A Local “Gym Leader” Demanded Control Over All Neighborhood Gyms—Until One Trainer Refused to Yield to Unofficial Turf Rules
Ksenija Toyechkina / Shutterstock
Friendly competition stops feeling playful when an in-game rivalry spills into exclusion and real-world monitoring.
This Pokémon Go player respected another trainer’s request, only to have his own gyms targeted afterward.
Then fellow players admitted tracking his movements and barred him from community meetups.
Read on.
AITA for taking over someone’s Pokémon Go gyms even though it caused tension in my local community?
Background:
Wow, full time Pokémon?
I’ve play Pokémon go for years, and around six months ago I got back into it full time for health and exercise.
I had open heart surgery last September, so I often drive to gyms and raids instead of walking long distances.
Pokémon Go is a great way to build community.
My local community ambassador, Let’s call him Mr. W, invited me to join a community group and introduced me to the local meetups.
The situation:
Two months ago I tried taking over as many gyms as possible for fun and noticed Mr. W had gyms near me.
I took them a few times, which made him uncomfortable, so he asked me to leave his gyms alone.
What is the point of gyms if you can’t take them over? That is a major component of the game.
I respected this and stuck to my two local gyms, avoiding tension.
While he was overseas for an event, I took over his gyms and let them cycle naturally.
When he returned, he immediately went for two gyms i was holding. since then, he has been taking my gyms as soon as I place a Pokémon, sometimes removing me from a gym where a teammate had been for 23 minutes, forcing me to wait the 10 minute cooldown before i could re-add my Pokémon.
Now this just sounds petty.
He also blocked me on campfire, preventing me from seeing or participating in meetups, which goes against ambassador guidelines about fostering community.
Yesterday, he complained again, this time with two other people, who confirmed they had been tracking me outside the game to see when I drive to gyms.
Yeah, these people are taking the game way too seriously. I would leave the community and just play on my own.
This has made me feel isolated and uneasy, and they now tell me i am not allowed to attend meetups with the community.
I never targeted Mr. W personally, and I’ve told him and the others I have no issues with anyone.
It sounds like the ‘community’ is being run like the mafia.
None of my actions violate Pokémon Go’s guidelines. I just want to play the game normally and take my local gyms without it escalating.
AITA for playing the game normally and taking gyms after he took mine?
Not at all. I played Pokémon Go for a long time and know first hand that some people can take it way to seriously and personally. Ignore them, have fun, and be healthy.
Let’s see what the people in the comments have to say about it.
What is the point of playing if you can’t take the gyms?
Exactly, the gyms are meant for battles.
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Right, having someone take over a gym gives you the opportunity to take it back.
He is playing the game as it was designed.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an artist who made sure to leave the walls of her home blank and boring before moving out, even though they were covered with gorgeous murals before then.
This is getting beyond weird.
Taking gyms is a normal game mechanic, and this player did nothing wrong by participating without personally targeting anyone.
Blocking him from meetups and monitoring his movements crossed a serious boundary that should be documented and reported through official channels.
Mr. W treated public gyms like inherited real estate with Pikachu holding the deed.
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