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What is Good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching Experience?


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Pokeman Go is sorta a competitor of Geocaching. Fortunately, this is not a zero sum game that challenges Geocaching, but there are some intriguing possibilities that could be adopted by Groundspeak to enhance the game playing experience for all of us.

 

I have been playing Pokeman with the son for the last couple of days and have achieved the lofty level of 5!

 

There are really cool Pokeman features that Groundspeak could adopt that would keep the integrity of the game while getting us all off the couch and into the woods.

 

These ideas are just random “out-of-box”stream of consciousness thoughts. I know some are good, and I know some will not work, but this OP is simply starting a dialogue with the community.

 

The question is simple.. What is good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching experience?

 

Thoughts.

 

1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on “what you have done for me lately” stats.

 

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event? Not for every cache, just once a day.

 

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress. Geocaching doesn’t lend itself to pvp, but leveraging social interactions could be awesome.

 

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. When I started geocaching I cleared out my hometown and I realized the game took on a new turn as I needed to travel. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so? I suspect we lose a lot of cachers who don’t have the commitment or gas money to go outside their home. I was in Colorado for the mega event two weeks ago. I sherphad a contingent of SoCal cachers to the oldest cache in Colorado, Tarryall. I logged Tarryall back in 2012. Would it upset the universe if I got credit for another find on this cache 4 years later?

 

Final Note: Groundspeak does not allow me to log directly into the forums with my geocaching account as I have an accent on my name. Their platform does not accommodate “unusual” spellings. When I questioned, I was told to change my name to access the forums. I said no. I was not changing my name. My geocaching name is Réd if you want to check me out. So, that is why I log under Redsockpuppet!

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Pokeman Go is sorta a competitor of Geocaching. Fortunately, this is not a zero sum game that challenges Geocaching, but there are some intriguing possibilities that could be adopted by Groundspeak to enhance the game playing experience for all of us.

 

I have been playing Pokeman with the son for the last couple of days and have achieved the lofty level of 5!

 

There are really cool Pokeman features that Groundspeak could adopt that would keep the integrity of the game while getting us all off the couch and into the woods.

 

These ideas are just random “out-of-box”stream of consciousness thoughts. I know some are good, and I know some will not work, but this OP is simply starting a dialogue with the community.

 

The question is simple.. What is good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching experience?

 

Thoughts.

 

1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on “what you have done for me lately” stats.

 

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event? Not for every cache, just once a day.

 

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress. Geocaching doesn’t lend itself to pvp, but leveraging social interactions could be awesome.

 

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. When I started geocaching I cleared out my hometown and I realized the game took on a new turn as I needed to travel. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so? I suspect we lose a lot of cachers who don’t have the commitment or gas money to go outside their home. I was in Colorado for the mega event two weeks ago. I sherphad a contingent of SoCal cachers to the oldest cache in Colorado, Tarryall. I logged Tarryall back in 2012. Would it upset the universe if I got credit for another find on this cache 4 years later?

 

Final Note: Groundspeak does not allow me to log directly into the forums with my geocaching account as I have an accent on my name. Their platform does not accommodate “unusual” spellings. When I questioned, I was told to change my name to access the forums. I said no. I was not changing my name. My geocaching name is Réd if you want to check me out. So, that is why I log under Redsockpuppet!

 

THIS! Believe me... TONS of people! Once they clean out the area, they are done and I lost track how many people just stop caching because they cleaned out the area. Its over two dozen people! Just think how many people that will be in the whole USA! I asked a few of them over the years since I know a few of them personal and they all said this... we dont have the money to travel. Its a rich man hobby an another person told me.

 

Now, would I be caching more if theres more caches in my area? Sure I would. That simple.

 

GS needs to find a way to refresh their game.

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Once they clean out the area, they are done and I lost track how many people just stop caching because they cleaned out the area. Its over two dozen people! Just think how many people that will be in the whole USA! I asked a few of them over the years since I know a few of them personal and they all said this... we dont have the money to travel. Its a rich man hobby an another person told me.

