What is Good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching Experience?

[+narcissa]

I wouldn't like to see geocaching become more competitive than it already has, but I think this new game also speaks to an interest in an interactive GPS-based experience. There must be room for opportunity with that kind of thing without making it about points.

Are you suggesting multiple short-term "interactive GPS-based experiences" (like Wherigos or InterCaches)? Or are you suggesting a more long-term "interactive GPS-based experience" of some sort?

 

I'm not suggesting anything specific, I merely said there appears to be space for opportunity in this area. It's not a geocaching element I'd be particularly interested in (I've only ever found a handful of Wherigos), so I'm not really the best one to suggest ways to implement it.

 

I just like finding stinky old containers with my stinky old GPS.

[+The McCoys UK]

One good thing I have noticed about Pokemon Go is that I don't seem to be as noticed anymore walking round with my phone, muggle look at me and assume I'm playing the same game they are, only yesterday I had someone approach me asking me if I was playing Pokemon...

[ohgood]

It's not a great fit for me. I don't use any GPS-enabled apps on my phone unless I'm stuck, and I don't play any games on it unless I can immediately plug the phone back in. I can't let my kid kill my phone battery to play a game no matter how fun and popular it is. I need it to be a phone. (Hence my hope that it will sort of go away, because it's going to be an irritant for the rest of the summer and it has to be a hard no.)

 

And here i thought i was the only person on the planet who pretty much only used my phone to, you know,, talk on!

 

I use my phone for all sorts of stuff when I'm at home or work or otherwise close to a charger. When I'm out and about, it's put away and only used when needed. All the other features are nice, but it is, primarily, a phone.

 

Smartphones have been touted as "the end of boredom." On the hand, some say we're losing our creativity by being entertained. (No, that was inane 1950's television that turned our minds to mush. ) However, while sitting waiting for an appointment, if there are no good magazines and no one to talk with, what should we do, practice origami with dollar bills or broaden our knowledge with a smartphone?

 

I just don't use my phone that way very much if I can't plug it in. I may need to call someone or look up something important and the phone is no use to me if it's dead. I know other people use their phones more heavily away from home and allow their children to use them, but that doesn't work for me.

 

i can't remember the last time i needed to make an emergency call, but taught the kids how to do so from a locked phone's lockscreen. no games, but research is allowed sparingly. regular calls are usually handled at home, when it doesn't interrupt our activities/conversations with the kids.

 

getting 8 hours (battery) of screen on time is normal for both of our smartphones, but they rarely see more than two hours a day, caching/hiking included. a quick charger replenishes either phone in two hours or both in about three and a half.

 

 

pokemon has been great so far. the kids have really enjoyed meeting other people and searching new places along trails. i was surprised how much more fun it was vs looking for another static geocache that was placed solely to be difficult to find, instead of fun. i bet this is a big portion of the reason the apps been downloaded fifty million times since release.

 

fifty million. wow.

 

I'm sure it's a fun game, given how popular it is, but I can't toss out all of the family rules and routines we have around devices just because there's a new game. Just not the right thing for us. We don't use phones for geocaching either, because of ruggedness and battery issues. We each have our own GPS.

 

I'll skip the "but it isn't rugged!" since that was fixed about for years ago, but how is playing pg against family rules and routines, but caching is OK?

[+redsox_mark]

 

5) The cool thing about Pokeman is I can sit outside drinking a glass of wine and smoking a cigar. They just come up and I catch them. Over and over again. When I started geocaching I cleared out my hometown and I realized the game took on a new turn as I needed to travel. Bear with me here, but how about allowing everyone to relog caches? Every 10, 14 or 30 or days or so? I suspect we lose a lot of cachers who don’t have the commitment or gas money to go outside their home. I was in Colorado for the mega event two weeks ago. I sherphad a contingent of SoCal cachers to the oldest cache in Colorado, Tarryall. I logged Tarryall back in 2012. Would it upset the universe if I got credit for another find on this cache 4 years later?

 

 

This is a clear advantage to Pokemon. I can go for a walk around my local area and find new Pokemon. As I've cleared out my local area, I need to drive to a place to walk for caches (except when new ones are published).

 

But that is the nature of the game. It is about finding that cache at that location. It wouldn't be fun to find the same cache every day. While, if you like Pokemon, it can be fun to walk around the same area every day and find different Pokemon.

