What once brought the world together, and remained for a long time as a way to get out of the house (for those who were already capable of doing so), Pokemon Go has become a shameless cash grab that has and continues to drive away longtime fans and newcomers alike. No longer is it possible to do everything in game without spending real money: once, spending money was simply a fast pass, but nothing was entirely hidden behind paywalls. Now, entire events, Pokemon, and items are locked away from those not willing to shell out cash for a company frantically grabbing at every penny they can scrape together before they lose the license to a once phenomenal game. That’s not even getting into the decrease in quality of Pokemon within the game. Dozens upon dozens of people will plan, gather, and yes, pay, to raid a powerful Pokemon and be rewarded with a subpar Pokemon of their own. (And there’s no exaggeration on “dozens and dozens” as certain types of Pokemon raids now require upwards of 40 people to even make a decent attempt to defeat - ostracizing people in rural areas, disabled people, or even just anyone who doesn’t have the sheer amount of time, resources, and people to do these raids. And with less and less people seeing the point in playing, that number continues to grow.) The current state of the game is a crying shame, and a mockery of what it once was, and I can only hope that someday it bounces back.
