Wild Pokémon spotted in the life science sector
A UK science park, which plays home to a host of brands in the life science sector, has attracted some unlikely guests since the launch of the Pokémon Go game.
The app is a free location-based reality game which allows players to capture, battle and train virtual Pokémon (the Japanese collectible craze that many will remember from the 90s and early 2000s) which appear throughout the real world.
It was only officially released in the UK yesterday, and already one of the locations where users can find Pokémon is in the car park of the Plymouth Science Park - which is home to many life science brands, including Cardio Analytics and C3PA.
Rather fittingly for a science park, the Pokémon most commonly found is an ‘Electabuzz' which, according to representatives from the park "looks like a yellow, stripy, cartoon goblin crossed with a tiger". Players are meant to find it, capture it and train it.
Already players have been visiting the park to find the character where PSP bosses say they are thrilled to welcome them - in the real world.
Merika Kindlon, commercial executive at PSP said: "We are thrilled to have our first ever animated tenants on the park - albeit in the car park.
"Joking aside, we are very interested in the phenomenal success of Pokémon Go and the fact that it is already bigger that Facebook in the USA. Anything that gets people away from their desks and outdoors is a good thing.
"Interestingly the high growth sector of Games Software Development is a specific target area for the Park and we are currently creating fun, motivating and laid back office spaces for coding-based start-ups in Plymouth.
"We believe that these spaces combined with the 100 hours of free business advisory that the companies will get here, will give them the greatest chance of business success in.
Plymouth Science Park is the biggest science park in the west country, with more than 100 businesses and 1,100 staff on its 25 acre wooded site near Derriford Hospital in Plymouth.