[+narcissa]

I'll skip the "but it isn't rugged!" since that was fixed about for years ago, but how is playing pg against family rules and routines, but caching is OK?

 

No, playing games isn't against the rules. We have an X-Box and we sometimes permit limited use of a laptop or a tablet. This particular game just won't work for us because it needs to be played with a GPS-enabled phone. Our phones are strictly off-limits at all times, and our son isn't at an age where it's appropriate or feasible for him to have his own.

 

With geocaching we each have our own dedicated device, so there's no risk that our phones will be damaged, or the batteries run dead. I also find that the GPS doesn't seem to cause that troubling addictive behaviour that occurs with kids and other devices.

[ohgood]

I'll skip the "but it isn't rugged!" since that was fixed about for years ago, but how is playing pg against family rules and routines, but caching is OK?

 

No, playing games isn't against the rules. We have an X-Box and we sometimes permit limited use of a laptop or a tablet. This particular game just won't work for us because it needs to be played with a GPS-enabled phone. Our phones are strictly off-limits at all times, and our son isn't at an age where it's appropriate or feasible for him to have his own.

 

With geocaching we each have our own dedicated device, so there's no risk that our phones will be damaged, or the batteries run dead. I also find that the GPS doesn't seem to cause that troubling addictive behaviour that occurs with kids and other devices.

 

well i guess if you can limit xbox usage, but can't limit phone usage, that is a problem.

 

we switched to rugged androids a few years ago and the kids play/video/cache or toss them in the creek to try and find craw fish once or twice a month.

 

Pokemon Go happened, depleted a battery or two, and they moved on. i would like to see the same level of game play in caching that there is in Pokemon, but i doubt will happen.

[+narcissa]

I'll skip the "but it isn't rugged!" since that was fixed about for years ago, but how is playing pg against family rules and routines, but caching is OK?

 

No, playing games isn't against the rules. We have an X-Box and we sometimes permit limited use of a laptop or a tablet. This particular game just won't work for us because it needs to be played with a GPS-enabled phone. Our phones are strictly off-limits at all times, and our son isn't at an age where it's appropriate or feasible for him to have his own.

 

With geocaching we each have our own dedicated device, so there's no risk that our phones will be damaged, or the batteries run dead. I also find that the GPS doesn't seem to cause that troubling addictive behaviour that occurs with kids and other devices.

 

well i guess if you can limit xbox usage, but can't limit phone usage, that is a problem.

 

we switched to rugged androids a few years ago and the kids play/video/cache or toss them in the creek to try and find craw fish once or twice a month.

 

Pokemon Go happened, depleted a battery or two, and they moved on. i would like to see the same level of game play in caching that there is in Pokemon, but i doubt will happen.

 

There's no need for limits with the phone because we simply don't permit their use at all. I simply can't risk the battery being drained or the phone being damaged by rough handling. It's not a toy.

 

While it's not a good fit for us, I do think this new game brings up some interesting questions about where geocaching could go in the future. I'm pretty old-school in the way I personally geocache, but I've always believed there is room for some variation within certain parameters.

[+TriciaG]

So, can we get off the topic of Narcissa's family rules and habits, and back onto the original topic?

[+Manville Possum]

So, can we get off the topic of Narcissa's family rules and habits, and back onto the original topic?

 

Yes, please. Thank you. I believe that geocaching has enhanced my Pokemon Go experience. I don't feel strange playing a silly new game, I join right in on the fun with others playing, it compares to group caching.

 

I have knowledge as a geocacher on how to use maps and spoof my coordinates, and that helps me locate geocaches and Pokemon's.

[+Wet Pancake Touring Club]

I have knowledge as a geocacher on how to use maps and spoof my coordinates, and that helps me locate geocaches and Pokemon's.

 

You're way ahead of a group of PG players I watched the other night. They were using something like PokeVision to locate rares, but they coulnd't seem to correlate the PokeVision map (North is up) with their PG map. They were about 135 degrees off on their directions.

[+Manville Possum]

I have knowledge as a geocacher on how to use maps and spoof my coordinates, and that helps me locate geocaches and Pokemon's.

 

You're way ahead of a group of PG players I watched the other night. They were using something like PokeVision to locate rares, but they coulnd't seem to correlate the PokeVision map (North is up) with their PG map. They were about 135 degrees off on their directions.

