Pokemon Go and Death in Your Twenties

In addition to the entertainment benefits, the increasing number of accidents and casualties shows the negative side of the Pokemon Go game.

Since its launch in July, Pokemon Go has quickly caused controversy. In addition to its entertainment benefits, the increasing number of accidents and casualties shows the negative side of this game.

Brothers Leon (left) and Picen were shot 20 times by a bad guy while playing Pokemon Go on July 20 (Photo: Mirror)

Pioneering in the online game genre augmented with virtual reality (AR), along with the image of Pokemon associated with the childhood of generations 8X, 9X, it is not difficult to understand why Pokemon Go is "making waves" all over the world.

However, young people being so engrossed in their phones that they forget everything around them not only damages their eyes, wastes time, causes property theft, and injuries, but can even affect their lives.

Sudden deaths

After more than a month of release, there have been at least 5 deaths due to playing Pokemon Go. The first unfortunate incident occurred on July 20. The victim was Jerson Lopez de Leon, 18 years old, living in Chiquimula city, Guatemala.

According to Daily Mail, Jerson and his cousin - Daniel Moises Picen (17 years old) - were hunting Pokemon along the railway, unfortunately they were shot 20 times by a group of bad guys. Jerson died in the hospital, and Picen was seriously injured in the leg.

Local police believe the perpetrators' motives may have stemmed from personal grudges or the intention to rob the unfortunate victim.

At 2:00 a.m. on July 29, Tanami Nayler - 22 years old, living in Melbourne, Australia - was hit by a Toyota Corolla that ran a red light, was traveling at 100km/h and was dragged 70m on the road.

The collision was so strong that the 9X died on the spot. The person who caused the accident immediately abandoned the car and left the scene. The friend who was with Tanami told the police that they were playing Pokemon Go while crossing the street when the unfortunate incident happened.

Police said the driver had stolen the car and was speeding away when he hit the victim. The 21-year-old killer was arrested shortly afterwards.

Continuing a series of tragic murders, around 9-10pm on August 6 at Aquatic Park (in San Francisco, USA), baseball star Calvin Riley (20 years old) died under the gun of a stranger while hunting Pokemon.

The victim's friend who played Pokemon Go with him said he saw a suspicious person standing nearby observing people. However, because they were busy catching virtual animals, no one paid attention to him until the heartbreaking incident happened.

Police in the southern Brazilian town of Imbé even blamed Pokemon Go for the drowning of a 9-year-old boy on August 9. Although the victim’s parents denied the suspicion, authorities have not ruled out the possibility that the popular game was involved in the case.

If the police's judgment is correct, they will resolutely sue Niantic - the manufacturer of Pokemon Go - for not limiting the age of players and causing accidents worldwide, according to Reuters.

Victim Calvin Riley (center) poses with relatives at his high school graduation. (Photo: GoFundMe)

Not stopping there, on August 10, a Cambodian forum with nearly 600,000 members posted a gruesome image of a girl lying face down in a pool of blood.

According to the forum, the victim died on the spot after being hit by a truck while he was busy catching Pokemon in the middle of a crowded street. The incident received nearly 16,000 shares and thousands of mixed comments from the online community.

According to analytics firm App Annie, Pokemon Go has been downloaded more than 100 million times to date. Young people are the largest group of players.

School: a forbidden place, a place to support gamers

Schools are home to many Pokestops and gyms - two essential locations for catching and training Pokemon. Therefore, school campuses quickly attract many gamers.

The popularity of Pokemon Go has brought mixed reactions from schools around the world. While many schools have banned the game, others have supported players as much as possible.

In Asia, Malaysia's education ministry has taken the lead in banning students from playing Pokemon Go in schools since August 7, according to the Straits Times. In Indonesia, a similar ban is being considered.

Following calls from parents, Taiwan’s Ministry of Education is also considering banning the popular game. In Japan, the home of Pokemon Go, many schools have not only banned it, but have also announced that they will expel students who play it at school.

Similarly, leaders of many schools in Europe also have certain measures to avoid unfortunate consequences that may happen to gamers.

The University of Wellington (UK) put up signs prohibiting players from trespassing on campus to catch Pokemon. The University of Ozards (USA) issued a notice prohibiting people from entering the school to hunt virtual animals.

Students are still allowed to participate, but must stay away from the memorials and the Keeter Center. The University of the Ozards even asked Niantic to remove all Pokestops on campus.

A warning sign reading: "Do not enter to play Pokemon Go. Personal property" is placed on the campus of Wellington University, UK (Photo: Daily Mail)

On a more gentle note, some colleges and universities in Springfield (USA) only recommend that students stay alert when playing Pokemon Go and be polite to other gamers.

However, instead of issuing a ban, many universities in the US such as Harvard, Eastern Kentucky, William & Mary... called on players to come to school to catch Pokemon via Twitter.

Florida International University even gives out snacks to gamers. American University provides a detailed map of 30 Pokemon-rich locations as well as the location of the gym on campus.

Strangely enough, the University of Idaho will soon offer a course on Pokemon Go. Students will only need to wander around campus, collect Pokeballs, and search for Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Snorlax, etc. to receive a certificate.

“The course helps to create an active lifestyle, enhance teamwork skills, and improve students' community knowledge,” said a school representative.

Be a conscious player

There is no denying the obvious dangers of Pokemon Go. But if you think about it, it is humans who have turned the game into a disaster.

The makers of Pokemon Go have placed Pokestops at scenic spots, requiring players to walk 10 km to hatch eggs... Surely, they don't want gamers to be too engrossed in hunting, leading to unfortunate consequences.

Whether the game is positive or negative is entirely up to the user. Be a civilized and conscious “hunter”: do not catch Pokemon while participating in traffic, do not bury your face in your phone instead of observing your surroundings, do not invade private homes or landmarks just because of virtual pets.

According to VOV