Three and a half weeks after downloading Pokemon Go, a Toronto man claims to be the city’s first bona fide PokeMaster, catching all 142 Pokemon currently available in Canada.
And, on top of earning those bragging rights, Roberto Vazquez says he lost 25 lbs in the process.
“Once I went on the scale and saw it, I was in shock,” Vazquez, a professional photographer, told CTV News Channel on Thursday. “Because initially you’re playing the game, you’re running around, you’re walking a lot, you don’t really notice that you’re being very active.”
His quest to catch ‘em all began on July 8th and took him across Toronto to areas he’d never seen before. He made new friends, hatched plenty of eggs and reached level 24 in the game. All while clocking more than 266 kilometres on the app.
Vazquez said his motivation was rooted in nostalgia.
“I just started because as a child I watched the show with my friends, played the games, and it definitely brought back good memories,” he said.
Since its July release, Pokemon Go has become a global phenomenon with more than 100 million downloads worldwide. The augmented reality game has made headlines for breathing new life into the 20-year-old Japanese franchise, causing a major boom (and bust) to Nintendo Co.’s stocks, and triggering a series of player-related mishaps. Two men in California tumbled off a cliff playing the game, and other players have quit their jobs, allegedly been shot at and slapped with parking tickets.
Asked about the notorious misadventures, Vazquez said it’s important to heed the game’s warning and stay aware of your surroundings as you play.
“At the end of the day, it’s still a game and you’re in real life,” he said. “You want to make sure you’re being safe with others in the area.”
And aside from weight loss, the professional photographer says the game has been an eye-opening experience for his job.
“For my line of work it’s amazing because I get to see new locations and utilize it for my own work,” he said.
His next mission, he says, is to catch the elusive Farfetch’d, a normal- and flying-type Pokemon that resembles a duck and is currently only available in Asia.
His gameplay may also be given a second wind if Niantic, the company behind Pokemon Go, decides to release its legendary Pokemon – a development the company’s founder recently alluded to at San Diego Comic Con.
Vazquez isn’t the first player to report health benefits from playing Pokemon Go. A British player told CNN he lost 28 lbs. playing the game, and a University of British Columbia professor has said the game could provide significant mental health benefits for people with depression or social anxiety.