 

That may very well be the reason that my son and I have been the first to arrive at GZ when the rare ones pop up. We have both been active geocachers that use maps to plan routes to geocaches and hiking trails and other POI's.

[+redsox_mark]

Interesting (and on topic) article.

 

http://www.geekwire.com/2016/geocaching-co-founder-on-pokemon-go/

 

Included there:

 

Are there any lessons from Pokémon Go that you can apply to your geocaching app?

 

Roth: “The geocaching community is filled with gamers, and they’ve never been shy about sharing how their other favorite games have aspects which could be applied to geocaching. One thing that is interesting to note is that Pokémon gameplay encourages multiple visits to a location, like a Pokéstop, where geocaching doesn’t really do that. We have some ideas for future innovation based on what we’re learning from other games, but we’re going to work on those quietly for now.”

Edited July 28, 2016 by redsox_mark

[+DanOCan]

The question is simple.. What is good about Pokeman Go that could enhance your Geocaching experience?

Not much.

 

I'm an old school cacher. I care little about leveling up, joining a guild, or anything that pushes more competition between players in the game.

Give me a decent container in a nice and/or interesting location and I'm happy.

[Floridaflamingo]

Not having cached in several years I find it exciting to have people out and about regardless of what it is that motivates them. Yesterday I ran into a few pokemoners and we chatted. One of the things I find interesting about it is the ease.

 

The few times I tried hide a cache I was so bombarded with questions from the 'approvers' that I would finally give up and forget about the hide. I WANTED to hide but holy crap. They did their jobs to fullest extent of the law and then some.

 

Finds were turning into film canisters on lampposts. Ok for those who like that but not for me. My preference (and I realize the world doesn't revolve around me) was a nice walk in the woods with a cache of cool stuff. Difficult enough to do a little thinking and searching but not so difficult it took an hour. I actually like being able to find it.

 

The final straw for me was at an event. A cacher had 'hidden' a nano somewhere on the restaurant property. I'm sure it was with the best of intent but it was quite difficult to find. I'm not sure I ever did. But what was appalling was the length fellow cachers would go to looking. Including TROMPING through this establishments shrubbery and landscaping with no concern of someones investment. To the point of destruction. We may be good in the woods but we aren't so good not in the woods.

 

At that point it became sort of a perfect storm for me and I just disappeared. Often I think I'd like to start again. Maybe come fall. So there's my $.02 worth.

[+dprovan]

Roth: “The geocaching community is filled with gamers, and they’ve never been shy about sharing how their other favorite games have aspects which could be applied to geocaching. One thing that is interesting to note is that Pokémon gameplay encourages multiple visits to a location, like a Pokéstop, where geocaching doesn’t really do that...."

One of my favorite things about geocaching is that it's always encouraging me to go places I've never been before. It provides a record so I can see on the map where I haven't been. It even provides an indirect measure of when I should revisit an area after enough new caches have been placed there since I was last there.

 

Of course, geocaching doesn't forbid you from revisiting an area and finding all the caches there a second time, it's just not done.

[+niraD]

The final straw for me was at an event. A cacher had 'hidden' a nano somewhere on the restaurant property. I'm sure it was with the best of intent but it was quite difficult to find. I'm not sure I ever did. But what was appalling was the length fellow cachers would go to looking. Including TROMPING through this establishments shrubbery and landscaping with no concern of someones investment. To the point of destruction. We may be good in the woods but we aren't so good not in the woods.

Unfortunately, I've seen similar behavior in the woods as well.

 

As the saying goes, the best thing about geocaching is that anyone can play, and the worst thing about geocaching is that anyone can play.

[+redsox_mark]

 

One of my favorite things about geocaching is that it's always encouraging me to go places I've never been before. It provides a record so I can see on the map where I haven't been. It even provides an indirect measure of when I should revisit an area after enough new caches have been placed there since I was last there.

 

Of course, geocaching doesn't forbid you from revisiting an area and finding all the caches there a second time, it's just not done.

 

I agree with you, that is one of my favourite things about Geocaching too. And that will remain a key part.

I'm not clear how Geocaching can "encourage multiple visits to a location" I'll go to a Pokestop every day, as I can get something I need from there, and capture new Pokemon etc. Even if GS encouraged multiple finds on the same caches, I'm not driven by the numbers, and I would not enjoy finding the same box every day.

