Taking the Go Train

In Pokémon Go, PokéStops and Gyms can often be located in odd or otherwise unexpected places. As I've written previously, I do enjoy trains to a particular extent. So by research, I've discovered that many of the train stations in my region have at least one PokéStop or Gym, or both. This leads to the proposition that it might be possible to take a train through all these stations and still enjoy playing Go. This experience is what I have dubbed "taking the Go train".

The caveat is, of course, that Go is still technically a walking game, and not really a game meant to be played while traveling in a vehicle. Anyone who has ever tried playing Go in a moving car (hopefully, while also not driving the car in question, as the game warns not to do) has experienced seeing the "You're going too fast!" popup, which can be dismissed by tapping the "I'm a Passenger" button, but travel progress is still not recorded where the player is moving beyond Go's speed limit. Considering this, a train moves at even faster speeds than a car, and this would render playing Go nearly impossible at those speeds. So how could "taking the Go train" be realized?

The key to playing Go on a train is perhaps to play as a train is pulling into or out of a station that a train stops at. While it really doesn't work to play as the train is moving, it would be possible to play Go on a train if its course is taken into account. For an "express" train that stops only at a few stations (or none other than the starting and ending points), it wouldn't be feasible to play while traveling, but for a "local" train with many stops, it might just be possible to do as above: opening Go just as the train is pulling in, do things depending on how accessible the PokéStops and Gyms are, then exiting just as the train is pulling out. There should be just enough time in transit to grab items, knock out a small Gym, and/or deposit a Pokémon in a Gym.

Some trains may also stop for an extended time period in order to wait for other trains to pass, whether at a station or not. In that case, it may also be possible to reach PokéStops or Gyms that are just out of reach, especially if it is permitted to get off the train while waiting. If not, it may still be possible to reach them while walking from one cab to another. It would at least be a great way to pass the time as even Pokémon may appear in places that are not close to PokéStops or Gyms, and it may help to capture them. Likewise, the time may just be sufficient to allow this to happen.

While Pokémon Go is a walking game, in certain cases it may also be possible to play while on a vehicle, and one of those vehicles may be a train. With PokéStops and Gyms being located in the stations, it becomes an additional incentive to try to play while traveling on a train. At least this would give an additional purpose to riding on a train other than to go somewhere. With that, I've become excited to see if on my next train journey, I could also "take the Go train" as well.

One year ago: Worldly Inspirations for a Small World