The augmented reality game,
designed for mobile devices, allows users to capture, battle and train virtual
creatures called Pokémon that appear on screen as if part of the real-world
environment. But can the game's enormous success deliver any lessons to the
fields of natural history and conservation? A new paper by a group of
researchers from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, UNEP World
Conservation Monitoring Centre, and University College London (UCL) explores
whether Pokémon Go's success in getting people out of their homes and
interacting with virtual 'animals' could be replicated to redress what is often
perceived as a decline in interest in the natural world among the general
public. Or, could the game's popularity pose more problems than opportunities
for conservation?
In the paper, the researchers
explain that Pokémon Go has been shown to inspire high levels of behavioural
change among its users, with people making significant adjustments to their
daily routines and to the amount of time spent outside in order to increase
their chances of encountering target 'species'. There is also evidence that
users are discovering non-virtual wildlife while playing Pokémon Go, leading to
the Twitter hashtag #Pokeblitz that helps people identify 'real' species found
and photographed during play. Pokémon Go, exposes users first hand to basic
natural history concepts such as species' habitat preferences and variations in
abundance. 'Grass Pokémon', for example, tend to appear in parks, while
water-related types are more likely to be found close to bodies of water.
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