Creating A Healthy Pokémon GO Community

Creating A Healthy Community - Featured Image

As the world of Pokémon is expanding, so is the Pokémon GO Community. With over 3 million daily active players globally, it has the most significant player base out of all AR games. Countless new friendships and beautiful moments have been created along the way. The Community is a big player here, and it’s impact and power is undeniable. Therefore, having a healthy Pokémon GO Community is very important to create a fun environment and experience for everyone. Unfortunately, there are still some troubles that stand in the way. This in-depth article is meant to face existing problems, and how to possibly solve them.

Creating A Healthy Pokémon GO Community

First of all, let’s talk about the importance of having a (local) Pokémon GO community. One of the core aspects of the game is social interaction, which means meeting new people and creating new friendships.

When playing solo worked out pretty well in the past, it’s not the ideal style of gameplay nowadays. With the introduction of Raids, and more recently Friendship, Trading, and Trainer Battles, Niantic started focusing a lot more on social gameplay. Being part of a Community is a big help in all of this. Most Communities have a local group chat (Discord, Whatsapp, Telegram, Messenger, …) which brings numerous benefits. From posting and planning Raids to sharing a high-IV spawn, and maybe the most important thing, creating new friendships. All of this is possible through a Community. Unfortunately, as stated above, not everything about a Pokémon GO Community is sunshine and rainbows.

Helping New Trainers

Every day, new Trainers start their journey to become the very best. But as new features come out, it becomes harder and harder for some to keep up with it. We try to offer as many guides to help everyone along the way, but there are several ways you can offer help yourself. Creating a healthy Community based on friendship and fun makes playing Pokémon GO a lot more enjoyable.

One of the troubles new Trainers run into, is not being accepted in an already existing local community. Many communities have existed for a while now, which in some cases makes it difficult to fit in. However, it’s important to accept new members, as a growing community is beneficial for everyone involved.

A lot of people find it disturbing to have to ‘hold someone’s hand’ while playing the game. Please remember that we all started like this, and we all had to learn from each other! Therefore, we strongly suggest to embrace those new to the game, and help them where needed. Whether they’re children, adults, or someone of an age much wiser than your own, everyone deserves to be a part of this wonderful game, and it’s Community.

Dealing With Team Rivalry

Team Rivalry

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s undeniable, Pokémon GO can be a pretty competitive game. In the end, we all strive to be the very best like no one ever was. Besides trying to have the best and most powerful collection of Pokémon, competition in Pokémon GO translates itself mostly in terms of Gym Battles. Taking Gyms from rival Teams is essential gameplay, as everyone wants that 8 hours and 20 minutes of Gym time to receive those precious 50 Pokécoins.

While Team Rivalry adds some spark to the game, it can (and in many cases will) cause a lot of problems. People often get angry and aggressive at each other because they got kicked out of a Gym. This is where respect comes in (we’ll dive deeper in on that later).

Having a sort of Team rivalry is good and is even necessary, but respecting each other is still more important when you’re trying to create a healthy Pokémon GO Community. An excellent way to prevent internal issues is by making fair agreements about your local Gyms. We already published an article on Gym Etiquette in the past, which may inspire you and give you tips!

R.E.S.P.E.C.T

You have to admit, the late and great Queen of Soul said it best but, Respect is probably the most fundamental aspect of the Pokémon GO Community. Every interaction you make is based on respect to each other and your surroundings. Creating a healthy Pokémon GO Community will only work when there’s mutual respect. When it comes to online respect, having moderators/administrators in your local groups is a must. Many problems can be solved by analyzing the situation and talking to each other.

Being friendly isn’t hard, and by doing so, you create a fun and healthy relationship. It’s ok to laugh with one another, but keep it polite. If someone has a question, answer it instead of hating on it. We are all different, and not everyone knows the same information or stays as up-to-date as others. Respect that and help each other out, it will be worth it.

Besides being respectful to fellow Trainers, you should also respect your environment. You’ll visit many places on your journey, and whether new or familiar, they all deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. With the upcoming/ongoing Earth Day Campaign, now is a great moment to show off some love for your surroundings!

Group Picture at Safari Zone Dortmund in 2018
The Pokémon GO Community at the Safari Zone Event in Dortmund (2018)

Whether you are a passionate Pokémon lover, a casual player or just someone who likes to throw balls at virtual creatures, we all have our place in the Pokémon GO Community. To end with a cliché: Spread Love, Not Hate. Share your passion, create friendships, treat each other with respect and enjoy playing the game we all love.

Stay safe Trainers. May your catches be shiny, your hatches perfect and your trades Lucky. But most importantly: may your Community be healthy.