Pokémon Go is an economy in miniature. There is exchange: players trade Pokémons and swap gifts. There is scarcity: the balls required to catch Pokémons are scarce, as is Pokémon storage capacity and other items in the game. There is production: through various activities, such as walking a Pokémon egg, or leaving a Pokémon in a gym, players can produce new Pokémon, or earn tokens. There is status seeking and signaling: high rank players parade their skill by wearing special clothing, and displaying their game level. There are even exports and imports. Pokémon Go imports dollars from the real life economy, exporting in exchange game tokens, and the enjoyment and entertainment players get from using those tokens.
Yet Pokémon Go differs from the real-world economy in two crucial respects. First, prices, the distribution of initial endowments, and all rules are determined by the game manufacturer, Niantic, which acts as an omnipotent “social planner”. Second, anyone who does not like the rules of the game is free to leave. The possibility of exit gives power to players: because more players=more revenue, the social planner has a strong incentive to set rules that keep players happy. Thus the rules that govern the Pokémon Go economy provide insight into what type of economic rules people would choose, if they actually had power to influence the social planner’s decisions in real life.
One of the most notable features of the Pokémon Go economy is the number of rules that limit the extent of inequality. Players earn tokens by leaving their Pokémon in gyms – up to a maximum of 50 tokens a day. Players gain status by achieving higher levels – but the game is structured so that the overwhelming majority of players are somewhere between level 30 and level 40. Players gain the ability to defeat other players in battle by powering up stronger Pokémon – but each Pokémon’s maximum combat power is capped too.
But so what? Pokémon Go is just a game, after all.
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