Geek Squad Plays Pokémon Go: Part 1

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I've been a part of the Pokémon community since the launch of the trading card game in 1999 and have played Pokémon in every iteration so far. So it makes perfect sense that with the recent release of Pokémon GO! I would jump onboard and try it out.

My Experience So Far

As much a Pokéfan as I am, I got off to a slow start. While I had no trouble downloading the app, I was in a rural part of the country the first 4 days that I had the game. My ability to catch Pokémon was very limited -- there were no Pokéstops or gyms nearby -- and it made for quite boring play. Once I was able to get back to the city, my experience changed drastically. Within the first 24 hours of being "in-town," I caught 26 unique Pokémon, visited 41 Pokéstops, hatched 2 eggs and walked 5.18 KM (that's 3.21 miles). I have progressed from level 1 to level 7 since I got home.

Some of the vagaries of play have taken a bit of practice to get used to. Even with a perfect throw, some Pokémon will break out of the standard Pokéball. This can be frustrating because free Pokéballs are limited and you have to stop at Pokéstops to get more of them. Also, the spin, swipe, flick moves used to catch a Pokémon seem to be rather random. I've dropped my Pokéball in the correct spot many times, only to watch it bounce off or randomly drop to the “ground” and roll around uselessly. More Pokéballs can be purchased from the micro-transaction store, but those cost real-world money. Usually you can find more than enough Pokéballs at Pokéstops scattered about in your city or town.

Pokéstops seem to resereset about 5 minutes after you move on to a new one, so it is possible to walk back and forth in a small area and keep revisiting the same stops. So don't give up if you live in a small town where there are only a few Pokéstops. If you find a Pokéstop where another player has put a lure, you will want to hang around that stop for a while. The number of wild Pokémon in the area will increase for up to 30 minutes.

Educate Yourself

For the newbies, it is a good idea to learn about the game online before jumping in. There's a lot of information out there already about how to get started with the game, downloading tips and guides on catching Pokémon and battling in gyms. I recommend the aspiring trainer read through as much of the material already out there to prepare herself before jumping into the game. There are some awesome tips online about many aspects of the game, including how to throw your Pokéball and how to level up so you can acquire new items and rare Pokémon without having to spend real-world -currency. Best Buy Support recently published a post in the Gaming News section of their forums. We also recommend checking out starter guides published by Niantic, Nintendo, as well as the Pokémon Go Facebook and Twitter feeds.

Pokémon Go official site by Niantic Labs
Pokémon Go Facebook Page
Pokémon Go News (Twitter)
Pokémon Go App (Twitter)
Pokémon Go Server update (Twitter)

Tasha over at Best Buy published a very good summary of the game over on there Gaming Blog. Take a look at it on their blog.

Serving clients since 2011, Agent Kate B currently is on assignment with Geek Squad Remote Support’s Quality Assurance Team. In her spare time she is the Agent Team Lead for the Geek Squad/ Yahoo! Answers Social Medial Partnership and a regular contributor to other areas of Geek Squad Social Media. When she’s not at work, she stays busy with community and civic involvement and makes blankets for kids with Cancer through www.afaproject.org. Follow her on Twitter @AgentKateB .