Augmented reality mobile game Pokémon Go has become a social media phenomenon, despite the fact that the title is still experiencing certain issues.
Among the problems plaguing Pokémon Go is its paused global rollout due to the overload on the game's servers, the copies of malware-infected APKs for the Android version of the title, and issues that are more on players and not on the game itself, specifically the crazy things gamers have done to catch a Pokémon.
Another widespread issue that gamers are experiencing with Pokémon Go is the fact that the title kills the battery life of mobile devices, which makes it very difficult to fulfill the franchise's famous motto to "catch 'em all." Granted, this is not a big surprise given the many components of mobile devices that the game uses, including the camera and location sensors, but the problem is dampening the experience of what is supposed to be a title that gets gamers to go out and explore.
Niantic has listed the issue on Pokémon Go's official page, adding that it is now working on a fix to reduce the battery drain of the game for mobile devices. However, until then, here are a few things to try to be able to play Pokémon Go as long as possible.
Reduce Display Brightness
Reducing the brightness of a mobile device's display will lengthen battery life, which is especially useful for gamers who are playing Pokémon Go under daylight. It may become hard to see the screen when under direct sunlight, but gamers can just increase brightness once again just when it is needed.
Turn Off Sound
While the background music on Pokémon Go contributes to the overall experience, turning off the game's sounds will definitely help decrease battery drain. Doing so could also have the added benefit of preventing the app from disturbing other people.
Close Background Apps
It would be best to focus the mobile device's resources and battery on Pokémon Go, and so it's a good idea to close all the other non-essential apps running in the background while playing the game. This is especially true for apps that constantly connect to the internet to check for updates, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Switch Off Augmented Reality
While Pokémon Go heavily sells the feature of using augmented reality to display Pokémon on top of real world locations, turning it off will give players more time to actually catch Pokémons. To deactivate augmented reality, players can tap the switch at the top of the screen the next time they try to catch a Pokémon.
Carry A Power Bank
Gamers could not ask Pikachu to charge up their mobile devices in real life, which might not even be a good idea as the popular Pokémon could blow up the device instead. The next best thing is to invest in a high-capacity power bank, which will keep the player's smartphone running for a longer period of time.
Hopefully Niantic will be able to get a battery drain fix out quickly for Pokémon Go. Until then, try these tips out and see if they help extend playing time for the wildly popular game.
