Co-op, new events keep players coming back to Pokemon Go

PORTALES — “Gotta Catch ’Em All.” Again.

Pokemon Go “trainers” have a new reason to update their “Pokedex,” according to local player, Andres Labastida-Arviso.

Labastida-Arviso said that since its release a year ago there have been several updates to Pokemon Go, a game for mobile devices created by Niantic, Inc.

These updates include new creatures to be caught and better computer graphics and animation. The newest update, which came out in late June, allows for players to work together to increase power and overtake others.

“Now there’s co-op play,” Labastida-Arviso said. “(The game) is based off of a raid system” where up to 20 players can collaborate to beat a raid gym.

According to the official Pokemon website, the game initially operated on an individual basis. Trainers who have numerous powerful Pokemon in their ownership can claim a gym.

“(Players) gain the ability to assign Pokemon to open gym locations ... (which) can be found in real places around the world,” the website states.

The locations of gyms as well as the Pokemon themselves exist virtually in real-world locations meaning trainers need to physically move around to catch critters and compete against others.

Labastida-Arviso said many players have found a way around the process and tend to “cheat.”

“(Players) can hack (their cell phone) GPS location to trick the game into thinking they’re elsewhere to catch more (Pokemon) without having to walk as much,” Labastida-Arviso said.

Labastida-Arviso said he prefers to really go out walking around the Eastern New Mexico University campus and capture Pokemon.

“It seems more rewarding,” he said.

According to Labastida-Arviso, in order to strengthen the Pokemon a player has caught, the player can do so by “using stardust and candy specific to (each Pokemon) species or evolve them to higher levels.”

During its initial release, Pokemon Go was a craze that often presented players with potential dangerous situations.

Clovis Police Patrolman John Hong said the Clovis area has not had many problems from Pokemon players.

“When I first started (in Clovis last year) I was on graveyard shift and we would get calls for people walking around in weird places in the middle of the night ... but it’s died down significantly now,” Hong said.

He added that he recently saw a young man playing with his mother and younger brother at Hillcrest Park in Clovis.  “It made me chuckle as I was walking back to my patrol car,” Hong said.

Labastida-Arviso said most of the people who still play are much more dedicated to the game even after the initial frenzy died down.

He said there is a world-wide event in Chicago at the end of July where international players gather to unlock new rewards the game has to offer.

The rewards are based on the type and number of Pokemon captured during the event.

“If we do that well enough, it brings rewards globally to all players,” Labastida-Arviso said.