Unless you are Patrick Star and live under a rock, I'm sure by now you have heard all about the new app for Android and Apple devices which some people may call Pokémon Go. It's the newest game taking the world by storm.
Personally, I never really grew up playing Pokémon (which is probably a good thing because it is starting to slowly consume my life) so I have had to learn a lot in a short amount of time. Here's some tips/tricks to learn the fairly simple game.
1. You can choose Pikachu as your starter Pokémon.
Not very many people realized that when you first start your game there are given three choices to use as your "starter Pokémon." These include Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle but if you ignore them and literally run away Pikachu will show up and you can catch him.
2. Pay attention to the color of the circles when catching Pokémon.
The circles on the Pokémon will help indicate how easy/hard it is to catch that specific Pokémon. If the circle's green it means it's easy to catch and contain, if it's yellow that means it's a little harder and that it may escape, if it's red that means it's nearly impossible to hold on to (however the red ones hold the most power.) As you advance you can use treats to give to the Pokémon that makes them easier to catch.
3. Notice how big the circle is on the Pokémon.
The smaller the circle is, the more likely you will be able to contain the Pokémon, however, it can be hard to hit every time. It seems that attempting to hit the medium sized circles is the best bet to be able to catch Pokémon.
4. The footprints can help determine how far away Pokémon are from where you are.
Above can help you locate just exactly where they are when you select one of the Pokémon from the bottom right hand corner. (Tip: also look for green leaves, the leaves indicate Pokémon that are hiding and who will {hopefully} pop out soon.)
**Also keep in mind that walking around at night or even around water can help diverse the opportunity to catch other Pokémon. Some are water Pokémon or nocturnal.**
5. There are multiple ways to play against your opponent at the gym.
When your battling you don't just have the options to smash your opponents face in or dodge their attacks (swipe to dodge your opponents attacks) you should also pay attention to the special meter that builds when you attack. The more full the bars are the more powerful the attack is going to be.
**Be aware of what is called "the immortal boss glitch" when you're at the gym. It's when it looks like a Pokémon is clearly dead but it won't actually faint. It's a server error that everyone is hoping will be fixed with an update. To try and prevent it, do not button mash and tap at a normal rate when your strikes land.**
6. It takes a lot to gain control of a gym.
In order to take over a gym you have to lower the "gym rep" all the way to zero in order to make it neutral and then you can station one of your Pokémon there. This means you have to beat a gym twice or more (unless there's other people there who are on your team and can help back you up) in order to gain control of the gym.
7. Gaining control of a gym creates more than just bragging rights.
If you are leading or supporting a gym, you will get a significant amount of currency. You also get prizes when you first initially take over a gym.
8. To evolve your Pokémon can be a tricky task.
You have to first get enough "candy" for the specific Pokémon. You can gain candy from capturing other types of the same Pokémon and for also transferring duplicate Pokémon to the Professor. (I always transfer my lowest Pokémon to help continue to make my strong Pokémon even stronger).
9. Before you evolve, try and power up the Pokémon by using stardust.
This will help make them stronger when they are in their third and final stage as Pokémon. It can also be helpful to try and save up enough candies to evolve a first stage Pokémon into a third stage Pokémon and just skipping the second stage altogether.
**It seems that most people who evolve right away will find a wild Pokémon that has even higher numbers than the one they just evolved and so they have already wasted their resources.**
10. Hatching eggs can be great or horrible.
Personally, I have had great luck hatching eggs and I have always gotten a Pokémon that is strong and one that didn't already have. However, there are many people who have hatched ___________. Eggs are random and the only way to get them to hatch is go out and walk around. Most of the time, it doesn't even pick up driving or bike-riding. In order to get your eggs to hatch you have to walk a certain amount of kilometers (2, 5, 10, etc. depending on which egg is incubating.
Other quick tips:
1. If you miss your Pokémon while trying to capture it, you can pick up the ball and use it again.
2. Hunt in pairs/groups because everyone can catch the same Pokémon.
3. Try walking around parking lots. They seem to gravitate towards the ones that are near Poke stops.
4. Turning off AR (may seem to ruin the fun) but it will help save your battery.
5. You can trick the game into thinking you're "walking" if you move your phone back and forth. It keeps the GPS unsteady and your eggs will hatch faster.
As most people have seemed to pick up on, the app drains your battery so be sure you have your phone charger near by if you're planning a day of Pokémon hunting. Also, I know nearly every person disregards the opening loading screen, but please be aware of your surroundings. (Learn from me who fell down stairs from looking down at my phone trying to capture Pokémon). People are getting seriously injured/mugged/robbed by going to walking to Poke Stops alone due to the "lure" feature.
Now go grab your friends and go catch 'em all!!!