So, this discussion is not gonna be honest about how much the "not rich" people actually pay into IAP?

Edited by kunarion
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Once they clean out the area, they are done and I lost track how many people just stop caching because they cleaned out the area. Its over two dozen people! Just think how many people that will be in the whole USA! I asked a few of them over the years since I know a few of them personal and they all said this... we dont have the money to travel. Its a rich man hobby an another person told me.

So, this discussion is not gonna be honest about how much the "not rich" people actually pay into IAP?

 

I really have my flame proof threads on here, but sadly at my advanced years, I have know clue what IAP is. Clarify please!

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The best thing about geocaching is that is NOT Pokémon Go. As geocaching is stagnating and losing interest Pokémon Go is the new game on the street, and I'm having fun with it. My daughter and I are out playing again where she lost interest in geocaching a few years ago, and I would not want to see changes made in geocaching to copy-cat Pokémon Go.

 

So far I have not spent a dime on Pokémon Go, but in the last 8 years I have spent well over 1K Geocaching. I have over 100 trackables, many not activated, and maintain over 100 geocaches and I'm still having fun playing. :laughing:

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1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on “what you have done for me lately” stats.

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. When I started geocaching I cleared out my hometown and I realized the game took on a new turn as I needed to travel. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so?

 

I fear both would lead to bogus logging, just to 'get the numbers' to get a higher level...

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My condolences to the OP, who put a *lot* of effort into encouraging discussion of our game, and was immediately met with a one-word reply, "Ew."

 

I understand the sentiment a bit, though. We play *this* game. There's no need to change it to make it more like another currently-trendy game. However, it's a fair question about whether changes could improve caching.

 

One comment caught my attention:

 

The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. [/Quote]

 

I once sort-of had a cache come to me - a grandfathered traveling cache. That was different and fun.

 

So while we like the game as it is, discussion of the evolution of the game is fair game.

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What is good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching experience?

 

Nothing for me.

 

For me geocaching is a physical outdoor activity and I care about the nature and the exercise and not about playing a game. The less I'm bothered with technical gimmicks and things that do not really exist and distract from the beauty of the nature, the better for me. The less competition and the less forced social interaction is involved, the better for me. I use geocaching as a kind of island of getting away from the stress, noise and pressure of daily life.

Edited by cezanne
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I don't view Pokemon Go as a competitor at all but perhaps a complement. Gives me something to do on bike rides more locally as all the geocaches near me have been found. It also gives a lot of these younger generation types out of their basements and walking around for some exercise.

 

But I'll say this Pokemon Go thing is nuts, where my mother lives, at least 40 people were in one spot in downtown Glen Burnie at a virtual Pokemon stop. Crazy stuff.

 

But I think it's going to be like Farmville on Zynga, tons will play it then eventually fades out as people get bored with the game.

 

I also think Groundspeak really needs to come out with some new geocache types to respark interest in the game. Perhaps sell special geocaches from HQ that have a different cache type. Remember the michelin Man travel bugs? How about selling 5,000 Michelin man geocache containers from HQ (it can be any company, I am just using the tire company as an example). Say you buy the special container for $20 from Groundspeak with the special icon. OOr make a deal with a movie company like they did with Planet of Apes years ago and get caches based on them put out there with a special icon like the Ape caches had.

 

Something to bring some life back into the game.

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Disclaimer: I really don't like anything Pokemon themed. /Disclaimer

 

How I see it, the Pokemon Go game might be good for geocaching by dragging away from it youngsters who would normally destroy or muggle caches. Geocaching is more demanding in terms of physical effort (being in the right spot is not enough, you have to really find the cache which sometimes takes alot of searching, crawling, getting dirty and so on). The same cachers who would normally log a find just because of being in the area or who wouldn't be cautious enough to fully lock or mask a cache would be better off with Pokemon GO, where there isn't enything to destroy (intentionally or not). On the other hand geocaching won't rather miss them. As for ranks, levels and so on, there is already the badges and belts system on Project GC. The thing is nobody can really verify your badges if you cheat. Unleas you are a guy like MT Jonea who is famous for it (even I saw missing geocaches that he "found").

