Niantic On Bringing Pokemon Go Back Into The Real World
Pokemon Go is currently in the process of returning to its roots and recalling what made it a unique experience to begin with: It’s a video game you play outdoors with other people. Of course, it was never developer Niantic’s intention to shift the game to be a solitary, indoor experience, but during the height of the pandemic, there was no choice but to adjust ite so players could continue to «catch 'em all» even if they weren’t comfortable gathering in groups.
While there are still opportunities to play that way (the pandemic is not over, after all), Niantic is beginning to reintegrate official, live, in-person gatherings across the world. Last weekend, the game celebratedCommunity Day with various, localized events all across the globe. In the immediate future, events are planned for Berlin, Germany on July 1, Seattle, Washington on July 22, and Sapporo, Japan on August 5. The game is beginning to look like its old self again, and we spoke with Pokemon Go’s director of global live events, Humberto Kam, about how that works, what made Niantic feel it was the right time to encourage people to reconvene outside, and what will happen if COVID concerns flair up again.
We also asked about potential promotional opportunities that might be happening for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. Kam couldn’t answer any questions about those games, but we had to at least try.
What do Pokemon Go in-person events look like right now? Is there still a feeling of uneasiness with the pandemic?
Humberto Kam: Well, first of all, for us and our events, we always follow whatever the local suggestions and ordinances are about health. Our players’ health and safety is the most important thing, as is the health and safety of our team members. [For our
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