If you've visited the Civic precinct in Newcastle over the
last couple of weeks, you may have noticed an unusual number of people
wandering and staring at their phones. That's because Pokémon Go fever
has hit Newcastle! Hundreds of people have been converging on Civic Park and
the surrounding area to take part in this latest cultural phenomenon, that
allows players to catch, collect, evolve, train and battle their favourite
pocket monsters. Although playing Pokémon is generally considered the domain of
kids, plenty of adults are having fun reliving their childhood and trying to
collect all 151 Pokémon.
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| A Doduo jumping out at a patron at Hamilton Library. |
Many branches of Newcastle Region Library have become
hotspots of Pokémon activity. Hamilton, New Lambton, Wallsend and Adamstown branches are
all pokéstops, where you can load up on useful items such as pokéballs for
catching new Pokémon, and various potions for treating Pokémon wounded in
battle. Lambton Library is even a pokégym, where players train up or battle
their creatures against other teams. Plenty of Pokémon have also been located
hiding in the shelves at City branch - a Nidorino has been eluding staff in the
Adventure & Travel section over the last few days. Come in and see if you
can catch it before we can!
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| A Nidorino in the Adventure & Travel section at City Library. Still not caught! |
The app utilises augmented reality technology which takes a
computer-generated image - in this case, a Pokémon - and superimposes it on the
user's smartphone camera to make it look like the creature is right in front of them in
the real world. It is not the first time this technology has been utilised. Previously, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney and Melbourne
implemented the Disney Fairies Trail app, which allowed visitors to use their smartphones to seek fairies
whilst exploring different areas of the Gardens. Retail stores are also
experimenting with the idea to set up virtual fitting rooms for their customers.
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| Load up on pokeballs, potions and razz berries at Hamilton Library. |
The Pokémon franchise itself is nothing new. It was created
in 1996 and was popularised in Australia through a trading card game. The
creation of Japanese video game designer, Satoshi Tajiri, Pokémon was directly
inspired by his childhood hobbies of collecting bugs and playing video games.
Considered reclusive and eccentric by his peers, Tajiri was dubbed 'Mr Bug' for
his seemingly obsessive behaviour. Tajiri has recently confirmed he has
Asperger's Syndrome and is a great example of someone who has found a passion
in their life and used it to build a successful career.
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| Choose a team and battle it out at the pokegym at Lambton Library. |
If you're having fun playing the app and would like to check
out more Pokémon related media, you can access a range of books, graphic novels
and DVDs through Newcastle Region Library's catalogue, including the original Pokémon movie and a number of different guides to the world of Pokémon.
Happy hunting!
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