Edited by TheVoytekBear
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1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on "what you have done for me lately" stats.

 

 

I like ideas in this area - probably why we like project-GC....

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My condolences to the OP, who put a *lot* of effort into encouraging discussion of our game...

So while we like the game as it is, discussion of the evolution of the game is fair game.

 

I review cache pages, which gives me a particular and possibly peculiar viewpoint on the thread title and opening post.

 

What I see is similar what I see on cache listings - it's quite possible to use a generic term, like "store", instead of naming the business and/or product.

 

It would have been possible to discuss play and stats additions that might enhance geocaching, without referencing another game by name.

 

(If this were a listing, I'd disable it ;-) with my minor edits log).

 

I suspect mods here are wondering right now about how to handle this stuff in these forums.

Mostly, if you want to talk about "other game", you're encouraged to use "other game" forums.

 

(As a player, I'm personally not interested in stats levels, badges etc , or fiddling with devices while outdoors any more than I must...)

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I suspect mods here are wondering right now about how to handle this stuff in these forums.

Mostly, if you want to talk about "other game", you're encouraged to use "other game" forums.

 

While I share your personal preferences as a player, I think that it's better to call things by their name. There are too many other games and we need to know

about what someone talks.

 

The other game forums are not a good place to discuss what some people would like to have changed in geocaching. I cannot see any other meaningful place to discuss this than a geocaching forum.

 

Also we should not forget that this is an international forum. Many people coming from countries where this other game is not yet available will not have heard about it before and they might wonder why the motivation for a post like this comes from and they also have no clue what other game could be and they have no chance to ever look at it without knowing what is talked about.

Edited by cezanne
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1) Implement the level system.

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event?

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress.

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

5) They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so?

 

No, really no, thank you to 1 2 3.

And I don't see much sense in 5. Please at least make it a sidegame that doesn't affect other users.

 

But admittedly the other game has far more financial potential for the makers in addressing the widespread need for an incentive system with rewards, competition, simple no-brainer strategy (and also pay instead of play for progress), no burdensome rules for publishing and logging as the locations are selected by the makers and no need to search for evil hides, enter the area and virtually catch what you see on your screen, plus your home zone will never empty.

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1) Implement the level system.

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event?

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress.

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

5) They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so?

 

1) No

2) No

3) No

4) I have no problem with "encouraging" people to buy/move TBs but no to the "levels" and "credits" idea.

5) No.

 

There other games out there for anyone who needs this kind of reward system (Munzee, Ingres, Pokemon Go, and probably others), leave Geocaching for those of us who like to get out and about somewhere.

 

But Project-GC already does some of 1) if you really want it, an they might be persuaded to implement something along the lines of 3), but I hope Groundspeak never takes it on board.

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I see it as something that can entertain my kid on the way to a cache. If a Pokémon appears on the way, he can take a picture of it and I can add it to my Geocaching log. I don't see it as a competing product. Geocaching is searching for the tangible while Pokémon, Ingress, etc is searching for the intangible.

 

As for your suggestions of what geocaching could borrow from Pokémon:

 

1) Geocaching already has leveling with BadgeGen and milestones.

2) I like how events are currently handled. Only folks in the FTF race ever run into each other at GZ.

3) This is probably your best idea, but I am not sure how to implement it. The biggest geocaching divide is between GPSr and phone users. I supposed you could declare yourself a phone cacher or a GPSr cacher. The State, province, or country will show the color of whichever group owns the most caches in that area. You can divide this into 3 teams if you want (GPSr, Apple phones, and Android phones). This will probably just allow for an increase in crappy micro caches, but that seems to be happening regardless.

4) Making TBs more important would alienate those who look down upon discoveries.

5) Definitely not. I wish Groundspeak would prevent people from logging the same cache multiple times. I have done it once or twice by accident and it threw off a few milestones.