 

It does seem to be inherent with Geocaching that if you do it a lot, you will find yourself in a position where you need to travel further to find more caches. (Apart from when new ones get added to your local area).

[+thebruce0]

I'm not clear how Geocaching can "encourage multiple visits to a location" I'll go to a Pokestop every day, as I can get something I need from there, and capture new Pokemon etc. Even if GS encouraged multiple finds on the same caches, I'm not driven by the numbers, and I would not enjoy finding the same box every day.

 

Probably only in that either the place you found the cache was so nice that you want to return there not-geocaching, or later on another cache is placed in the same area.

But yeah, a cache isn't a direct mirror of a pokestop. There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym).

[+niraD]

There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym).

I've returned to a number of geocaches when introducing new people to geocaching. The caches remained good caches for beginners.

 

And I've returned to caches to help a trackable with its mission.

 

These seem like perfectly legitimate reasons to me.

[+narcissa]

There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym).

I've returned to a number of geocaches when introducing new people to geocaching. The caches remained good caches for beginners.

 

And I've returned to caches to help a trackable with its mission.

 

These seem like perfectly legitimate reasons to me.

 

The very best geocaches bring to me to places that I'm happy to visit again, with or without a geocache to find.

[+cerberus1]

There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym).

I've returned to a number of geocaches when introducing new people to geocaching. The caches remained good caches for beginners.

 

And I've returned to caches to help a trackable with its mission.

 

These seem like perfectly legitimate reasons to me.

 

The very best geocaches bring to me to places that I'm happy to visit again, with or without a geocache to find.

+1

I've kept a log (mini composition book) of the cool areas I'd revisit for the views, unusual spots, game or fishing opportunities, etc.

 

Similar to niraD, the rare time I've "revisited" a cache was to introduce a newbie to the hobby, if it was an awesome spot, with a quality container, but I never logged that I visited.

- Or, when a friend was in the hospital, their cache (that I already found) had issues, and I fixed it for them.

[cezanne]

There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym).

I've returned to a number of geocaches when introducing new people to geocaching. The caches remained good caches for beginners.

 

And I've returned to caches to help a trackable with its mission.

 

I also have returned to nice caches with friends (experienced cachers) whom I wanted to show a nice place or alone simply because I wanted to visit a place another time. That can happen regularly and I prefer to revisit a nice cache with a friend to visiting a boring cache alone or with a friend.

 

Moreover, one should not forget about multiple visits to one's own caches. Geocaching is not only about searching, in my opinion it is also about making an active contribution in terms of hiding caches and maintaining them properly (this also includes maintaining adopted caches).

 

I'd rather say that the real difference is that in Pokemon a repeated visit leads to a higher score and in geocaching it does not (which I prefer anyway).

Edited July 28, 2016 by cezanne

[+wmpastor]

do i understand this correctly that people here actually think writing new laws and ordinances banning a gps based GAME is actually feasible, out any way legal?

 

gps is public sector, a person's phone or gps is private property, a person's intent for being at a location is also private. each and every case needs handled individually, or you end up with an idiotic state of 'everyone is guilty'.

 

come on people think

Considering that there already are such laws... yes, it's feasible. It already happened.

 

you end up with an idiotic state

Ya think?

 

It's easy to ban people from being on private or restricted public property. It's easy to ban people from placing something (like a cache) on such property. It is *not* easy to ban someone from looking at a screen for virtual creatures if they are otherwise allowed to be on the property (like a park). What, you're guilty of a crime when you open the Pokémon app in a national park?? Suppose you're doing other stuff and "happen to have the app open," like the reporter at the news conference?? Clearly a sticky wicket, or a bushwhacking thicket.

[+thebruce0]

There's no legitimate reason to return to geocache like there is to return to a pokestop (or gym). Probably only in that either the place you found the cache was so nice that you want to return there not-geocaching, or later on another cache is placed in the same area

I've returned to a number of geocaches when introducing new people to geocaching. The caches remained good caches for beginners.

 

And I've returned to caches to help a trackable with its mission.

 

These seem like perfectly legitimate reasons to me.

Yes, there are of course additional benefits beyond that basic reward of "finding" (ie, trackables, social aspects, nature aspects, etc).

