An empirical study on the motivations underlying augmented reality games: the case of Pokémon Go during and after Pokémon fever

In 2016, Pokémon Go became the most popular game in the history of smartphone games and was among the first games to feature geo-located augmented reality (AR) elements. The goal of the present research was to obtain a deeper understanding concerning the motivations underlying Pokémon Go use and to create a measure that assesses these motivations. By extending the framework of the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire, three new factors – Outdoor Activity, Nostalgia, and Boredom – were added based on the findings of qualitative analysis, and which led to the creation of the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire - Pokémon Go extension (MOGQ-PG). Confirmatory factor analysis was carried out on a sample of Pokémon Go players (N = 621). Results demonstrated that the final 37-item, first-order, 10-factor model had appropriate factor structure and internal consistency. A second follow-up study on Pokémon Go players (N = 510) examined associations between gaming motivations, problematic use, and impulsivity. Results demonstrated that impulsivity was not related to the MOGQ-PG motives. Results also showed that competition and fantasy motivations predicted problematic gaming behavior. The present research is the first empirical contribution to the assessment and understanding of the motivational background of playing AR games such as Pokémon Go