Japanese rushed to their phones on Friday to start hunting as Pokemon Go, the hit Nintendo-backed smartphone game, finally launched in Japan, home of the colorful cartoon characters.
The game has been a runaway success from around the world, doubling Nintendo’s value since the game’s launch in the United States earlier this month.
Japan, however, had been made to wait, as Niantic, the developers behind the game, and Nintendo sought to ensure servers would withstand the game’s popularity. Finally, after days of rumors, it launched on Friday.
The Japanese government on Thursday became the latest to issue a safety warning. The country’s National Center for Incident Readiness and Strategy for Cybersecurity (NISC) told users of the mobile game not to use their real names and warned them about the risks of heat stroke in the muggy Japanese summer.
A number of other Asian nations still await the game, including China, the world’s biggest smartphone and online gaming market. Niantic Chief Executive John Hanke has said it would be technically possible to launch there, but noted a host of complex rules and restrictions.
