‘Pokemon Go’ Causes Trouble: Driver Kills Woman In Japan, Norwegian Politician Faces Controversy
Pokemon Go is causing all kinds of trouble all over the world as headlines reveal the dangers of playing the mobile game too much especially during circumstances when focus is needed.
Reports prove that there is reason to believe that the popular mobile game Pokemon Go is life-threatening, especially if the players are on the road.
A perfect example of this is an incident in Japan on Tuesday evening where a truck driver in the rural Tokushima Prefecture in the southern Japanese island of Shikoku hit two pedestrians, killing one of them, as reported by the New York Times
Japanese law enforcers have already taken the suspect into custody who was identified as 39-year-old farmer Keiji Go’o.
According to reports, Go’o was driving his small cargo van when his vehicle struck 72-year-old Sachiko Nakanishi and 60-year-old Kayoko Ikawa at an intersection in the neighborhood.
Police reports cited by the Wall Street Journal indicate that Nakanishi was killed after suffering from a broken neck while Ikawa survived but with a broken hip.
While he stayed under police custody on Thursday, Go’o admitted that he was distracted while driving because he was playing Niantic’s Pokemon Go.
Aside from that, over 1,000 people in Japan were given citations for playing Pokemon Go in unsafe manners including driving or riding a bicycle.
Niantic Inc. and Pokémon Co. extended their condolences to the bereaved family of the victim and reminded all players of the game to be mindful of safety while playing Pokemon Go.
The game developers also promised that they are working to “create an environment where people can play the game safely” as the app itself continues to remind players to stay safe via pop-ups that appear upon opening the game.
Other circumstances reveal that Pokemon Go can become quite a distraction for many people, especially those in public service as recent reports revealed how a Norwegian politician was seen playing the game during a Parliamentary hearing.
A recent headline from UPI highlighted the controversy at the Norwegian Parliament where Trine Skei Grande, the leader of the Liberal Party Venstre, was criticized by her colleagues for playing Pokemon Go while the Parliament was in session.
Norwegian politician rebuked for playing #PokemonGo during defence hearing https://t.co/YySlqYIlzr
— ABC News (@abcnews) August 25, 2016
Progress Party group leader Halvar Ronneberg expressed his disbelief at the sight and told state media NRK about how he felt about it.
“It is pure and simple disrespectful to sit and play Pokemon during such a serious hearing.”
According to UPI, the Norwegian Parliament was in the middle of a hearing about the proposed shut-down of military bases in the country when Grande played the mobile app.
However, Grande defended herself in an interview with VG and said that she has stopped playing the game after getting word of complaints during the hearing.
“Some of us have heads that listen better when we can do something brain-dead on the side. We’re not all alike. More sensational things came up during the hearing than this,” she stated.
Pokemon Go remains one of the most-played apps among smartphone users as Niantic continues to work on bug fixes and improvements to make it remain on top.
But with all the issues revolving around the app, there are some who question the longevity of Pokemon Go especially now that many users have already stopped playing after getting bored from the game.
[Photo by Olivia Harris/Getty Images]
