As summer comes around one of the things I know we will be dreading as parents is driving the kids all around to different events. More so in the summer than the winter, there are going to be times, when we are picking up one kid and just don’t have enough time between events to drop them off at home, or at a friend’s house as it would just throw a monkey wrench in the schedule. Or take a different scenario, you have to run out to the food store, hardware store, clothing store, or any story that does not have video games and/or toys. You know what sort of response you are going to get from the kids. Do we have to? Why do we have to go? There is nothing there that I like. There is nothing to do in that store. How much longer are you going to be?
Then along comes this game, Pokémon Go, where you try to catch Pokémon in this Augmented Reality App for both Ios and Android and it has more people playing it than anyone ever dreamed. One of the objects of this Pokémon Go game is to catch these Pokémon which can show up in different real life places. While there may be some pitfalls to allowing kids to “roam” for these Pokémon, that is not something that will be discussed. Use your parenting skills to keep your kids safe, talk to them about the dangers of being in places you are not familiar with and around people who you may not know. That aside, one of the main game components is about exploration, and that is the one that is going to make your summer a whole lot easier.
Let us get back to that scenario where you have to run out to the food store, hardware store, clothing store, or any story that does not have video games and/or toys again. With the Pokémon Go app on their device, this is a scenario that is going to turn out a whole new way. Sure they will go, because they may be able to catch a new Pokémon while at that store (remember to always stay with your kids in the store). It may mean you may get a bit side tracked but nothing that will not make up for all the complaining that would have happened had they not had the app, this is where your life will be a lot easier as you make these short trips and errands. You might also want to hope that you have a PokéStop somewhere close to home, within walking distance as you will spending a fair amount of time there gathering items. This also doesn’t even go into the Pokémon Gym aspect that got my kids excited to go to places they normally would have complained about before. Think about being at the food store, a soccer game, a swim meet and kids being quiet and content, that is the dream of most parents and Pokémon Go is helping for that to become a reality. Set your boundaries early though, so they don’t have you driving to all sorts of places that you didn’t need to go in search of Pokémon, that will just defeat the purpose.
This is a game that has literally taken over the summer, forget blockbuster movies, forget special songs, summer 2016 is going to be known as Pokémon Go Summer. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself downloading Pokémon Go on your own device, as this is a game that does not discriminate based on your age.