Remko De Waal/AFP/Getty Images
pokemon go apparently still going on – and it’s still a threat to society. Dutch authorities this week filed a lawsuit against the game’s developers, Niantic, to ban players from descending on the fragile beaches of Kijkduin near The Hague, which have earned a reputation as the Pokémon capital of the Netherlands.
Gamers have been thronging the beach since the game launched in the Netherlands in July, and the local government of The Hague claims it has “repeatedly and persistently sought contact” with Niantic, via telephone, letters and subpoenas, and that the company has “never responded “. ,” forces the hand of the city. The case is due Oct. 11.
However, in typical Dutch fashion, the local council isn’t even pushing for an outright ban – it just wants Niantic to make sure no virtual monsters appear in the resort’s popular augmented reality game between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. to prevent unnecessary damage to the natural areas and nuisance for local residents. It also aims for a complete ban on the appearance of pokémon in the protected dune areas.
“In this way, Kijkduin remains attractive to pokemon go players, but prevents nuisance for local residents and damage to nature reserves, “said the municipality in a statement.
What’s strange is that Niantic has honored several other citizen requests to prevent the appearance of the collectible monsters and of the pokéstops, where players can collect in-game resources. Many historic sites and sensitive locations are now pokémon-free, including the Berlin Holocaust Memorials and the Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Memorials. Similarly, Auschwitz is off the map, as is the Arlington National Cemetery in the US, the Cambodian Genocide Museum and the nuclear containment area around Fukushima in Japan.
Frame image by Remko De Waal/AFP/Getty Images