How Pokemon Go could be central to a movie plot
(Photo: Reuters)
With the recent release of Pokemon Go, potential trainers all around Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines have been flocking to different locations as they attempt to catch them all.
Organisations like those of the Singapore Armed Forces and even the Wildlife Reserves Singapore have taken to social media to address the craze, giving tips about dos and don’ts within their premises.
It probably won’t be long before the Pokemon Go makes its way into pop-culture, but it did get us wondering – what if it wasn’t just a passing reference but key to the entire plot of the movie?
Here are several ways Niantic and Nintendo’s newest creation could be part of your next blockbuster.
The horror movie:
Still image from “Lights Out”. (Photo: Warner Bros)
This one probably won’t take long, especially with it also being the Seventh month of the Lunar calendar and the Hungry Ghost Festival around the corner. Some of you will probably have friends on social media who have joked about catching more than just virtual Pokemon in the game.
Add to that the Asian-style of horror, and you could have the story of a vengeful spirit who either terrorises players or leads them to a horror film-worthy death through the Augmented Reality of the app. Or, in a plot twist, it turns out to be a real person manipulating the data to take revenge for some reason or another.
The mystery thriller:
Still image from “Inferno”, the latest movie based on Dan Brown’s novels. (Photo: Sony)
Most of you will have at least heard of the Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and other stories involving its protagonist, Robert Langdon (played by Tom Hanks in the movie). Langdon is always looking for clues hidden in plain sight that point towards his next step or goal.
Imagine a scenario where a similar protagonist has to use a mix of cryptic references to Pokemon and locations, and using the Augmented Reality, find hidden clues at landmarks while trying to capture Pokemon in a certain direction or at a specific time.
Maybe the light only falls on that stone pedestal at fifteen minutes past noon, when the touch of Zeus meets the Yellow River or something (that was a reference to a Pikachu, by the way). Of course, the stakes will have to be high, so a man-made catastrophe might affect our heroic protagonist’s pokeball throwing skills somewhat.
The conspiracy:
(Photo: Getty Images)
When Pokemon Go launched earlier in July, there was a huge outcry among some quarters over the data it was pulling from your Google account. While that has since been addressed, it hasn’t stopped those worried that the big corporations and/or various governments are using the data to track players’ every move.
And what if their fears were to be realised? Perhaps the data is used unscrupulously by corporations planning to topple legitimate governments. Maybe the players are used as decoys or as part of elaborate espionage plans to steal sensitive data from organisations that have ties to other nations. Maybe a hacker discovers that the Pokemon craze is being used as a cover-up for a shadow organisation to move something even more terrifying in plain sight.
The alien invasion:
Still image from “Independence Day: Resurgence”. (Photo: 20th Century Fox)
Of course, no movie list would be complete without an alien race being involved in some way or another. Humans can be ingenious at times, as the numerous workarounds to getting Pokemon Go to work when not available in the country have shown. There’s also the matter of being able to track which Pokestops are the most visited and which players have the dedication to catch them all.
An alien race might tap on this data to find subjects for experimentation, or perhaps to release a bioweapon against the human race. Alternatively, they could also be using the data to create an app that distract humanity for their own nefarious purposes, such as abducting all our cows or mining all our chocolate. Hey, no one said an alien movie can’t be a comedy.
The documentary:
Pokemon Go becomes a huge success. Niantic and Nintendo have a falling out over profits and the hoard of user information they’ve accumulated. Corporate back-stabbing ensues. The lead actors/actresses go on to be a part of superhero movie universes.
The romance movie:
Okay this one should be pretty obvious. Two people find true love playing Pokemon Go. Then the world gets destroyed by a meteor or something.
Regardless of whether a Pokemon Go-centric movie does get made, it’s no doubt that the app has changed the way we interact with technology yet again. Who knows what this will mean for future franchises?
