Tips for Pokemon GO

I've never been much of a Pokemon player. I haven't played any of the original games, just watched some of cartoon and movies. Since I had friends that were into Pokemon I did play Pokemon Snap where you take pictures of Pokemon and I had fun with that but that's really the extent of my contact with it. I only have a vague understanding of the various types and how rare they might be and can never remember what order anything evolves in. However, my husband was super excited about the release of Pokemon Go as well as several of our friends so Wednesday night I downloaded the app to play along with them. I have to say so far it's really been a lot of fun. Gil LOVES it because so far it just means more walks for him.

Gil helped us track down a Nidoran at the local park.

The game is new so there are still some glitches and problems with connections and I can't offer any advice or help with that. I also haven't tried any battles yet and can't offer advice in that area either but I thought I'd try to gather some basic tips into one place and share my experience so far in case it can help anyone out there.

1. Pokestops and Gyms
One of the main things in the game is visiting Pokestops to earn experience and find items. The best areas around us seem to be large outdoor shopping areas and parks. Benches or outdoor art mean easy to find locations within a short distance from each other. Of the two I prefer to visit the parks because there is less worry about traffic and less intrusive hanging around a bench in the park vs outside someone's business.
Since the game is made by the company that produces Ingress, the Pokestops and gym location are the same as Ingress portal locations. However, half the fun my husband and I've had is driving around town looking to see what we can find so I haven't bothered to look the locations up. If you're having problems finding good places you can try that or see if there's a facebook group for local Pokemon players. We've joined Pokemon GO KC and people have been sharing locations for rare finds and also alerting others when and where they plan to use a lure to draw more Pokemon so other players can join them.

2. Finding and Tracking Pokemon
Pokemon are supposed to appear in part based on their type, such as water types appearing near rivers. How that actually translates to the real world gets a little weird, though. For instance, if you don't happen to live near a volcano, what constitutes a fire type location? Where can you find electric types? I've read that fire types can be found near fire stations but so far haven't seen any evidence to support the theory. It is also rumored that time of day plays a factor in what appears such as fire types appearing during hotter times of the day. I'm inclined to believe this one because most of the fire type I've spotted have been found at either midday or sunset. However, I also found a Ponyta at 11pm during a thundershower so it can't be the only factor.

I found a Geodude in an underground parking garage and a friend of ours says he found Onix in the tennis courts at his apartment complex so check similar areas for rock types.

We are still trying to figure out exactly how to use the in-game tracking feature. The basic are fairly easy to grasp, the more tracks it shows the farther away thePokemonn is, but finding which direction to go can be tricky.

                                  

We've noticed that the Pokemon it shows nearby shift position on the grid quite a bit and we have a theory that it might indicate which direction they are in. We haven't had time to test it out properly but basically, if a Pokemon is in the center bottom of the array then it would be directly behind you and so on. In the picture above, the Diglett would be forward and to the right of your current location. It seems to be slow updating your location at times so I'd give it a minute to re-orient after a turn. Check it out and let me know how it works.

The final thing I will mention is that your level does play a factor. The higher level you are the more powerful the Pokemon you find will be and more rare Pokemon will appear. There have been times when a rare Pokemon shows nearby for my husband but doesn't appear in my tracker. (He is 2-3 levels ahead of me) However, when he catches up to it then it will usually appear on my screen allowing me to catch it as well. It makes a good reason to get out and hunt with friends of various levels.

3. Egg Hatching
One of the things that you find at Pokestops are eggs that you can hatch. Each egg has a distance attached to it and you need to walk that far, with the app open, for the egg to hatch. We have found that driving does count but not for a much as walking. Going over bumps and such will register as steps and hatch the egg but you'll drive much farther than 5km before the 5k egg hatches, walking syncs up much more closely. Update: Apparently it counts driving when under 15 mph as distance for egg hatching.

You can find a list of what types can hatch out of the various level eggs here, or just wait and be surprised at what you find.

4. Battery Life
Obviously walking around all day with your phone on and the app using GPS and camera is going to take a toll on your battery life.  If you have a portable power bank or charger that will add to your available power. Here's a few thing you can do to help maximise the power you do have.

Battery Saver Mode
If you go to setting in Pokemon Go you can turn on battery saver mode. Normally if your phone locks or goes to sleep the app will shut down, but with battery saver turned on if you turn your phone upside down it keeps the app running but without any of the music or graphics running. It will still buzz or vibrate to let you know when a Pokemon appears and bring everything right back up when you flip the phone back over.

Turn off the AR camera.
The augmented reality camera shows you where the Pokemon is located in the real world but you can still catch them with it turned off, they just appear in front of a generic background. I know this used more battery but I like to leave it on. I mentioned earlier that Pokemon Snap is the only Pokemon game I've really played and as such finding a Pokemon in a cool setting and snapping a pic is satisfying and worthwhile to me but may not be for others.

5. Data Usage
Also running around with your phone constantly trying to update your GPS location can use a bunch of data so if you have a limited plan you may need to keep and eye on that. I've had some problems with my GPS not updating properly so that the game showed Pokemon nearby even after I'd moved out of the area. We ended up hooking my phone to the Wi-fi hotspot on my husband's which gave me a much better connection and seemed to help with the GPS difficulties.

Since that's not an option for everyone you can also try using Goggle maps offline.

6. Pokemon Etiquette
While you're playing be considerate of other people, both those playing and not. I've seen numerous people complaining online about their business being interrupted by Pokemon or being angry and suspicious of strangers in their yards at night. There is no reason you should need to be in anyone else's lawn. Show respect for other peoples property. Don't stand around and block doors to businesses or otherwise disrupt their operation. Pay attention to things like park hours and no trespassing signs. Don't neglect your job to play.

A lot of churches are either Pokestops or gyms but maybe Sunday isn't the best day to check these particular locations.

No one wants to be the cause of bad publicity for something they enjoy.

7. Safety Issues
Speaking of bad publicity, there are several new stories circulating about robberies or traffic accidents linked to Pokemon Go. So far most of them seem to be false but use some common sense on your Poke adventures. I know that time of day plays a factor and some Pokemon are nocturnal but maybe the middle of the night isn't the best time to hunt for ghost types in the cemetery alone. Take along some backup and let someone know where you're going to be and check in with them. Also, it is super hot outside right now so be sure to drink enough to stay hydrated and keep cool. Use sunscreen so you don't burn. If you are in more natural areas think about using bug spray and keep and eye out for ticks and such.
It should go without saying but don't play and drive. Keeping your phone in battery saver while you drive to see if you help that egg hatch is one thing, hitting Pokestops and attempting to make catches while driving is not alright.
I've heard Pikachu can be found during thunderstorms but be cautious about being outside with your phone around lighting. Don't let something fun turn into a tragedy.


Everyone have fun and stay safe out there. If you have any additional tips I'd love to hear them. I'm particularly interested in what kind of locations various types can be found.