Niantic CEO Says Pokémon GO’s Intention Was To Encourage Players To Explore The World

During Gamesbeat 2016 in Rancho Palos Verde, California, Niantic CEO John Hanke sat down to speak a little bit about Pokémon GO’s success thus far as well as his hopes for the app in the future. [Thanks, Venture Beat.]

Specifically, Hanke mentioned Pokémon GO Plus—a small device which connects to your smartphone and notifies you during in-game events. The device would cut the time that many players spend staring at their phones, something which Hanke is in favor of, saying that the game’s intention was for people to explore the world.

“I’m looking forward to the launch of the Pokémon Go Plus,” Hanke said. “That will give players the chance to play the game without looking at their phone all the time. They’ll get to look at the world around them.”

To hear Hanke’s entire commentary on Pokémon GO, you can check out the video below.

Pokémon GO is available on iOS and Android devices.