 

You forgot to include those alternative reasons I mentioned for returning to a location, thus being completely missed in all the followup quotes: "either the place you found the cache was so nice that you want to return there not-geocaching, or later on another cache is placed in the same area" - geocache or not; they're examples which fit your additional situations perfectly, which is great! (and countered my "probably only..." clause, which is awesome)

 

By "legitimate" I was referring to game-specific. In PG there is a game-reason to return to the same asset (reward is fundamentally the same per visit; random collection of items). In geocaching there is not (once marked found it's found).

 

This of course does not preclude us returning to the location for alternative/additional reasons - such as a beautiful spot you now like to revisit, finding a different cache in the same location, or showing someone else the cache you've already found, or deciding to take a trackable to a cache you've already found.

 

Yep, they are all perfectly legitimate reasons to return to a location! (and there are probably more) But per geocaching (as it pertains to finding geocaches), those aren't relevant; they're value-add stuff we can do if we please beyond the "finding".

 

The parallel here is about what the game defines as the important action related to the asset. There is a game-reason to return repeteadly to a pokestop, directly applied to your profile, desireable to progress in the game. Once you've found a cache, there isn't a game-reason to return repeatedly to the cache which directly applies to your account, desireable to progress in the game.

 

At the most fundamental level -

Pokestop: Every repeat visit equally rewards with items.

Geocache: Once found, it's recorded as found. (but if you want you can return for other reasons)

 

Now this isn't a claim to which is better Both have their gaming positives. Just saying - To answer what brought this on - PG does actively encourage returning to the same asset multiple times for the same gaming reason, whereas in geocaching we can return to the same location if we want but for entirely arbitrary reasons.

Edited July 28, 2016 by thebruce0

[+thebruce0]

Hmm...

Perhaps it's lopsided to run with the comparison as "returning to an asset vs single visit". For geocachers, a geocache may have more value than just the +1 find, even though that is the most basic function of finding a cache. So comparing on the most basic function favours the value of the Pokestop and devalues those arbitrary reasonsto return.

 

Instead, we could look at it the other way - currently, the only function* of a Pokestop is a single repetitive one: Get items +XP. Over and over again. Whereas in geocaching, a single cache cacn offer multiple reasons one might like to return, whether it's beneficial to your profile or not.

 

* Yes, I'm aware a pokestop can also become a lure to attract monsters. So a pokestop could also have another game-legitimate benefit for returning.

[cezanne]

By "legitimate" I was referring to game-specific. In PG there is a game-reason to return to the same asset (reward is fundamentally the same per visit; random collection of items). In geocaching there is not (once marked found it's found).

 

The difference in opinion probably comes from a different definition of geocaching. For example for me, geocaching is not a game.

I regard all of this: visiting my own caches to maintain them, multiple visits to an area to hide and plan a cache, revisiting a nice hiking multi cache with a friend etc as geocaching.

For me geocaching is not just scoring a new find. For me geocaching is the whole activity.

 

The caches that I like the most show me a route and the plastic container at the end is the most irrelevant part for me. It can easily happen that in order to follow the route a second time, I need to follow the waypoints and the cache description again, just as I did when I visited a cache the first time. So the feeling is not too different.

 

Of course if someone defines geocaching only as searching and finding the final container at a single location, then this ends up with a narrow concept of what geocaching is.

[+thebruce0]

By "legitimate" I was referring to game-specific. In PG there is a game-reason to return to the same asset (reward is fundamentally the same per visit; random collection of items). In geocaching there is not (once marked found it's found).

 

The difference in opinion probably comes from a different definition of geocaching. For example for me, geocaching is not a game.

I always say 'game' loosely in reference to geocaching. Game, as in a structured process fascilitated by a website providing profiles and a collection of goals (caches) to locate while reporting user progress. In so many words (ref. def. 3,8,14). Certainly not final nor complete. "Pasttime", "hobby", "funtime", call it whatever you want to call it. A "game" doesn't have to equate to "video game" or "sport" let alone "competition" or "score". It's just a concept.

Edited July 28, 2016 by thebruce0

[cezanne]

"Pasttime", "hobby", "funtime", call it whatever you want to call it. A "game" doesn't have to equate to "video game" or "sport" let alone "competition" or "score". It's just a concept.

 

Yes, I know that a game does not equate to the examples you provided. I think however that someone who prefers to think of geocaching as a hobby/pasttime will have a different opinion on revisiting caches (and many other things, including the role of DNFs) than someone who thinks of it as a game.

