Thousands of players have gathered in Chicago’s Grant Park for Pokemon Go Fest.
A crowd of approximately 20,000 players is expected for the event, Niantic said on Saturday, and lines to get in are so long that many weren’t even in the park when the first challenge window started.
This is insane. There’s a line for early entry still and thousands lined around the fountain and more… #PokemonGOFest
The real Go Fest is a four hour line for a tiny park that we don’t actually believe we’ll all fit in. Yikes! #GoFest #PokemonGOFest
Waiting in line for #PokemonGoFest. Prob gonna be awhile. #Chicago. #GrantPark
In “early access” line for 30 mins & it took 25 mins to find end. Will get in eventually. Concerned about missing 11am event #PokemonGOFest
This is actually nuts #PokemonGOFest
The line to get into #PokemonGOFest #GrantPark #PokemonGO
Tickets for Pokemon Go Fest were sold ahead of time, and so the massive lines just consisted of people trying to get into the park, not people trying to buy admission.
At the event, Niantic has set up merchandise stands, and they also have lounges for each team: Team Mystic, Team Instinct, and Team Valor.
There are also real life Poke Stops set up at the event.
Plus, players can get a picture with Pikachu.
The main center of the action is a stage where there is a screen set up and where announcements will be made; the event recently kicked off with a brief explanation about the day’s events, although quite a few players were still stuck in line when this happened.
Main stage announcement about to begin! Trainers swarming in #PokemonGOFest
In order to participate in Pokemon Go Fest, players must have their tickets checked and will subsequently receive a QR code.
Some who were in Chicago for the event have expressed frustration with the organization, saying that there are not enough people there scanning tickets.
“Update from on the ground: lines are insane,” Reddit user dwhite195 said. “No way a lot of us are getting in before the first catch challenge. At the speed I’ve been moving it wouldn’t surprise me if I’m not in before 12:00.”
And Reddit user uuuuut complained, “Niantic had forgotten how to do simple math… There is no excuse for not knowing how many tickets they sold + how many people per minute they can process. It took 20 minutes just to walk to and find the end of the line.”
@PokemonGoApp Umm you know you have 75% of PAYING customers outside still? Probably 2-3 hours from getting in the very small park. What were you thinking?
@PokemonGoApp Move the lines
Massive lines aren’t the only issue that fans are encountering. Many in Chicago are having problems even playing the game, with the app crashing much more than usual. During Niantic CEO John Hanke’s opening statements, a crowd of people could be heard chanting, “Fix the game!”
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PHOTOS: Massive Crowd Gathers for Pokemon Go Fest Chicago