Initially Pokemon Go was awesome. It really brought people together—I would go take a walk on the canal in my city where there might be a couple dozen people walking at any given time. During Pokemon Go’s initial 6 months, there were hundreds of people playing, even until 3 AM. It was absolutely crazy.
For me, I think Pokemon Go lacked a couple things that die-hard Pokemon fans really needed to stick to it.
1) Player to Player Battles
I think it’s safe to say we were all disappointed with the exclusion of pvp in Pokemon Go. This IS Pokemon. Who knows what kind of greater long-term success Niantic would have had if a dynamic pvp system had been implemented.
2) Player Trading
Hard to describe the magic of hooking up with a friend’s Game Boy and negotiating trades for that last Pokemon you need for your squad. Niantic eventually added this feature but it was too little too late for a lot of players.
3) Better Gyms
I never really liked the gym system in Pokemon Go. Again, I craved the format to be similar to classic Pokemon battles. Even if it was AI-controlled opposition, it would have been better than a player-input based system. There was little strategy involved in Pokemon Go’s gym system.
I really do believe with the inclusion of just these three features, Pokemon Go would have been an even bigger hit than it has been.
Let me know how you feel? Any Pokemon Go lovers still as in love as the first time?