It’s Pokemon no-Go for Westhead
IT may be the craze that’s taking the globe by storm but Pokemon Go hasn’t really reached Westhead yet, with the augmented reality game failing to recognise that the area is a real place.
The app allows users to travel between the real world and the virtual world of Pokemon by catching the cartoon creatures on their smartphones and tablets in their local area.
To play, users simply have to make their way around the streets and parks in their local area collecting Pokemon to train up and battle with.
However, Pokemon Go charts a player’s location by placing them on a map of their surrounding area and following their journey through the streets where they can find the cartoon creatures.
This has created some trouble for Westhead locals, as their area isn’t recognised by Pokemon Go.
The app would normally present a clear layout of the surrounding streets, but in Westhead there is nothing but blank space as the game fails to recognise the area.
The cartoon catching craze has become so prolific over the past few days that Lancashire Police have issued some advice to budding Pokemon trainers.
Issuing safety guidance on their Facebook page, police cautioned Pokemon players to always communicate with family and friends to keep them aware of their location and to conserve enough battery to make emergency calls if necessary.
The police also advised users to download Google Maps over WiFi beforehand to use in ‘Offline Mode’ to avoid surprise bills from your mobile data provider.