémon Co. and theAlphabet Inc. spinout Niantic Inc.—are aware of the potential for accidents. Players starting the game are met with a warning depicting a player, head down, walking toward the gaping maw of Gyarados, a Pokémon that looks like a sea dragon.Explorers’ bumps and bruises haven’t halted the game’s surprising success,which has added $9 billion to Nintendo’s market value in recent days. Shares of the company surged 25% in Tokyo on Monday, a welcome development for the videogame company.
Lindsay Plunkett, a 23-year-old waitress in Asheville, N.C., bruised her shin after tripping over a concrete block while playing “Pokémon Go.” Other players have had similar accidents while chasing virtual monsters. PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS“Pokémon Go” is an extension of a massive global franchise with cartoons, collectible card games, toys, books and many other products. The hysteria surrounding “Pokémon Go” helped the app leapfrog to the top of Apple Inc.’s charts.In the U.S., the game has racked up about two million downloads on iOS devices and is generating roughly $1.6 million in revenue daily from in-app purchases, market-research firm Sensor Tower Inc. estimated. It also is available on Android devices.Jason Matthews, 35, took to Twitter on Saturday morning to brag about the Weedle he found in his sport-utility vehicle in Dearborn, Mich. “It was just sitting in my back seat,” he said. “Yesterday when I went to work and I had two waiting for me on my computer.”As Pokémon sightings blow up Facebook feeds, confounding parents as their children race outdoors, so do strange tales involving the explorers, who are called Pokémon trainers in the game.A police department in northern Australia had strong words on its Facebook page aimed at players thinking of trolling its headquarters: “For those budding Pokémon Trainers out there using Pokémon Go—whilst the Darwin Police Station may feature as a Pokéstop, please be advised that you don’t actually have to step inside in order to gain the pokéballs.”A police department in western Australia poked fun on Twitter: “Tasked to attend two suspicious males walking around in circles. Get there and they’re playing #PokemonGO #Pokestop.”Other, grimmer stories are emerging, including reports of armed robbers using the app’s location technology to prey on explorers in Missouri, and a teen discovering a dead body in a Wyoming river while hunting for Pokémon.Some public institutions welcome the explorers. A librarian at the Mooresville Public Library in Mooresville, Ind., used social media to let people know its aisles are full of Pokémon.“I was thinking it might be a great way to draw some new patrons in,” said Jess Frederick, who works in the children’s section, where she’s spotted about a dozen Pokémon and several patrons trying to capture them. “I’ve seen some new faces for sure that I haven’t seen before.”The publishers of “Pokémon Go” are grappling with surprising demand. Aspiring explorers have found themselves locked out or staring server-error screens. The companies are working to resolve the issues before the game rolls out beyond the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.Other technology-age troubles await explorers: the game is a major draw on internet data and battery life. “It’s a huge battery suck,” said 26-year-oldSpencer Barrett of Lexington, Ky. “I keep my phone plugged up quite a bit more now.” The game has a battery-saving option in its settings.Kelly Mahoney observed her fiancé’s children, ages 6 and 4, spend hours playing “Pokémon Go” around their Addison, Ill., neighborhood. “They are really excited to exercise for once,” she said. “The game just tricks people into working out.”Virtual adventures sometimes end in romance. John Seo of Closter, N.J., was exploring Brooklyn with friends Friday night when he saw a young woman capture a Pokémon. The two quickly struck up a conversation. “I just asked her out toward the end,” the 25-year-old said. “I’ve never met a stranger and felt so connected. It’s like you shared the same childhood.”

Information about CHEATING for Pokemon Go!http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/07/pokemon-go-pc-android-cheats/Someone testing this games on Bluestacks!I will not play this games until Nintendo fix some bugs right now.

Playing on bluestack? Must also have 4 other apps to fake the gps. And top that with risking getting banned. Game is more fun if you install on handheld (phone/tablet) and run around hunting them that sit at home in front of your PC.

