"It finally makes sense": Pokemon GO trainers connected to mainline game NPCs by a Reddit post

Pokemon GO lacks many of the trainer NPCs seen in the core series games. Interestingly, the behavior of said NPCs started making a lot more sense after a recent Reddit post by Redditor u/Spicy-perfect20. The post features a comic by Alex Law depicting a character wondering why Pokemon NPCs wander around at night.

It finally all makes sense byu/spicy-perfect20 inpokemongo

At the end of the comic, the character concludes that Pokemon GO players exhibit the same behavior as NPC trainers in the core series. While some users pointed out that the comic was reposted from elsewhere on Reddit, others immediately noticed the comparison between GO players and core series NPCs.

Redditors soon took to the comments, sharing their own Pokemon GO stories of witnessing real-world players sitting still or following a basic route not unlike the NPCs in the core series. Other fans joked that if locking eyes with real-world players worked like it did trainers in the core series, events would be nightmarish and it would be difficult to get anything done.

Pokemon GO fans joke about their community acting somewhat similar to the core series NPCs (Image via Reddit)

While some players suggested that smartphones were what caused such behavior, it was tough to deny the similarities between Pokemon GO players in the real world and the NPCs in the core series.

Players theorize how Pokemon GO fans act like NPCs while playing the game (Image via Reddit)

Hence, despite being a repost and not necessarily a novel concept, the comic does leave GO players to wonder if they had ended up resembling the very characters they critiqued from the primary Pokemon series.

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The reposted Pokemon GO Reddit comic injects some meta-awareness into Pokemon fans

Are GO fans getting a little too similar to core series trainers in their mannerisms? (Image via Niantic)

Pokemon GO is constructed around augmented reality gameplay and the Reddit post does leave players wondering if this is what causes them to behave like the core series NPCs. Well, maybe a little, but probably not in the purely robotic way that NPC trainers operate in primary Pokemon games. In fact, some of the comparisons might be a bit exaggerated.

Except for players who have ended up in particularly sticky situations while playing the game, most trainers remain aware of their surroundings. In fact, Pokemon GO players act out of their own free will, unlike the pre-programmed NPCs

Still, conversations like these make for an entertaining discussion and bridge the gap between fans of both games. If players notice themselves staring headlong into the distance or walking in circles while playing Niantic's mobile title, they may want to take a moment to avoid feeling a bit too much like a core series trainer NPC.