While Pokemon GO typically has sensible PokeStop locations, sometimes Pokemon trainers might find themselves in a strange, or downright dangerous, location.
Pokemon GO has truly transformed how the masses play games. Powered with the geographical technology made possible by its predecessor Ingress, a seemingly endless stream of intrepid Pokemon trainers are now exploring their neighborhoods and beyond in search of PokeStops and illusive Pokemon. While Pokemon GO does a good job for the most part when it comes to selecting these PokeStops, sometimes it completely misses the mark in what makes a sensible location.
Players have already been in well publicized battles to take over the likes of the Trump Tower, the White House, or even a variety of churches (which may attempt not approve of any kind of evolution, Poke or otherwise), but on the scale of things those locations are still pretty normal buildings. This isn't always the case when it comes to Pokemon GO PokeStops, which can certainly stray into the strange and potentially dangerous on occasion.
We've compiled a list of six different Pokemon Go PokeStops that take the cake when it comes to strange places to find oneself trying to catch a Hitmonchan at 3AM.
Without further ado, here they are:
6 1. The Alkimos Shipwreck
That watery grave pictured above is the final resting place of the SS Alkimos, a merchant ship that wrecked itself against the coast of Perth, Australia. While we imagine its full of water and ghost type Pokemon, we haven't seen anyone kayak out to the rusting wreckage of the 10,000 tonne vessel to check it out for themselves. A salvage crew sent to use the ship for scrap metal in 1969 was driven off when the ship caught fire, and its rotted remains have been untouched ever since.
5 2. An Actual Poke Stop
In Hawaii, Poke (pronounced po-kay) is a raw tuna dish. By sheer serendipity, this has resulted in a PokeStop that officially carries the moniker of Poke Stop. Located in Waipahu, this aptly-named building is one of the few PokeStops that can be found on Google Maps by actually searching for a literal PokeStop. We have to imagine that its a popular location for trainers, most of whom may not actually know what Poke is - though they're certainly more likely to discover the fish-based dish now.
4 3. Walter White's House
One has to feel bad for the owners of this residence - they constantly get Breaking Bad fans throwing pizzas onto their roof, and now their yard is being besieged by intrepid Pokemon Go trainers who may not be aware they're stepping onto private property.
The residence of the infamous Walter White - the main character from Breaking Bad - is a house which has borne witness to plenty of drama. It'll be difficult for the owners to tell the difference between film fans and Pokemon trainers, but in either event, they'll probably ask you to get off their lawn. Given how much these people have gone through already, we'd recommend that trainers try to avoid this PokeStop entirely, or at least attempt to catch their Pokemon at the maximum allowable distance.
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3 Harry Houdini's Tomb
There's just something foreboding about an app asking players to go investigate a tomb, but that's exactly what Pokemon GO asks of many New York-based trainers. While we've seen many cemeteries and graveyards in Pokemon GO, this particular PokeStop brings trainers straight to the tomb of none other than Harry Houdini, the famed stuntman and illusionist who passed away almost a hundred years ago.
Provided that the Pokemon the player hunts down don't pull a disappearing act, we can only hope the PokeStop is full of ghost type Pokemon. In any event, we'd prefer not to go tomb exploring - let's leave that for the Skyrim players, who are better equipped to deal with any skeletons they happen to run into.
2 A Mural About A Butt
Since Pokemon GO pulls its PokeStops from public landmarks which can occasionally include local artwork, this artistic mural in SoHo, Manhattan has made the cut into the family friendly world of Pokemon.
While it never quite make the cut in The Division's recreation of the area, this butt-based mural has quickly become a popular PokeStop for trainers in New York. The unofficial title of the PokeStop doesn't help lend it in any credibility, and the entire thing is so ridiculous that it makes one ponder if Niantic has a system in place to easily remove or modify landmarks which might be inappropriate for children.
Coincidentally, that brings up the perfect segue into the last entry:
1 Your Local Strip Club
Pokemon GO has a penchant for selecting a lot of strip clubs, which is as strange as it is hilarious to picture. Most strip clubs don't allow cell phone users to be out and about taking photographs, so many a bouncer have probably already shut down several trainers who were running about innocently trying to catch that Kingler that must have scuttled off to to the VIP lounge.
In any event, it's the perfect example of how an all-ages game combined with an automatic geographic location system can garner some strange results, which is food for thought for parents who's kids are happily exploring PokeStops. Gamers should already be aware of the dangers that come from blindly going to locations and lures, so one should expect that not every PokeStop is going to be a safe place for everyone, or provide an age-appropriate experience for younger fans.
What do you think of these strange PokeStop locations, Ranters? Have you run into a strange location thanks to Pokemon GO?
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