Pokémon Go is not an invitation to talk to me on the street “Oh man! Did you get that Eevee?!” I jump – my attention buried so deep in the events on my […]

“Oh man! Did you get that Eevee?!” I jump – my attention buried so deep in the events on my phone, I had no idea there was a man standing next to me in real life.

“You’re on Pokémon Go, right?” he asks. I nod, suitably embarrassed for a 27-year-old woman who definitely has better things to do than wandering the streets throwing fictional pokeballs at made-up creatures.

“There was an Eevee here and now it’s gone. Did you catch it?”

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“If only there were such a thing as Pokémon Go away”

“No,” I say, face now deliberately glued to the screen as I attempt to sidle away in an unsubtle fashion. He follows me. “It’s OK, don’t worry about it. I don’t mind if you did,” he says, correctly registering the discomfort in my facial expression but failing to understand there are non-Pokémon-related reasons why a lone woman might not want to talk to strange men on the street.

‘Meet up and catch Pokemon or something?’

He then proceeds to introduce himself, enlightens me with his opinions on how glitchy the game is, and then asks for my number so we can “meet up again or maybe catch Pokémon or something”.

“I resisted the temptation to add that a Pokémon was probably not the only thing I’d catch if I went with him”

This isn’t the only such unwanted encounter I’ve had since I downloaded the game three days ago. There was also the guy who sat next to me on the bus, saw the app open on my phone screen and offered to show me somewhere I could catch a “high-level Poliwhirl”. I declined, and resisted the temptation to add that a Pokémon was probably not the only thing I’d catch if I went with him.

You’ve probably already come across examples online of players making wonderful new friends thanks to a chance meeting through Pokémon Go. The pictures that have surfaced so far usually feature a diverse group of beaming people, seemingly having the time of their lives irrespective of gender, age or race… or actually having anything else in common.

Not looking for Pokemon Go friends

Call me narrow-minded but my encounters over the last few days have been much less desirable. Maybe I give off friendly approachable vibes, despite my best efforts, but it seems Pokémon Go is the fun talking point I don’t need or want.

I begged my boyfriend to sign up so he could wander round with me, acting as a makeshift weirdo shield – but despite my best efforts he thought it was odd that an adult would want to play such a game.

In fact, I’d go as far as saying the risk of actually coming across other players is the No 1 thing putting me off playing the game.

What happened to the good old days, when gamers stayed firmly indoors with no need to venture outside and nerds feared social interaction? If only there were such a thing as Pokémon Go away.