If you live in Toronto and want to (legally) try hunting for Pikachu on your coffee break, now you can.
One and a half weeks after its July 6 release in the U.S., Australia, and New Zealand, developer Niantic Inc.’s wildly popular augmented reality app was officially released in Canada today.
Pokémon GO is now available in Canada! Discover and capture Pokémon all around you. pic.twitter.com/uTXwIk85IZ
— Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) July 17, 2016
Naturally, within the hour the influx of would-be Canadian Pokémon hunters had already crashed the game’s servers.
#PokemonGOcanada I JUST downloaded the app and now the server isn't working.🙄
— Emily Mendes (@skydella) July 18, 2016
At the time of this writing, however, ITBusiness.ca could verify from first-hand experience that the game appears to be working as intended.
While the game has been blamed for at least one traffic accident and come under fire for its questionable security settings, it’s also been a boon to small businesses and has already helped thousands of Canadians get some weekend exercise if the reactions on Twitter, using the hashtag #PokemonGoCanada, are any indication.
Lol the kid in me couldn't resist trying #PokemonGOcanada just a walk to da convenience store and caught these 👍😜 pic.twitter.com/6SLmAjcznT
— Peter Morgado (@Morcego881) July 17, 2016
Pretty sure it's mocking one of my very tired dogs after a 5km walk/creek play time #PokemonGOcanada pic.twitter.com/goB84Xl63n
— Tara Lindenberger (@mochapunk) July 18, 2016
Day 1 of #PokemonGoCanada has been a success! Now I'm hot and tired. I wonder why 😉 pic.twitter.com/c9pmwHthcl
— O??er P?ri?h Ç?rey ? (@OtterPariah) July 17, 2016
Of course, as a business-focused website, ITBusiness.ca would like to use this moment to remind Canadian companies and their employees alike that Pokémon Go is best enjoyed during official lunch and break hours, though at least one expert has said that occasional play could serve as an excellent morale booster too.
