Hiroshima city officials have formally asked the makers of Pokemon Go, Niantic Inc. to remove the atomic bomb memorial site from the mobile game.
The BBC reports that the Atomic Bomb Dome, a key memorial site in the city is in fact a ‘Gym’ within the game.
This has led to large groups of players gathering around the site which was preserved to memorialise those who died when an atomic bomb was dropped on the city in 1945.
City officials have reportedly requested that the sites be removed from the game by 6 August, when an annual ceremony is held to commemorate the bombings.
A ‘Gym’ is a key location within Pokemon Go, it’s usually attached to an important landmark such as a church, building of significant architectural importance or historic importance.
Unfortunately the games creators have yet to utilise a filter which means that the game is unable to determine whether a location might actually be appropriate or not.
This has led to a number of incidents and requests from key historical sites including the US Holocaust Memorial Museum which recently warned visitors that playing Pokemon Go there was “extremely inappropriate”.
Auschwitz has also started using signs formally banning the game from the deeply emotional site where millions of people were murdered by the Nazis.
Pokemon Go’s makers Niantic have confirmed that they do take on board requests for exclusions from their game however they won’t automatically remove a location.
What is Pokemon Go?
Pokemon Go is a mobile game which is compatible with smartphones running iOS or Android.
It can be downloaded via the iPhone app store or Google Play store.
The game uses a new technology called augmented reality, what this does is layer a game/virtual experience over the real-world.
The aim of the game is to catch creatures called Pokemon, train them and then eventually compete in battles against other players.
Open up the app and you’ll be presented with your character standing over a map, this is where the real-world and the game world are combined, meaning that if you walk down the street in real-life you’ll walk down the same street in the game world.