Too Busy for Pokemon? These Entrepreneurs Will Play for You

Too busy with your real life to play the hit augmented reality game Pokemon Go? For a price, some entrepreneurs will play the game for you. The AP reports new ads are popping up on Craigslist nearly every day from people who say they will log on to your Pokemon Go account and effectively run up your score while you are stuck at work or sitting in class. On a recent July afternoon, two 24-year-old Pokemon "trainers," Lewis Gutierrez and Jordan Clark, walked through Brooklyn's Prospect Park with their eyes glued to their phones, tapping and swiping away to catch virtual Pokemon for clients paying about $20 per hour for the service. The two college friends liken the service to dog walking and call themselves Pokewalkers.

And they aren't the only ones getting in the game. One trainer in London offers to boost your Pokemon account up to Level 20, which is very high, for a price of $185. Others offer Uber-like driving services with the promise of taking a player to some of the hottest Pokemon hunting grounds around the city. Gutierrez and Clark say clients want to compete in the game at a high level, but they don't have time to roam the city and play the game all day. Or, they are getting ready for a "Pokedate." "It's a good first date for Tinder," said Clark. "A lot of people are meeting up that way." Some want to impress their potential partners by being in the game at a respectable level. (More Pokemon Go stories.)