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1) Implement the level system.

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event?

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress.

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

5) They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so?

 

1) No

2) No

3) No

4) I have no problem with "encouraging" people to buy/move TBs but no to the "levels" and "credits" idea.

5) No.

 

There other games out there for anyone who needs this kind of reward system (Munzee, Ingres, Pokemon Go, and probably others), leave Geocaching for those of us who like to get out and about somewhere.

 

But Project-GC already does some of 1) if you really want it, an they might be persuaded to implement something along the lines of 3), but I hope Groundspeak never takes it on board.

 

Agree 100%. Although, it'd be nice if we weren't being hoodwinked with challenges. :ph34r: I want them back in their original form.

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I don't see Pokemon Go as a competitor or a complement, but as a nuisance. Please, allow me to explain. Groundspeak/Geocaching emphasizes safety and respect in regards to trespassing, laws, CITO, etc. This insanely popular Pokemon Go game has people out in droves, clambering to chase down as many of these characters as possible with little to no regard (sometimes even blatant disregard) to private property, trespassing, etc., essentially giving us all a bad name. Yes, there are jerks in every organization; I get that. The fervor at which these Pokemon'ers compete has many doing really, really stupid things. Just locally we had a Pokemoner photographed on his motorcycle, barreling at high speeds into and on our hiking/cycling trail system. Not only does this destroy the trails, but it's extremely dangerous as kids, elderly, and everyone else use these trails. Trail users were yelling at him to stop and he just screamed about Pokemon and ignored their pleas. I'm happy to report that nobody was injured and the perp was caught by police after calls came in and his bike was impounded. Yes, one example, one bad seed. However, you can scan the news sites and find plenty of Pokemon examples, like the 15yr old, Arthur Digsby, that was shot and killed in NC yesterday for trespassing while chasing a Pokemon. I too have witnessed swarms of players trample gardens on our university grounds.

 

My wife, who doesn't cache, thinks Pokemon Go and Geocaching are one in the same. I worry that's what the general public may think as well and therefore tie the poor behavior to all GPS/smartphone scavenger hunt "games."

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I don't see Pokemon Go as a competitor or a complement, but as a nuisance. Please, allow me to explain. Groundspeak/Geocaching emphasizes safety and respect in regards to trespassing, laws, CITO, etc. This insanely popular Pokemon Go game has people out in droves, clambering to chase down as many of these characters as possible with little to no regard (sometimes even blatant disregard) to private property, trespassing, etc., essentially giving us all a bad name. Yes, there are jerks in every organization; I get that.

 

I think the scale is the problem. There are too many people playing this new game. The number of geocachers who do all of what you complained about above PLUS leave geo-litter is large enough that some parks have already banned geocaching. Now multiple that by 100! It really doesn't matter what activity people decide to do outside. If millions of people took up juggling, the number of bowling pins and tennis balls that were left behind or rolled into traffic would be a big concern.

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I don't view Pokemon Go as a competitor at all but perhaps a complement. Gives me something to do on bike rides more locally as all the geocaches near me have been found. It also gives a lot of these younger generation types out of their basements and walking around for some exercise.

What if GS used the Waymarking database to make an AR game? Maybe not to battle each other. Care for animals, or something. Plants and animals found in nature. Go to these various waymarks, and there's an elusive animal to photograph. Or a place to collect provisions for that animal. Something like that.

 

These Apps must be constantly connected, so that rules out land and sea that's beyond the cell towers. It also means the company that runs the servers must keep the servers running. No leaving on Friday, no more delay to fix the server on Monday, for example. And, of course it must be a micro-payment thing with plausible deniability, so that everyone can pay much more than they can afford, while insisting they don't. Such an App is not at all a money-saving plan for players, obviously.

 

Keep the game separate from Geocaching, the same way that the kids are not accruing Geocaching stats while playing their different games. And, a Waymarked business may want to attract people, by offering a desirable destination.

