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'Pokémon GO' Release Date: India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan Next? China, South Korea Still Pending

'Pokémon GO' Release Date: India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan Next? China, South Korea Still Pending

J Rose

More than three months after its initial release date, many countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China and South Korea are still waiting for mobile game "Pokémon GO" to reach their shores.

The long wait is particularly frustrating for aspiring Pokémon trainers in India, which potentially has one of the largest gaming markets in the world. Niantic Labs has already acknowledged India in one of its blog posts, but the country is still waiting for the game until now.

Why is "Pokémon GO" not live in India yet? Some have speculated that the release is being hampered by public interest litigations filed against the popular mobile game.

According to International Business Times, a public interest litigation has been filed in the Gujarat High Court in India in August, which aims to place a ban on the popular augmented reality game in their country.

The news outlet reported that the reason for the ban is due to the road accidents "Pokémon GO" may cause once the game officially launches. It is yet to be announced whether the Gujarat High Court will honor the ban or not.

Another public interest litigation has been filed in Gujarat against Niantic Lab's popular mobile game in September. The public interest litigation was filed due to the game allegedly "hurting religious sentiments" by showing virtual eggs in places of worship.

Despite these hurdles, Pokémon fans in India remain optimistic about the game launch.

"Let me just stop you there for a second and ask you, does the PIL count for a ban in Bangladesh?" Twitter user Abishek Padaki posted (shared by the unofficial Pokémon GO India Twitter account). "How about Pakistan? Or even Sri Lanka and Nepal? No."

"So like I've said many times, the PIL has nothing to do with the release!" he continued. "The game would probably come out as a Subcontinent release that include: India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and other subcontinental countries. Don't heed to baseless rumors."

Just like India, China and South Korea are also experiencing their own hurdles preventing them from playing "Pokémon GO" right now. South Korea would have to wait until Nov. 23 for its government to review Google's permission request to take mapping data out of the country, according to Reuters.

Players in China, on the other hand, may not be getting their hands on the game just yet due to some restrictions presented by the infamous "Great Firewall of China." This may be preventing the game from being launched in the country.

Stay tuned for more "Pokémon GO" news.

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