Pokémon Go Is Basically The Biggest App On Earth (But NASA Confirms It Can't Be Played In Space)

The world has been swept up in Pokémon Go fever, which you don’t need to be told because you are among the world’s population, and thus, probably playing Pokémon Go right now.

Unfortunately, the six people who are not presently on Earth are missing out on the fun, with NASA confirming that the smartphones belonging to the crew members on the International Space Station are not connected to the internet.

That’s right: In space, no one can hear you Squirtle.

But that’s their problem, not ours. Back on our great, green floating Pokéball of a planet, Pokémon Go has already been installed more times in one week than Tinder has managed in five years. (Though, given all the live events being hosted around the globe, it might actually be a better dating app anyway.)

bae: come over
me: i can't. i'm busy playing pokemon go
bae: there's a charizard in my backyard
me: pic.twitter.com/ldnrWrMwhG

— Pokémon GO (@GOCatchPokemon) July 12, 2016

According to Gizmodo, Pokémon Go is on track to trump Twitter’s percentage of daily active users (which sits at 3.5 per cent) too.

The game, which uses your phone’s camera to augment reality and allow you to catch Pokémon in the literal wild of your surrounding streets, has also been found to increase physical activity among those not normally used to walking around while playing their video games.

However, it’s also resulted in one teenager accidentally stumbling across a dead body in a riverbank. Another player was robbed after not heeding the game’s “stay alert” warning. A Reddit user also reported slipping “down a ditch” while not paying attention, leading to a fractured foot.

We had the first report of robbery while playing Pokemon go in Omaha. Please pay attention to your surroundings. Don't become a victim.

— Ofc. Ryan Miller (@OPDOfcMiller) July 11, 2016

There have also been concerns about the privacy of Pokémon Go, with Kotaku noting that those who sign up with their Google Account might be handing over full access to the developers at Niantic.

Niantic responded with a statement, saying, “the Pokémon GO account creation process on iOS erroneously requests full access permission for the user’s Google account.”

“However, Pokémon GO only accesses basic Google profile information (specifically, your User ID and email address) and no other Google account information is or has been accessed or collected.”

Niantic is working on a fix, which should come as some relief to many players. (Well, except for those who are super paranoid about the fact Niantic founder John Hanke has alleged links to the CIA.)

It didn’t seem to bother new dad Jonathan Theriot, who snagged this Pidgey while waiting for his wife to give birth.

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All that, for a Pidgey.

Photo: Instagram.