 

Strangely, I'd prefer that Geocaching remain closer to Geocaching. There are oh-so-many threads about Hey, there's [something else], why isn't Geocaching just like [something else]!. The answer is, it was be a bad idea (yes, in some cases, they tried it already).

Edited by kunarion
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I suspect mods here are wondering right now about how to handle this stuff in these forums.

Mostly, if you want to talk about "other game", you're encouraged to use "other game" forums.

While I share your personal preferences as a player, I think that it's better to call things by their name. There are too many other games and we need to know about what someone talks.
I've got to agree with cezanne on this one.

 

We aren't discussing the other game. We are discussing geocaching. The other game is being referenced as a way to discuss geocaching, and potential changes/enhancements/expansions to the game of geocaching.

 

I don't think it helps communication if we turn the forums into a party game where certain words are banned:

The app with a colon in its name.

The QR-code app.

The app that rhymes with "plurality".

The app that rhymes with "geosmashing". (Oh, no, I mean the OTHER app that rhymes with "geosmashing". No, not geocaching, the OTHER OTHER app that rhymes with "geosmashing".)

The app that rhymes with "there I go". (Oh, wait, that one's okay to talk about, right?)

 

Just say no.

 

Sure, clamp down if people start promoting non-Groundspeak games. But merely mentioning the names of these things in the context of a geocaching discussion should not trigger warnings, message edits, message deletion, thread locking, thread deletion, member banning, or any similar actions.

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I might be a technology enabled (or disabled) luddite.

 

I like geocaching. I load up my device and go. I'm not online while I am in touch with nature. I don't pay for data. I don't have enough connectivity in the field to play pokemon games (or several of the others either).

 

The new game looks cute, and it gets kids outside. The shine will wear off soon enough though.

 

Cache on.

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I started caching with kids. They loved swag & got bored with micros. I assumed most cachers were kids and was surprised to find out otherwise.

 

Pokémon has features that appeal more to kids than caching does. However, some Pokémon players may become cachers when Pokémon fades and when the players get older.

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1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on "what you have done for me lately" stats.

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. When I started geocaching I cleared out my hometown and I realized the game took on a new turn as I needed to travel. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so?

 

I fear both would lead to bogus logging, just to 'get the numbers to get a higher level...

 

And also adding to the stress and strife between those who really get into stats. There are a lot of geocachers who try to make this a competitive game.

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Yes. So much.

 

How about bar codes so we can scan finds instead of trying to sign wet logs with the pen I never have. (Who has a pen on them these days?)

 

The map is so old technology. Use google earth and AR technology to find caches on the phones. I have never used a gps. Won't ever buy one. They are terrible when you are used to using the technology of maps and AR on a phone.

 

Love the idea of levels.

 

I've introduced geocaching to my boyfriend his his teenage sons and when we found the first one they all said, "uh, that's it? now what?" There's no game play feel to it so they have zero interest in driving around and finding wet bits of paper under rocks. I see their point.

 

However, they LOVE PokemonGO and have been playing nonstop. When I point it is essentially the same thing, they roll their eyes at me. Because to them it is so much more fun.

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I see it as something that can entertain my kid on the way to a cache. If a Pokémon appears on the way, he can take a picture of it and I can add it to my Geocaching log. I don't see it as a competing product. Geocaching is searching for the tangible while Pokémon, Ingress, etc is searching for the intangible.

 

As for your suggestions of what geocaching could borrow from Pokémon:

 

1) Geocaching already has leveling with BadgeGen and milestones.

2) I like how events are currently handled. Only folks in the FTF race ever run into each other at GZ.

3) This is probably your best idea, but I am not sure how to implement it. The biggest geocaching divide is between GPSr and phone users. I supposed you could declare yourself a phone cacher or a GPSr cacher. The State, province, or country will show the color of whichever group owns the most caches in that area. You can divide this into 3 teams if you want (GPSr, Apple phones, and Android phones). This will probably just allow for an increase in crappy micro caches, but that seems to be happening regardless.

4) Making TBs more important would alienate those who look down upon discoveries.

