原文地址
http://news.heart.org/pokemon-go-brings-video-games-outside/
   
        “精灵宝可梦 Go”可以让玩家们从常规的久坐的屏幕游戏中解放出来，走到现实的身体运动中去。
       这款游戏通过GPS定位玩家的位置，然后将玩家的身影投射到游戏地图上同等距离的地点。
       在本月早些时候，Niantic Labs发布了这款移动应用程序， 其下载量已超过1500万。据说占了世界上10%以上的Android手机。
       密歇根州立大学的副教授Wei Peng博士一直在研究电子游戏和互动媒体促进健康的潜在好处。她说：“已经有明显的证据表明，自从有了它，人们每天的徒步运动量增多了。”
       自该款游戏发布以来，成群的人聚集在商场，公园和其他公共场所，就是想要捕捉在这些游戏所涉区域内出现的虚拟小精灵。有一部分游戏内容，例如，想要得到鸡蛋孵化器，就需要累积一定的运动量才行。而有些游戏内容则需要人们从一个地方跑到另一个地方去捕捉这些虚拟生物。
       同时，这款游戏可以促进玩家们多进行社交活动。一些玩家可以选择设置地标，然后让别的玩家来访问该地标站。其中一站就是位于达拉斯的美国心脏协会国家总部的Louis B. Russell纪念碑。Russell是第34例接受心脏移植手术的患者，也曾是术后存活时间最长的人（术后活了594天）。这款游戏以自己的随性来设置该地标，却没有明确提到Russell本人的任何信息。
       如果玩家和附近的玩家组团玩，还会获得游戏奖金。
       Peng说，这款游戏具有很多好处，如增加人们的物理性运动，促进社交互动。哪怕只是让传统的屏幕游戏玩家愿意迈出家门也是好的。她说，该游戏尤其能够有效地让那些久坐家中的人们跨出第一步，迈向更积极的“游戏人生”。
       在加利福尼亚大学，圣巴巴的数字游戏研究中心的一个媒体负责人Lieberman（博士，研究员），认为这款游戏有改善人们的生活方式的潜力。
       她说：“这款游戏可能给久坐的人带来其他形式的运动。一旦他们开始动起来，他们就会意识到运动后感觉是多么好，他们也就可能去参与其他的运动，如骑自行车或游泳。”
       “精灵宝可梦 Go”的设计可以追溯到上世纪90年代中期，原形是任天堂游戏男孩。
       随着玩具、连环漫画册和动画片的流行开来，收藏家交易卡和纸牌游戏比赛也变得越来越受欢迎。
       “精灵宝可梦 Go”的一个有趣的方面在于它是被广泛认可的。
       Lieberman说：“我们听说这款游戏对那些不熟悉精灵宝可梦的玩法，甚至是平常不玩视频游戏的人都具有很强的吸引力。这款游戏增强了现实性和社交互动的机会，让玩家们很是着迷。随着媒体对该游戏的不断报道，许多人都很乐意去尝试一下。”
       Peng 和Lieberman都希望“精灵宝可梦 Go”的高人气指数能激励其他公司也开发出此类涉及自身参与的，由GPS定位的增强现实感的游戏。
       但是，他们也对这款游戏的安全性有所担忧。各个年龄段的玩家们，如果有人在玩游戏时没有注意到周围环境，是很容易受伤的。比如说，闯进了私人领域或被引诱到不安全的地方以致被抢劫。也有人担心当玩家们全神贯注盯着手机屏幕的时候，会错过体验以及欣赏他们周围的真实景色。
       Peng 和Lieberman都强调，当孩子在偏远的或不熟悉的地方玩这款游戏时，父母应该特别小心地陪在孩子身边。此外，玩家们应该避免在夜间玩这款游戏。
       Lieberman说道：“如果人们是在安全的环境下，并且有节制地玩这款游戏，就可以从中获得巨大的好处，如游戏娱乐、闯关挑战、可爱的虚拟角色、社交往来和体育运动。何况，这只需要玩家们从游戏屏幕上稍微分出一些视线而已。”
 
声明：本文由宏景国际教育编译自美国心脏协会官网，转载请标明出处和译者。
责任编辑：杨璐
 
 
以下为原文：
Pokémon Go brings video games outside
 
By AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION NEWS
 
 
Pokémon Go is getting players physically moving in the real world, a change from the stereotypical stationary screen time usually associated with gaming.
 
The app works by allowing GPS to track the gamer’s location, which in turn moves the player’s avatar the same distance on the in-game map.
 
The mobile app, which was released earlier this month by Niantic Labs has already been downloaded more than 15 million times worldwide and is reportedly on more than 10 percent of all Android phones.
 
“There is already clear evidence that people are walking more each day while using it,” said Wei Peng, Ph.D., an associate professor at Michigan State University, who studies the potential benefits in using video games and interactive media to promote health.
 
Since the release, malls, parks and public areas have been swarmed by groups trying to catch virtual creatures from the Pokémon franchise that appear in the game. Some components of playing, such as the egg incubators, require a certain amount of movement or walking. Other parts of the game require people to go from place to place to capture the creatures.
 
Meanwhile, the game encourages community with landmarks that players designate and others can visit. One such stop is a memorial for Louis B. Russell, the 34th heart transplant recipient, located at American Heart Association’s national headquarters in Dallas. The game uses its own irreverent reference to the landmark without actually mentioning Russell, who was the longest-surviving transplant recipient of his time at 594 days.
 
There are also bonuses for gamers who group with nearby players.
 
Peng said the game offers multiple benefits, such as increasing physical activity, increasing social interaction and even just being outdoors. She said the game could be especially effective at getting people who live sedentary lifestyles to make the first step toward being more active.
 
Debra Lieberman, Ph.D., a media researcher who directs the Center for Digital Games Research at the University of California, Santa Barbara, agrees that the game has the potential to improve people’s lifestyles.
 
“The game could be a gateway to other forms of exercise for sedentary people,” she said. “Once they start walking and realize how good they feel after being active, they might also become involved in activities such as biking or swimming.”
 
Pokémon Go builds on a fan base stretching back to the mid-1990s when a pair of video games was made for the original Nintendo Game Boy.
 
Collector trading cards and card game tournaments also became popular, along with toys, comic books and cartoons.
 
An interesting aspect of Pokémon Go is its widespread use.
 
“We are hearing that the game appeals to people who are unfamiliar with the Pokémon franchise and who don’t typically play active video games,” Lieberman said. “They are drawn to the game for the novelty of the augmented reality gameplay and for opportunities to interact socially. With the news coverage the game is receiving, they are excited to try it.”
 
Peng and Lieberman both expect the popularity of Pokémon Go to inspire other companies to develop similar augmented reality games involving physical activity that is tracked by GPS.
 
They noted that there are negatives to consider. Players of all ages have been hurt whennot paying attentionto their surroundings, walking onto private property or lured to unsafe areasand robbed. And there are concerns about people missing out on experiencing and appreciating their physical surroundings while they are paying so much attention to their phone screens.
 
Lieberman and Peng both stressed that parents need to be careful and should accompany their children when they’re out playing the game in distant or unknown locations. Also, playing the game at night should be avoided.
 
“If people are being safe and playing in moderation, the game could bring tremendous benefits, such as fun, game challenges, beloved characters, social interaction, and physical activity,” Lieberman said, “just as long as they also spend some of their time looking up from their screens.”