Pokémon has once again taken the world by storm since the release of Pokémon Go for iPhone and Android Devices. Catching Pokémon has never been so much fun and Pokémon is quite literally back on the map.
When Nintendo originally released the Pokémon games for the Gameboy in 1996, I remember how quickly it became engrained into everyone’s childhood, from the Pokémon video games, trading cards and anime series (I’m still able to recite the Pokémon theme song).
One concept that has stood out in the Pokémon series since its release 20 years ago is the inclusion of several exclusive Pokémon for each edition of the game, Pokémon Red and Blue, Pokémon X and Y etc.
Releasing several different versions of the Pokémon Go app to achieve this just wouldn’t be practical. But rumour has it, software development company Niantic have still managed to achieve this exclusivity by making 4 Pokémon only available in certain continents in the real world, also being referred to as regional rare Pokémon.
This feature highlights how cultural aspects local to particular regions are being used as an engagement device – this is localisation in a nutshell.
The list of these 4 localised Pokémon is included below, you can see where the inspiration for the comes from and why it has been chose for each continent.
Exclusive Pokémon local to each continent is a really cool, engaging feature and one that will likely be expanded upon over time, to further drive in-app purchases and boost app downloads across global markets.
In the future, it may even be possible to trade Pokémon with other trainers from around the world, if such a feature is added to the Pokémon Go app.
For now, they will likely remain the prized possession of those lucky enough to catch them on their holidays to the region.