It has been three weeks since the launch of Pokémon GO, and the fire to catch the virtual monsters rages on. Unless you are a troglodyte, or someone who lives in the remote wilderness of the Amazon jungle, it is a good bet that you are familiar with this mobile game. The game has penetrated all forms of social structures and is not only the most downloaded game from iOS and Google Play Stores, but has also trumped Facebook to be the most used app in the world - a true feat on its own. Pokémon GO has still not arrived in India, but the game is already running on millions of devices in the country through proxy downloading. If you haven't downloaded or played the game till now, and are waiting for the official launch of the game in India; here is what you need to know in preparation to play the game when it finally comes. Signing in and setup: Pokémon GO has been developed by San Francisco based company, Niantic. The game requires the player to have a gmail account to sign in. If you have signed in and the page doesn't move past loading, you might need to close the application and try again. Niantic is still battling with patchy servers owing to unprecedented traffic from the games over-the-top popularity. After you successfully sign in to the game, you are required to customise your character. How to play the game: Once you have signed up and set up your character's looks, there are few things to keep in mind before you start to play the game. Pokémon GO is a location-based game, which entails that you cannot (frustratingly) play it indoors as it requires GPS tracking. Here is how to download the game right now As you begin the game you will encounter three Pokémon - Squirtle, Charmander and Bulbasaur. If you have allowed the game to access the camera, you will be able to see the Pokémon in the foreground of your surroundings. To catch them, click on the Poké ball on the center bottom of your screen and flick it towards either one of them. The ball needs to hit the Pokémon through a green circle that encapsulate their heads. The green circle shrinks and disappears before reappearing, so it might be a little tricky to take the perfect shot in the beginning. Catching Pokémon will give you experience points and stardust. Experience points will help you level up and stardust will help you power up your Pokémon. Note: We suggest you to save your stardust in the beginning and not use it on starter Pokémon, as they are weak and have very less CP (Combat Power). You will need to walk around your city to find more Pokémon. It is imperative to understand that you need a strong internet connection to play this game. More Pokémon will be located in busy streets in your city. As you walk around, a small icon on the lower right screen of your screen will show you the Pokémon that are nearby you. Pokémon in this map usually carry pug marks under them, which means that you need to move around to find them. Here is how you start the game with Pikachu Your Pokédex will show you the number of Pokémon that you have caught. It is not uncommon to find the same Pokémon around you all the time, but that does not mean you should not catch them. If you have too many of the same Pokémon, you can send them to the professor and receive candy (for that particular Pokémon) from him. Pokemon candy is required to evolve the Pokémon into more powerful monsters. Note - it is not uncommon to find similar Pokémon with different CP. These Pokémon can have different attacks and may weigh different. As you progress you will get badges in the game - "Kanto", "Jogger", "Collector", etc. Poké Stops and gyms In the game you will also encounter Poké Stops and gyms, which would be spread across your city. You will need to head to your nearest Poké stop to stock up on Poké balls, eggs, and other goodies. When you get an egg, you need to incubate it in the incubator. Each egg has a certain distance attached to it, before it hatches. You will need to walk around for that exact distance to break your egg and get a new Pokémon. The eggs have one of three distances - 2kms, 5kms and 10kms. The higher the distance, rarer the Pokémon. Finding Pokémon gyms is easier than spotting Poké Stops. They are large coloured towers that will show on your map. To be able to enter a gym, you need to be at least a level 5 Pokémon trainer and have chosen one of three teams - Mystic (blue), Valor (red) or Instinct (yellow). Note: Think carefully before you choose a team because you will not be able to change it in the game. How to save battery while playing Pokémon GO A gym can be either friendly or be controlled by a rival - either of the other two teams. Fighting in a rival gym is a matter of lowering the prestige level of your opponent. This number will show after you select the gym that you wish to fight at. You will be able to find the name, level and the trainer that has been stationed there. The species and the CP of the Pokémon is also given along with its prestige level. Each gym fight is a fight for honour and territory. If you beat your opponent teams Pokémon, you can take control of the gym for your team. Pokémon "Fight Club" Before you start a fight, you need to choose six Pokémon (preferably the ones with the highest CP) or ones that you think will counter the type of your opponents Pokémons. Be the first to attack in the battle as soon as the whistle blows. To unleash your Pokémons standard move, you will need to tap the screen. You can also use special moves of your Pokémon by holding your finger on the screen once the power meter is full. You will need to swipe on the screen to dodge an opponent's attacks. You can only heal your Pokémon when the battle is over. Multiple members of the same team can target a gym to bring the prestige level of the opponent team down before claiming the gym for themselves. Game inventory A Pokémon trainer is given 50 Poké balls, two incense and one unlimited egg incubator. Incense can be used to lure Pokémon to your location for 30 minutes, which can only been seen by you and not the players with you. You will be able to purchase Poké balls, lucky eggs, lure modules, incubators and incense using Poké coins, that need to be bought through in-app purchases. A 100 Poké coins will cost you Rs 60, while 1200 Poké coins will set you back by Rs 620. Dropping a lure module is similar to using incense, but in this case everyone around you will be able to see the Pokémon that are attracted to the spot. Lure modules can only be used at Poké stops and are active for 30 minutes - during which you are suppose to capture as many Pokémon as possible. Niantic's CEO has recently said that the company is looking to add more Pokémon in the future. The game will also see the introduction of Pokémon Centres. Click here to see some tips and tricks that will help you in the game.
