The highly anticipated real-world event called “Pokemon GO Fest” is finally here. It is where fans get to meet other fans of the hit mobile game, as they participate in Niantic’s set of surprises. Unfortunately, the event is not as satisfying as expected.
According to Kotaku, players at “Pokemon GO Fest” are not happy with what is happening. There have been countless issues, destroying the hype the studio built for the event. Here is everything about it in a nutshell.
The event is a disappointment
Taking place at Chicago’s titular Grant Park, the aforementioned event is not giving fans the excitement it promised.
It is supposed to offer lots of interesting stuff, such as rare pocket monsters, eggs and special raids, among others. However, the event – or game itself – is reportedly “unplayable” for many attendees. This is a huge letdown to those who flew in just to join the real-world event. There are plenty of connection errors, preventing players from logging into their accounts and participating in the event.
Eventually, Niantic’s CEO John Hanke got on a stage to address the issues in "Pokemon GO Fest." Apparently, he was booed by the thousands of attendees. In fact, things were so bad that the they all chanted “We can’t play.” Everyone was just pissed off. Later on, the chanting went to “Fix the game.” It is definitely getting ugly at Chicago right now.
Niantic addressing the issue
Hanke promised the “Pokemon GO Fest” players that the connection issues were being fixed. He even iterated that the cell companies (e.g. AT&T, Verizon and Sprint) have been contacted to help them resolve the problem right away. Despite the clamor of the fans, Hanke asked them to be patient, as “the whole Niantic team” was already working to fix the problem.
“Please be patient with us,” he said.
The issue did not stop there, as there were players in “Pokemon GO Fest” who have yet to enter the vicinity. The lines to get inside were just disturbing, as if the studio did not prepare for this event at all. Players complained, saying that the developers should have anticipated these issues beforehand.
The connection issue, in particular, is a well-known problem in the game. Therefore, the studio should have looked into this before the event even started. Although this may be fixed later on, the damage has already been done. Players’ first impression of the real-world event is unsatisfactory.
