Why World of Warcraft would better fit Niantic’s platform

A man playing Pokemon Go. Photo credit: Elite Daily

So, over the past couple of weekends (and National Day holiday), everyone and their mothers have started playing Pokemon Go in Singapore.

And I’m no exception. I have many reasons to download the game.

For one, there are elements P:Go and our startup have in common – it’s always good to know if those commonalities work in real life (no, I’m not building a game).

The other reason is that I’ve always been a gamer. A bona-fide card-carrying console peasant and a member of the PC master race. Having spent many (too many) hours on the Pokemon series on the Nintendo handhelds (the last was 2014’s Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire series), I was eager to see what the Niantic product was going to deliver.

So, I’ve gone and done 10 levels of levelling in the first three days of on-and-off play. I understand the levelling hack of evolving trash Pokemon (I’m looking at you, Rattata, Goldeen, Pidgey and Caterpie!). I’ve gone down to parks, playgrounds and basketball courts to witness the potential the game has.

I’ve also had to dodge the new breed of zombies that search for Pokemons while they wait in line, pee in the toilet (no joke), take the slow lane on the escalator, and wander aimlessly in the air-conditioned comfort of shopping malls that dot this island.

I’ve taken over a gym twice (very very very briefly, considering my level). I’ve seen trainers with Pokemons that have well in excess of 2,000 CP (Combat Points – it determines how strong your Pokemon is) on day one of release. I’ve seen spoofing hacks.

I’ve met embarrassed aunties and uncles swiping desperately at the screens for the Pokemon that has popped up on their game. I’ve heard the yelps of joy when the simple word “Oh?” pops up on-screen.

Once I dinged at Level 10, I just stopped. The experience will roughly be the same from there on. Was it fun? For the first two levels, it was. After that, it was a mix of boredom and frustration.

Longtime Pokemon players will tell you that the franchise is hardly “just” a children’s game. Take a look at the Pokemon database website to get an idea of the series’ sheer depth. Expect no less from the creation of someone who has Aspeger’s Syndrome.

As with most games, individual experiences with P:Go will vary. You may think that P:Go is the best thing since sliced bread. But here are some universal truths about the game that I’ll share. Feel free to jump in with your own observations.

There is no end-game

Most modern games have goals — end-game content — highly unattainable scenarios that require (and can justify) massive amounts of time and effort by players to overcome.

P:Go does not have that time-sink mechanism – Ok, correction, it has a time-sink mechanism –  Niantic expects its users to look for Pokemons, choose between powering up and evolving the pets, and maybe have a go at the gym fight that pits a user against another user.

Parts of the game are broken

The game is social. The players, not so much.

The format of the game does not align with the map-based Niantic platform

In closing