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Eh, I'll read your replies after I've posted.
I don't think you can really compare the gameplay, because the premise is completely different. Getting your ass outdoors to see new places and people IS the gameplay.
Sure it isn't the best game ever in the traditional sense. Sure it was copied straight over the premise of Ingress. Who the hell has played Ingress anyway? So many people are familiar with the Pokemon franchise, so people choose Pokemon over Ingress because of familiarity and nostalgia. And it is FREE to download on your PHONE which you probably already own, and that is why it is such a huge hit. Not a lot of people want to buy a Nintendo 3DS just so they can play one Pokemon game on it.
Okay, so maybe Nintendo makes a lot of great games, and Pokemon isn't the only game you should play on the DS. You know what? I don't give a ****! Pokemon is what I grew up with. There is something about collecting and training these critters that no other game can do for me. And the exploration was also always a big part of the experience, now it's just happening outdoors, which is even better to be honest. I love the outdoors.
And really, the latest actual main series Pokemon game I played just didn't do it for me (Black and White). Some of the new Pokemon designs are really awful, which really takes away from the joy of exploration. The world design largely made no sense. The story just kept getting in the way. I just speeded through the whole game like it was some kind of a chore to get over with. Probably large part of it has to do with me now being a grownup with adult responsibilities without time to enjoy gaming, which coincidentally also makes a game like Pokemon Go much more suitable for me. Gets you out in the real world? Check! Has real life benefits to playing? Check! Does not require a huge commitment? Check!
Now I haven't played the latest main series game, but some of the things they are doing like mega evolutions sound completely over the top and stupid. This is starting to feel less like Pokemon and more like a Generic Japanese Game with Mechas and talking trash bags and ****. In my opinion, Pokemon Go is completely the right direction to go with this franchise. Now if they could make the game function even better, that would be awesome! As for the main series, I'm starting to think it has lived past its time. They're going to run out of new dumb gimmicks that pop up every generation eventually, and there are only so many trash designs and variations of the same old damn storyline you can make.
Pokemon Go is a step in a completely different direction than the main games. In my opinion it is right in leaving those dumb gimmicks behind, and doing something actually innovative.