Playing Pokemon and looking for love? When Tinder meets Pokemon
I find this interesting because it’s seems so… millenial. I couldn’t see how someone could combine the elements of Pokemon and Tinder, but someone did.
A Tampa student has created a Tinder-style dating app for Pokemon Go players. It’s for people who like to play Pokemon Go and are looking for love and companionship.
Hunting for a Dratini or evolved Eevee leads to love
“I was trying to hunt for a Dratini or an evolved Eevee — a rare Pokemon… Everyone started shouting and running to a Pokestop so I followed the crowd and ran without looking around me,” said Jeffrey Zhang.
I see crowds like this regularly while driving around downtown or while walking at the park. Someone will yell “Magikarp” and groups will migrate to the place. But for Zhang, it meant more.
“Out of nowhere a girl crashed into me and hurt my foot. She apologized profusely and we ended up talking throughout the night. I found out she is single and also a student. We started dating shortly after that and have been together ever since.” — Jeffery Zhang, University of Tampa MBA student
You see, Jeffrey was kind of a shy guy who didn’t take part in a lot of social acitivites. He tried Tinder, but wasn’t successful. And then he found a girlfriend by playing Pokemon Go. It was one of those “light bulb moments.” Zhang thought: I need to invent a dating app for Pokemon Go players! That’s what he and his friends did. Welcome, Pok.
Zhang said Pok can be far more effective than traditional online dating sites in helping singles find the right person. Matches through online dating sites or apps will ultimately go offline. It can be hard for both parties to have free time simultaneously. But if you’re both playing Pokemon and available, well then let’s see what happens.
They can meet each other more easily when hunting Pokemon together, said Zhang. The app also solves a major challenge in early dating, which is finding a topic of mutual interest to discuss. Pok app users will know that their dating partner is a big fan of Pokemon Go.
Pok works like Tinder, but only for Pokemon Go players. The app has a “spark” feature and offers anonymous “likes” just like Tinder. Pok lets users chat and post Pokemon Go activities and achievements. In the activity feature, users can browse experiences of other users on the journey and share “exciting moments and achievements anytime.”
So… if one of those people embarassed about getting caught playing Pokemon, you can just tell your buddies that you’re just trying to catch a date.
