In the depth of the night , the Herald found budding Pokemon trainers out looking for the elusive creatures.
If you witness hordes of adults walking around with their smartphones in hand, seemingly recording video footage - there is no need for concern.
They are more than likely just regressing to their childhood and attempting to capture all 151 Pokémon in the new mobile game called Pokémon Go.
Thismight sound a little confusing, so let us explain.
What is a Pokémon?
First created as a pair of games for the original Game Boy, Pokémon is now a media franchise including video games, card games, animated television shows and movies.
Rattata Pokemon spotted in Invercargill tonight.
Photo / Alex Potts
OK, but what exactly is Pokémon Go?
Released on Android and iOS earlier this week, Pokémon Go is an augmented reality game - meaning it combines computer-generated image on a user's view of the real world.
The aim of the game is to give players the chance to complete the two goals of Pokémon Trainers in the real world using their smartphone.
How does the game work?
Essentially, events and objects in Pokémon Go have their own location within the physical world.
Using the GPS on your smartphone, Pokemon Go creates an in-game map, which is reflected by locations in the real world.
This means in order to capture Pokémon, visit PokéStops or Pokémon Gyms, players will actually need to leave their current location and travel to a specific place.
Once the certain location is reached, players look at the world through their phone's display, which combines the viewfinder feed from their camera and an overlay of 3D graphics.
