Since the game launched in the summer of 2016, Pokemon GO has shown an ability to bring people together. Unlike most other video games, Pokemon GO encourages people to get out into their community, resulting in new friendships that may not have otherwise formed. One such player who made friends playing Pokemon GO was an elderly Taiwanese man named Lao Xiao, who was determined to catch 'em all.

Sadly, Xiao's cancer reemerged and he was hospitalized, which prevented him from playing the game. Despite this, Xiao still wanted to catch the legendary Pokemon Entei, who was due to arrive in Taiwan on November 1st. Before Entei was rotated into the region, Xiao passed away, with his son breaking the news to his father's Pokemon GO friends on October 31st.

Xiao's Pokemon GO group attended his funeral and then asked for his phone so that they could fulfill his final wish of catching Entei. Members of the group renamed their own Pokemon "Xiao's Honor Guard" and "Xiao's Air Force" to honor their deceased friend as they battled with Entei. Ultimately, the group was successful, and they managed to catch Entei for Xiao.

Xiao's story is yet another example of how Pokemon GO can bring people together in remarkable ways. As we've seen in the past, the Pokemon GO community tends to band together and go out of their way to help other players. Whether it's people setting up lures at children hospitals or helping fellow players catch legendary Pokemon, the community has proven itself to be one of the most benevolent gaming communities out there.

Xiao's story is also an example of how the game has appealed to older people, who aren't typically known for playing video games. There have been a number of stories of elderly people dedicating their time to the popular mobile game, like Mdm Tan Nai Keow from Singapore for instance, who is an 84 year old woman that has almost caught every Pokemon in the game.

Pokemon GO's ability to appeal to nontraditional gaming demographics and bring people together make it a remarkable game, despite its drawbacks. In the meantime, Xiao's passing is sad, but it's great that he had such a caring group of friends who would make sure he would still get his Entei.

Pokemon GO is available now for iOS and Android mobile devices.

Source: ETToday