Edited July 28, 2016 by cezanne

[+thebruce0]

Yes, I know that a game does not equate to the examples you provided. I think however that someone who prefers to think of geocaching as a hobby/pasttime will have a different opinion on revisiting caches (and many other things, including the role of DNFs) than someone who thinks of it as a game.

...and so apart from definitions, see back to previous comments about returning to a location.

[+redsox_mark]

Of course, we can revisit a geocache as we like. And for example, a cache may introduce us to a place we like so much that we revisit just to see the place again and again.

 

But in general, the "game" of geocaching is about finding caches. And the game "rewards" with a smiley when finding a cache. And in general, if a cacher decides to "go geocaching", they will look for caches they have not found. I'm struggling to see how the "revisit and get further reward" would work with geocaching. Maybe allow* revisit and logging a find after some time period, e.g. 1 year. The logic being that by that time I will have forgotten exactly what they walk was like as well as the hide, so I can "find it" again. These caches which were "found but eligible for re-find" could show as a different colour. So when looking at the map for where to go, I could see both unfound caches, and caches eligible for re-find. A bit like a Pokestop where you can't revisit for 5 minutes; but with a much longer timer. I'm not convinced this is a good idea; just thinking. It could be a way to motivate cachers to keep caching when they are unable to travel to where the unfound caches are.

 

*I know that the tools already allow this, but per the help guides it is "frowned upon".

[+NYPaddleCacher]

Not having cached in several years I find it exciting to have people out and about regardless of what it is that motivates them. Yesterday I ran into a few pokemoners and we chatted. One of the things I find interesting about it is the ease.

 

You're not the first person to mention that Pokemon Go is easy.

 

Although the ease of use of the application may be something to emulate I disagree that "easy" is necessarily the ultimate goal for actually playing the game we call geocaching.

 

Over the past several years there seems to be more of an expectation that finding or hiding a geocache should always be easy. We see posts fro lots of people systematically ignoring puzzle caches, which may require a small to large mental challenge just to obtain the coordinates, or multi-caches which may require visits to multiple locations to obtain information needed to find the final and get "credit" for one find. It's easier just to download traditional waypoints, navigate to the nearest on to where one has parked their car and find it.

 

The proliferation of power trails and large series of caches barely hidden fungible containers make it *easy* to find a lot of caches with little effort. Can't find a cache after a minute of searching? It's *easy* just to throw down a replacement and log it as found rather than spend 15-20 minutes or more looking for a cleverly hidden container.

 

I've seen several feature requests for driving direction so that one can just listen to a voice that will take them to a cache, the assumption being that geocaching is a game about driving from spot to spot where they can grab a cache without actually having to walk more than a couple hundred feet from a padded seat.

 

I've seen requests for web site enhancements that will help facilitate the completion of challenge caches. They're *challenge caches*. A "challenge" implies that it's not necessarily going to be *easy*.

 

It just seems to me that the game is becoming more and more about spending less effort to get more rewards (a high find count or adding of souvenirs to ones profile). In Pokemon Go, one can go to the same spot over and over to grab more items, or just ride in a car to play the game. While I guess some aspects of Pokemon allow one to graduate to higher levels and rare pokemons might be harder to locate, personally, I'd rather not see geocaching as easy as Pokemon Go is for the casual player.

 

 

[+thebruce0]

Revisiting a cache really does not offer an additional, repeat reward. A physical cache you've found once found. Re-finding it is not the same experience, and esepcially if you've already logged it, you don't get another unique find (but you'd get another +1). This is mainly because it's physical, and the virtual reward is a smiley for the find log (of which you can post multiple).

 

Theoretically, refinding is as rewarding as revisiting a pokestop - you can and are allowed to log as many find log as you wish on the same cache. But you can do that without re-visiting the physical cache. So, is geocaching about finding physical caches, or posting virtual logs? If the latter, then it's as rewarding as PoGo. If the former (whic obviously it is) then it's not a 1-to-1 parallel; physical caches reward you the joy of the initial find, and followup 'finds' aren't discoveries. So it's fundamentally different in that sense.

 

I suppose what you could do is for yourself mark certain caches as favoured waypoints (or look at your favourites list in this manner perhaps), and treat them effectively as repeat-visit "geostops" because you enjoyed the location, and revisit them whenever you wish for whatever arbitrary reward you feel you get from it. You can make geocaching your own personal stripped-down, simplified, PoGo-style outdoors thing.

