Even though Pokémon Go, the free-to-play location-based augmented reality mobile game, is not officially available in SA yet, gamers have found ways to play it here.
Users who do jump through the few extra hoops to get the game here are surprised by the vast amount of embedded 'PokeStops' and 'Gyms' that correlate with real-world locations in SA.
Public places like the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens are awash with these virtual landmarks that allow users to reload or battle other players.
Start catching
For iPhone users, an App Store account that is registered in a country where the app is available needs to be created.
To do this, users must sign out of their current account (which should be registered to the SA App Store) and then opt to create a new Apple ID. While setting up a new ID, users will be prompted to add billing information and a physical address. Choose 'none' for billing information and an address in the US, the UK, Australia, New Zealand or Germany (where the game is currently available). The address can be a random business in any of these countries.
Then search for Pokémon Go in the app store. Once downloaded, users should sign out of the new Apple ID and logon again with their normal one.
For Android users, an APK file needs to be downloaded and installed on the device. These files allow users to install apps onto Android phones that are not available in their Google Play Store.
Before searching the Web for the file, Android users need to make sure their security settings allow for installs from unknown sources. This is turned off by default.
There are many APK files for Pokémon Go available and users need to be careful as some may be malware. This file has been tested by ITWeb and is a legitimate version of the game.
SA data
When playing the game, the PokeStops and Gyms are real world locations. When a user gets closer to a PokeStop, they are able to open it and a picture of the real world place will be there.
This data has been provided by another similar game, Ingress, created by Pokémon Go creator Niantic.
Niantic used the data, including pictures and GPS points, provided by users of Ingress over the past few years for Pokémon Go.
There have been some complaints that there are not enough PokeStops and Gyms in rural parts of the world.
Yesterday, the company said it will take requests for new PokeStops and Gyms to resolve this problem. Users can file a request here.
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