5) Definitely not. I wish Groundspeak would prevent people from logging the same cache multiple times. I have done it once or twice by accident and it threw off a few milestones.

 

1) Milestones are part of the standards statistics package that GS provides. BadgeGen is a third party site that can generate some HTML that can included in ones profile. Personally I'd like to see a refactoring of the Public Profile page. Currently the Profile page contains 7 tabs and only one of them is editable. As a result, the profile tab is used for showing Badges, externally generate stats, and even souvenirs for regions for which a souvenir has not yet been created. I'd like to see the Souvenirs and Statistics tabs editable as well as the addition of a "Awards/Accomplishments" editable tab that one could use for adding Badgegen badges or some of those graphics that are common in Europe (especially in the UK) created by cache owners specifically for a single cache or series. Leave the Profile tab just for Personal Bio information and allow the user make any of the tabs private.

 

Several of the suggestions just look like a way for someone to pads their stats by adding "finds". Although there are a very small number of exceptions to the rule, I've always believed in the concept of one find per GC code. The exceptions could include the very few locationless caches (Brass caps in Canada), reusing a GC code for periodically reoccurring events, and the very few traveling caches still in existence. Other than that I see no useful purpose (other than padding ones stats) in logging multiple finds on the same GC code.

 

I think that there's already too much of an emphasis on the numbers and increasing ones find count (and the competitive aspect as a result) rather than creating unique quality experiences.

 

 

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I've introduced geocaching to my boyfriend his his teenage sons and when we found the first one they all said, "uh, that's it? now what?"

 

Like I wrote before - let it drag them away from geocaching. When they grow up and understand what is it really about they can join. I'm 31 now and I'm (among other things) using geocaching to explore areas near my home town that I ignored or wasn't aware of when I still lived with my mom (so till being 19). This comes with age and experience. No need to rush :)

 

In the mean time it will boost our stealth mode in the crowded areas. Now everyone will think we are looking for Pokemons ;)

Edited by TheVoytekBear
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In answer to the question in the title of this thread: "What is Good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching Experience?"

 

It's keeping all those muggles too preoccupied to notice me having real-world fun geocaching.

 

Yeah--it keeps the muggles occupied with their own app.

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1) Implement the level system.

I'm not in it for the numbers, and I wouldn't want GS to try to encourage people to be in it for the numbers. But if it's a popular idea, it would not be hard for me to ignore just like I ignore when I'm granted another Favorite point to give out.

 

2) How about encouraging more social interaction? Perhaps 2 or 3 who log a cache make an automatic event? Not for every cache, just once a day.

I think people that cache together or run into other geocachers at GZ consider themselves rewarded enough as it is, so I see no reason to add an additional reward. If anything, a reward would encourage people to meet at GZ for reasons other than interacting with each other.

 

3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress. Geocaching doesn’t lend itself to pvp, but leveraging social interactions could be awesome.

In my experience, guilds, particularly ranked guilds, mainly encourage focusing on the numbers and do very little to encourage anything one might call social interaction.

 

4) I don’t have an issue with Groundspeak making money off of TB’s. In fact, I love coins and Tbs. So let’s put those stats right up at the top with hides and finds! I like the upcoming summer challenge. Encourage tb acquisition and movement as much as possible. Don’t forget supply and demand… e.g. only certain levels, or certain caches found, or certain souvenirs, attendees of mega events can acquire some Tb’s….. BONUS.. You get credit when others log.

How is this related to Pokemon? Anything more than "it looks like they're going to make a ton of money off PG, so GS should make a ton of money off geocaching, too"?

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again.

Honestly, that doesn't sound very interesting to me at all. I get your point, though, but can't you already go find the local caches again and post a 2nd, 3rd, or 4th find if you want? Or you can post a note, if you prefer.

 

Disclaimer: I have to admit there's a reason I have little sympathy for your problem of diminishing availability in your area: although I have to drive 20 minutes typically to cache, geocaching is sufficiently popular in my area that that 20 minute radius has not changed much in the last couple of years since it's large enough in include enough new caches to keep me satisfied.

 

So I don't find any of your suggestions interesting, but, at the same time, I've run into such things many times in other venues, so I'm used to ignoring them.

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Clarify

 

ee44e9bf-c39c-4e9a-aadc-3f3dbcbccb60.png

 

OK. I suppose this means something to you, but it doesn't clarify anything to me--it shows that one can spend money on the game, but not to what purpose. And it doesn't address the issue of what is "IAP"?

 

I'm guessing that IAP stands for "In App Purchase", a fairly common model for obtaining revenue for application developers (primarily games).

 

 

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3) Allow geocachers to join up in a group, or guild. Then rank guilds on their poweress. Geocaching doesn’t lend itself to pvp, but leveraging social interactions could be awesome.
In my experience, guilds, particularly ranked guilds, mainly encourage focusing on the numbers and do very little to encourage anything one might call social interaction.
Same here. In another context, the game guild I'm in is focused entirely on the game and the guild-related rewards built into the game. If anything, the guild-related rewards encourage guilds to poach from each other, which would destroy what little social interaction I do have with my guild, if I were inclined to accept the invitations.

 

On the other hand, we do have a fairly active local geocaching community, and Groundspeak didn't need to offer any kind of guilds or guild-related rewards for it to happen.

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On the other hand, we do have a fairly active local geocaching community, and Groundspeak didn't need to offer any kind of guilds or guild-related rewards for it to happen.

 

We don't have a large geocaching community here, and mostly just three geocachers placing PMO hides. I was at Wal-Mart last night playing Pokemon Go and it looked like a mega event compared to geocaching.

 

As a cache owner, I have been getting less finds over the last few years, and only a few, and I mean maybe two new active member are playing in my area.

 

This Pokemon is taking over every thing, even where Ingress was not a popular game. It's making me rethink if PMO on my listings and others in the area has had a negative effect on geocaching.

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This Pokemon is taking over every thing, even where Ingress was not a popular game.

 

Some thoughts on Ingress and why it didn't catch on like Pokémon Go:

1 - Nothing comes to you in Ingress. Where you can sit at home or wherever and catch random characters in PG as they wander into your area, Ingress requires actively moving around to various portal locations to hack them, link them and deploy resonators and whatnot.

2 - The Augmented Reality portion is more entertaining. Using the camera to make use of the environment and place these characters in the 'real world' is something apps like Layar have been doing for a while now, but never caught on.

3 - The premise is a bit more simple and based on an existing cultural phenomenon. Catch these characters by flinging balls at them. I don't really know what people do at the various "PokeGyms" or whatever, but from the start people feel more actively involved than they ever do hacking a portal in Ingress. Ingress also doesn't really seem to have a clear premise. I've played it on and off for a few years now and even so I can't really explain it beyond trying to capture XM and link portals. I honestly am always wondering if I'm even playing it correctly...

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This Pokemon is taking over every thing, even where Ingress was not a popular game.

 

Some thoughts on Ingress and why it didn't catch on like Pokémon Go:

1 - Nothing comes to you in Ingress. Where you can sit at home or wherever and catch random characters in PG as they wander into your area, Ingress requires actively moving around to various portal locations to hack them, link them and deploy resonators and whatnot.

2 - The Augmented Reality portion is more entertaining. Using the camera to make use of the environment and place these characters in the 'real world' is something apps like Layar have been doing for a while now, but never caught on.

3 - The premise is a bit more simple and based on an existing cultural phenomenon. Catch these characters by flinging balls at them. I don't really know what people do at the various "PokeGyms" or whatever, but from the start people feel more actively involved than they ever do hacking a portal in Ingress. Ingress also doesn't really seem to have a clear premise. I've played it on and off for a few years now and even so I can't really explain it beyond trying to capture XM and link portals. I honestly am always wondering if I'm even playing it correctly...