Look likes Pokemon Go was not available on my country, MALAYSIA.... :(
It takes few months for release it, just after US, UK etc... Information are here!http://sea.ign.com/pokemon-go-android/106279/news/heres-niantics-official-statement-on-pokemon-gos-release-in
http://www.nst.com.my/news/2016/07/158300/sorry-malaysians-pokemon-go-still-no-go-now
http://www.polygon.com/2016/7/15/12196050/is-pokemon-go-out

Like you, mine hasn't any official release on the GP Store. But we've no problem playing it. Since we're neighbouring countries with less enforcement than Singapore, I'm quite sure it'll work just fine on yours using the copy I had posted in the OTHERS section without needing to spoof the gps signal. Don't worry it's legal because the copy is free for download from the regions it got officially released to. Just make sure you've a Gmail account activated on your 2GB ram phone. You don't have to spend real money if you don't want to, but it'll boils down to how you manage the limited storage space for items and pokemon. E.g. myself, I traded any same pokemon I've in exchange for candy to save up space, which is useful to level up the one that I decided to hold on to.

Prectorian · #16Playing on bluestack? Must also have 4 other apps to fake the gps. And top that with risking getting banned. Game is more fun if you install on handheld (phone/tablet) and run around hunting them that sit at home in front of your PC.

I think there are reasons why certain individuals would prefer playing the game in front of their PC:s instead of going out. Perhaps they want to avoid broken ankles, crashing their cars into trees, falling down from high cliffs or getting robbed, like... A matter of safety?Anyway, after reading several news (and complaints) about Pokémon Go, I think I'll pass. I thought the game had a story (apart from obtaining the 150 original Pokémon) and that the player only needed to go outside to catch the Pocket Monsters. Now that I understand that the player actually has to travel from place to place in order to visit Pokéstops as well, I think it's only a time consuming and tedious hobby.I might as well go back to the original Pokémon Red and Blue (I never completed any of them) instead. At least I could battle Team Rocket in those games and think of the anime at the same time.

In my opinion;The reason people use bluestack to play PokeGo:
1. don't have phone/tablet running 2 GB ram or higher
2. don't own an android or apple phone
3. device own isn't compatible to run the app despite fulfilling the spec requiredThe reason people gps spoof to play PokeGo:
1. health, safety, and parental disapprove of going outside
2. lazy to walk long distance to search for pokemon & visit pokestop/pokegym locations
3. app is blocked from being played in their country/location
4. to cheat in order to level up and acquire pokemon fasterIn the cases of what you mentioned, those happens because the person involved in it were clumsy, careless, or ignorant by putting forward playing over theirs and others safety. The game doesn't require you to be constantly glued to the screen. It'll vibrate if a pokemon is within your range, even if you didn't activate the phone vibrate feature, pokemon that can be found within the ring range will show up automatically. While pokestops/pokegym are fix position - labelled clearly thus you can look once over and head straight to it. With the scanning ring covering +/- 120m in diameter, you don't have to be on the exact spot/location to trigger an event, if a pokemon is inside the circle, it'll show up, if a pokestop/pokegym is inside the circle - you can access from any spot. There's really no excuse to put oneself in danger like being on the edge of a cliff or waterway, or go inside stranger's property.When played the normal way, yes its time consuming and require dedicated time to walk around for the purpose. But it's not always so, like myself, I don't dedicate time for this game. I activate the app at random (hit & run) when I'm at a new location, not spend dedicated time walking around looking for it like others does. As a result, I took much longer to achieve what others could do with far less. It's not like I have any goals or targets with this app, and can abandon it anytime.The game doesn't have a story line, true, it simply takes 1 part of the original game which is to put the gamer in the shoes of a pokemon trainer seeking pokemon and training. The idea of getting to do this simple task, is addictive enough for the general player. Especially those liking the idea of collecting and hunting. 1 last thing, you do get to battle at pokegym. At present it's indirectly, because what happen is players joins a gym of their choice, send their pokemon(s) there to train, while go to gyms own by others to battle. Either way, the end result is levelling up.But yeah, if story is your number 1 driver to play game, and walking around is too tedious, this app is not going to appeal to you. The first pokemon game I played was Pokemon Green Leaf, any prior to that I've not played.Read:
1. https://www.yahoo.com/tech/more-disappointment-japanese-waiting-pokemon-124313732.html
2. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-nintendo-pokemon-stocks-idUSKCN10001H
3. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/pokemon-go-death-guatemala-shot-danger-safety-dead-a7145836.html