Nintendo and Niantic Labs’ Pokemon Go, the augmented reality mobile game of the popular franchise, launched on July 6 for particular regions including the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. However, Filipino players who wanted to get in on the augmented reality action found a variety of ways to get their own taste of the action, through either apk downloads, or bypassing region locks initially set by Pokemon Go. For a while, it seemed that the Philippines would become a new breeding ground for would-be Pokemon Trainers.
This all changed, however, when by midnight it seems that Filipino players have been blocked from the game servers. Reports have come in stating that the app would launch, but Pokemon to catch would not appear, nor would access to the in-game shop be allowed for those who bypassed the region lock. As of July 7 at 4:00 pm, however, it seems that the shop could be accessed again, this time showing the in-app purchases in local currency.
As of this writing, no reports or official statements from either Nintendo or Niantic Labs have surfaced to announce when the much-hyped mobile game would be available for the Philippines.