... but yeah, definitely not the same.

 

And I'm certainly not for using the existing system to promote re-visiting or re-finding caches (in the same manner as the initial 'finding'). There are plenty of other threads talking about the etiquette of multi-logging certain caches or types.

If revisiting caches became a new thing in geocaching, it really would need to be a virtual add-on to the website that offers other rewards. But then, how do you tie that step in to physically re-visiting a container? ... I can't think of way to make something like that work.

 

M* had a better mechanic for that, wherein (conceptually) you'd have to be at gz to scan the QR code, which you could do multiple times, upon which is a virtual layer that could reward the visit; multiple times. But there's no strict connection in geocaching between locating the physical container at gz and posting the virtual log.

 

Really, M* is much closer in concept to PoGo than geocaching is.

Edited July 29, 2016 by thebruce0

[+wmpastor]

In Pokemon, you find virtual things.

 

Caching has something similar - souvenirs. And if seems that many serious all-business cachers that would never do anything as silly as play Pokemon get delirious about the possibility of collecting virtual souvenirs!

 

It seems the urge to play is deeply ingrained in the human psyche!

[+Mudfrog]

In Pokemon, you find virtual things.

 

Caching has something similar - souvenirs. And if seems that many serious all-business cachers that would never do anything as silly as play Pokemon get delirious about the possibility of collecting virtual souvenirs!

 

It seems the urge to play is deeply ingrained in the human psyche!

 

I could care less about the virtual stuff, guess i'm not human after all.

[+wmpastor]

In Pokemon, you find virtual things.

 

Caching has something similar - souvenirs. And if seems that many serious all-business cachers that would never do anything as silly as play Pokemon get delirious about the possibility of collecting virtual souvenirs!

 

It seems the urge to play is deeply ingrained in the human psyche!

 

I could care less about the virtual stuff, guess i'm not human after all.

 

Sorry to hear that, but I'm glad it's not getting you down!

 

But, yeah, just today another voice was raised for virtual reality:

 

I totally opt for the returnal of virtuals.

 

first: most that I visited at least brought me to a very interesting place.

 

second: I've seen so many caches, that offered disgusting containers, that I really didn't want to touch

 

third: I'd rather traditionals to be forbidden....

[/Quote]

[+Mudfrog]

In Pokemon, you find virtual things.

 

Caching has something similar - souvenirs. And if seems that many serious all-business cachers that would never do anything as silly as play Pokemon get delirious about the possibility of collecting virtual souvenirs!

 

It seems the urge to play is deeply ingrained in the human psyche!

 

I could care less about the virtual stuff, guess i'm not human after all.

 

Sorry to hear that, but I'm glad it's not getting you down!

 

But, yeah, just today another voice was raised for virtual reality:

 

I totally opt for the returnal of virtuals.

 

first: most that I visited at least brought me to a very interesting place.

 

second: I've seen so many caches, that offered disgusting containers, that I really didn't want to touch

 

third: I'd rather traditionals to be forbidden....

[/Quote]

 

Have to say that i have enjoyed some virtual caches and wouldn't mind seeing them return. For me, there is purpose to them in that they can bring a person to interesting and historical places. What i meant by virtual is those things such as awards, badges, souvenirs and pokemons that i somehow earn and that only exist on my computer or phone display. I suppose you could say that geocaching stats are virtual in a sense but i will admit that some of those are interesting to me.

[+geodarts]

It was not hard to see this coming - a class action filed alleging nuisance and unjust enrichment for Pokestops/Gyms being on private property without permission.

 

The Complaint

[+Blue_Ranger]

I have a cache right in the middle of a little park, in the middle of the town I live in. That park now holds two pokestops and a gym. Recent finders have mentioned stealth is not even needed anymore-- nobody pays any attention at all to anyone wandering aimlessly with cell phone in hand.

[+wmpastor]

It was not hard to see this coming - a class action filed alleging nuisance and unjust enrichment for Pokestops/Gyms being on private property without permission.

 

The Complaint

 

It's a shame. The characters aren't placed by decision, they are randomly generated. This could wipe out the game. What's next - suing chess because someone sat under your tree to play? Is there no personal responsibility of the players for where they go ????

[+51214030]

1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on “what you have done for me lately” stats.

