Tech Spotlight: Pokémon Go

Is it a learning technology?

Is it a major tech event?

Is Stony Brook all about it right now?

This week, Niantic Labs (of Ingress fame) and the Pokémon Company released Pokémon Go, a location-based augmented reality iteration of the popular Pokémon game franchise. Pokémon Go uses your phone’s GPS to log milage, unlock Pokéstop loot, and find Pokémon in the wild.

Users are able to choose teams, battle for control of gyms, and set location specific lures to attract Pokémon that benefit nearby users. (This is what is happening when you see a bunch of loosely grouped people all looking at their phones on campus.) The learning applications of the game are still not clear, but it’s a win for augmented reality and the library has two in house Pokéstops in addition to the Faculty Honor Wall in the Galleria. The game is engaging and there are definitely opportunities for programming, especially with the release of compatible wearables later this year. We grew up and made Pokémon real! I’ve never been prouder to be a Millennial.

Posted in Emerging Technology, Mobile Technology, Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics