Hundreds of players gathered in New York's Times Square on Thursday to battle a giant Mewtwo — a nod to the game's original trailer from over a decade ago. They were celebrating the 10th anniversary of Pokémon Go, a mobile app that has been downloaded more than a billion times and still draws millions of daily logins.
Michael Steranka, vice president of product at the game's publisher Scopely, says the experience has always been about community. “Pokémon Go will always start with community — we think we’re only scratching the surface here,” he explains. “We often receive wedding invites from players who met through Pokémon Go... because it’s been such an integral part of their relationship.”
“Pokémon Go turns 10: AR game with billion downloads still draws millions daily”
Released in 2016, Pokémon Go became one of the biggest mobile launches in history. Using GPS and augmented reality, it overlays virtual creatures onto a live camera feed, making them appear in real locations. Players flocked to parks, waterfronts and shopping malls to catch Pokémon. “By allowing you to take your mobile phone out into the world to discover virtual creatures, Pokémon Go helped realise the millennial dream of becoming a Pokémon Trainer,” says Matthew Reynolds, editor of Pokémon news website One More Catch.
The game’s popularity has endured. It has hosted major live events in more than 60 countries, averaging over 400,000 attendees a year since the first Go Fest in 2017. Scopely estimates players have explored more than 100 billion kilometres — roughly 334 round trips between Earth and the Sun.
UK content creator j0beats, who runs one of Twitch’s biggest Pokémon Go channels, regularly travels to events like the one in New York. “People always think it’s crazy that you travel all over just to catch some pixels,” she laughs.
As Pokémon Go marks a decade, its ability to turn solo phone play into real-world gatherings shows no sign of fading — and with Steranka promising the community angle is “only scratching the surface”, the next ten years may bring even more players together.