Hundreds of Pokemon GO enthusiasts flocked to the centre of Madrid on Thursday (July 28) for a mass gathering of gamers that looked likely to spill over into much of the capital’s tourist area, while local police advised players to stay put.
Pokemon GO players congregated in Madrid’s central Puerta del Sol square and were planning to take the chase to the city’s Retiro Park roughly a mile away.
Some players pointed out the game was positive because it encouraged people to leave their homes and explore the city.
“I think it’s good . Because of the game people go out more and get to know the city and also spend money. If you are out, you have something to eat or drink. I think it’s good in that sense,” Aida, a 19 year-ols student said.
Pokemon GO uses GPS technology so that players can catch and train Pokemon on their smartphones as they walk around real-life neighbourhoods. An estimated 9,000 people gathered in San Francisco on the U.S. West Coast last week in a similar mass gathering.
Organizers in Madrid were hoping to gather 5000 players, but they were far from their goal.
The event was initially meant to take place in the city’s Retiro park, but the location switched to the Puerta del Sol after Madrid’s town hall refused to allow the gathering to take place in the park because of the high number of attendees.
Some players defied the town hall’s decision and went to the central Madrid park in anyway as it is a popular hunting ground as its lakes offer players the chance to catch aquatic Pokemons.
“To be honest I expected more people but I think it’s crowded,” Cristina Zapata, 18, who was at Puerta del Sol said.
Pokemon GO became available in Spain on July 15. The game has boosted Nintendo’s market value by 50 percent, although the company posted an operating loss of 5.1 billion yen for the April-June quarter, which was wider than a Thomson Reuters StarMine SmartEstimate of a 4 billion loss.
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016