 

I would personally love this idea. It would definitely motivate me to achieve a certain "goal" or milestone, and its just a neat little, NON-INTRUSIVE feature.

[+Mudfrog]

1) Implement the level system. Put in a ton of factors such as quality, geography, numbers of course, hides, events, souvenirs, recent finds, d/t ratings, tbs owned and moved…. Etc.. then, everyone is ranked from level 1 to 100. I have 6,000 finds What does that really mean compared to the universe?.. Bah.. what is my motivation to go out next weekend to pick up a few caches…. BUT if I am level 49 and it takes me 20 caches, a Wherigo, and a 3/3 challenge cache to hit level 50 I am motivated to get my arse out into the woods this weekend and cache away!! The devil is in the details, but a newbie geocacher should be able to hit level 50 in say 6 months with heavy weights on “what you have done for me lately” stats.

 

I would personally love this idea. It would definitely motivate me to achieve a certain "goal" or milestone, and its just a neat little, NON-INTRUSIVE feature.

It's not really non intrusive.

 

It makes geocaching even more competitive and as such, more people would be doing more goofy things to move up a level.

[+searchjaunt]

I don't see why GC should take over all the bad properties and the resulting effects from PG. It's already bad enough that both Ground speak and Niantic have the same company 'policy' towards their users.

[+wmpastor]

What can we learn from Pokémon? (I think that was the question.) Not to infer from media hype that scattered sensationalistic "newsworthy" incidents represent what's the norm of what's actually happening in the real world (in regard to *anything*), and to abide by society's rules while avoiding what's been called in the forum a "funsquashing" attitude.

 

If these idiots keep desecrating cemeteries, trespassing on private property, etc., nothing good is likely to come of it for traditional geocachers.

 

Yo, chill! It ain't healthy!

[+Manville Possum]

If these idiots keep desecrating cemeteries, trespassing on private property, etc., nothing good is likely to come of it for traditional geocachers.

 

That sounds like geocachers and cemetery hides, not the PG players. Geocaching is banned in cemeteries in Tennessee and South Carolina, and got there on it's own.

[+Understandblue]

As a regular, long distance walker, I ran out of geocaches pretty quickly even though I live in an area with tons within walking distance. I didn't want to sacrifice my daily walks to get in the car and drive somewhere an hour away just so I could find caches on my walk - I'd rather just get out and walk. So, while I understand the distance rules, I think that one thing that could be learned is that a Pokemon Go! player can walk the same trails in their general area daily nearly indefinitely and still get new finds, where a saturated geocache suburb or trail system will virtually never have new finds because of the proximity rule.

Edited August 7, 2016 by Understandblue

[+The_Incredibles_]

We're at level 20 now.

 

Advantages of Pokemon GO over geocaching:

 

1) You can play in the same area over and over.

2) Easier.

3) No exercise required.

4) No moldy logs.

 

Due to points #1 and #2 and #3 above, though, we've only been playing a few weeks and we're already bored.

I can't see playing this game for years. There's just not enough variety or challenge to keep us going long-term.

[+thebruce0]

We're at level 20 now.

 

Advantages of Pokemon GO over geocaching:

 

1) You can play in the same area over and over.

2) Easier.

3) No exercise required.

4) No moldy logs.

 

Due to points #1 and #2 and #3 above, though, we've only been playing a few weeks and we're already bored.

I can't see playing this game for years. There's just not enough variety or challenge to keep us going long-term.

Yep. This.(well, I'm almost lvl 24 tho )

Edited August 8, 2016 by thebruce0

[+geodarts]

Iran Bans Pokemon. China is worried.

 

Is geocaching next?

Edited August 8, 2016 by geodarts

[+Mudfrog]

We're at level 20 now.

 

Advantages of Pokemon GO over geocaching:

 

1) You can play in the same area over and over.

2) Easier.

3) No exercise required.

4) No moldy logs.

 

Due to points #1 and #2 and #3 above, though, we've only been playing a few weeks and we're already bored.

I can't see playing this game for years. There's just not enough variety or challenge to keep us going long-term.

You didn't mention #4. Is that one of the things that helps keep you from getting bored with geocaching? Just kidding of course.

 

I haven't even tried the pokemon game because i already know it's something that would not be entertaining to me.

[+The_Incredibles_]

We're at level 20 now.

Yep. This.(well, I'm almost lvl 24 tho )