Pokemon Go developer Niantic roasts “stale bedroom air” gamers with meme
NianticPokemon Go Creator Niantic uses a surprisingly harsh meme to promote the benefits of its mobile games. The effect doesn’t appear to be sitting well with players.
Niantic, the company behind popular mobile titles like Pokemon Go, Pikmin Bloom, and the beta launch Peridot has a history of controversy. The developer has often come under fire in Pokemon Go for buggy events, unstable gameplay, faulty servers, and negative content changes.
Despite this, Niantic prides itself on a revolutionary style of gaming intended to get audiences outside and exercising.
Games like Pokemon Go work best when in large, urban areas, with Pokemon spawning more frequently if the player is in motion. The developer is often seen boasting it’s community-focused concepts and exercise-heavy events.
However, a recent attempt to put the spotlight on these features seems to have backfired thanks to a meme calling out indoor gaming.
Does Niantic look down on its player base?
The answer appears to be yes, according to a tweet shared by the NianticLabs official Twitter account.
Niantic’s meme shows two different types of gamers, one sitting in a dark, grey room with a dazed expression labeled the “Gamer Stuck inside”, and the other in an outdoor setting in a bright red jacket described as the “GAMAR exploring the world.”
The Twitter posts offer a scathing addition, stating, “Fresh air and exercise > Stale bedroom air and button mashing”.
Hilariously, the image of the “Gamar” is overlayed with geometric versions of squirrels, penguins, and mountains that look similar to those used in the Paint By Sticker puzzle books found on Amazon.
Pokemon Go meme proves Niantic may not know its audience
Unsurprisingly, the Twitter users filled the comments of the post, calling Niantic out for such a brutal roast of its primary player base.
AshimusPrime on Twitter replied with “Why are you insulting gamers?! You realize that most of your in-app revenue comes from Pokémon Go, right? And most people that play are lovers of Pokémon?” While Tap836 slapped back with “If you honestly believed that, you wouldn’t make the best places to play be the center of big polluted cities.”
RoyLemi added “It’s not nice to stereotype indoor gamers while making your games out to be more superior. This stuff is divisive and not what the world needs right now. Please do better.” putting Niantic on the spot for such a harsh comparison.
This certainly isn’t the first time Niantic has done a poor job marketing to its player base, and this out-of-touch meme indicates the company may need to spend more time being compassionate instead of judgmental.
No matter how players choose to game, everyone should have the space to do so without feeling belittled by the companies they try to support.