 

Nothing comes to you in Pokemon Go either, maybe one or two if you deploy incense. I don't know much about Ingress, but I tried spoofing my coordinates to the nearest Pokemon gym and stops, and it does not work. I had to drive there. :)

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If you think everything now has to have social features, remember that "The Witcher 3" doesn't have a multiplayer. By that I mean that events and gradually meeting your local fellow cachers is enough. You don't have to enforce it in the game.

As for some final thoughts, yes Pokemon GO will become popular and have more users than GC (polish Internet is just starting to bocome flooded with the topic), the AR is appealing, but like with all pay to win games (free to play is such a misleading name) after some time people will realize they are just waisting their time and money (especially if you end up visiting the same places over and over). And taking a picture of picachu with your local neighbourhood as background will never be better than finding a well crafted cache (especially when all your friends will have their facebook flooded with similar photos).

 

So enjoy your next geocaching trip wherever you go and dont worry about the muggles - they'll be probably bumping at each other under a local church with their noses stuck in their smartphones.

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I'd like to see the Souvenirs and Statistics tabs editable as well as the addition of a "Awards/Accomplishments" editable tab that one could use for adding Badgegen badges or some of those graphics that are common in Europe (especially in the UK) created by cache owners specifically for a single cache or series. Leave the Profile tab just for Personal Bio information and allow the user make any of the tabs private.

 

 

I can't agree more.

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As a cache owner, I have been getting less finds over the last few years, and only a few, and I mean maybe two new active member are playing in my area.

 

This Pokemon is taking over every thing, even where Ingress was not a popular game. It's making me rethink if PMO on my listings and others in the area has had a negative effect on geocaching.

I've been tellin' ya that for years (even when I was pm)... :laughing:

 

Similar, we have a local who walked a lengthy trail with me, saying he's "upset that with the distance on his hides, only a handful will ever hit 'em, so what's the point?"

I'm one who will, as waterfalls, boulder fields, and awesome views make this hobby interesting enough for me to continue it.

I told him that's why you don't get tftc logs, we appreciate it. :)

 

I'd bet that most in my area are playing this pg game now, as many of the areas to make finds are within the same easy numbers areas they've already been.

We're finding that many are outside food joints, as well as "points of interest".

One not too far away shows up around a pizza parlour and a hotdog hut, and it seems to switch between the two (ad revenue?), so that does fit right in with their cache style. :lol:

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As a cache owner, I have been getting less finds over the last few years, and only a few, and I mean maybe two new active member are playing in my area.

 

This Pokemon is taking over every thing, even where Ingress was not a popular game. It's making me rethink if PMO on my listings and others in the area has had a negative effect on geocaching.

I've been tellin' ya that for years (even when I was pm)... :laughing:

 

Similar, we have a local who walked a lengthy trail with me, saying he's "upset that with the distance on his hides, only a handful will ever hit 'em, so what's the point?"

I'm one who will, as waterfalls, boulder fields, and awesome views make this hobby interesting enough for me to continue it.

I told him that's why you don't get tftc logs, we appreciate it. :)

 

I'd bet that most in my area are playing this pg game now, as many of the areas to make finds are within the same easy numbers areas they've already been.

We're finding that many are outside food joints, as well as "points of interest".

One not too far away shows up around a pizza parlour and a hotdog hut, and it seems to switch between the two (ad revenue?), so that does fit right in with their cache style. :lol:

 

I would offer them back to everyone, but my PM has expired and they are locked in PMO status. Maybe one of the PMO cache haters will renew my membership so all the free-loaders can play too. :laughing:

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This game was getting a bit crowded.

 

If all the muggles-with-apps become muggles-with-some-other app, yay.:P

 

THIS!

 

I personally don't want or need more people to flock to Geocaching. It's there for those who want to try it and enjoy it. Most do just that and then move on after a bit. Some develop a sick addiction (like me!) I wouldn't want anything like Pokemon Go influencing Geocaching. (To borrow a line from Seinfeld, "Not that there's anything wrong with it") I tried Pokemon and found it mildly entertaining. It will bore some, be fun for others and an addiction for a few, just like any hobby. C'est la vie tongue.gif

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