Pokemon GO: Five games we’re lucky didn’t follow suit

OPINION: Insane rise of Pokemon GO got me thinking, imagine if these five cult classics had also been taken to the streets...chaos!

GAME ON: Good thing Grand Theft Auto never swamped the streets like Pokemon GO has. Picture: contributed

AS MILLIONS of people face future physio appointments for crook necks thanks to the Pokemon GO craze we pondered what could've been.

Herds of people chasing mythical creatures around the streets and glued to their smart phones in public, Pokemon GO has seen an almost unprecedented level of embrace from users.

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Its insane popularity got me thinking, imagine if some other cult gaming classics had transferred into real life action like Pokemon GO has?

Here's five games we're lucky didn't turn into real-life crazes:

1. GRAND THEFT AUTO: Okay so it's arguable whether the US got the memo on this one or not, but we're pretty lucky GTA was never taken to the streets in this country like Pokemon GO.

Imagine a simple trip to the shops interrupted by gunfire, rampant drivers wiping out mailboxes and Molotov cocktails?

Okay so it's not that far from a wild night in Kings Cross a few years back or, it seems, an average week in America, but we should be thankful for the most part GTA rage is confined to the consoles.
 

2. DONKEY KONG: You're walking to the pub on Friday night after a hectic week at work.

Next minute there are people dressed as gorillas smashing barrels over your head.

Why? Because bananas!
 

3. ROAD RASH: Released in 1991, debate rages over whether it was inspired by a trip along the Nicklin Way, but the concept was simple and addictive.

Ride a motorbike fast in illegal races, knock opponents off their bike. Whether it was via a swift kick, cattle prod, crowbar or club, it didn't matter how you belted your opponent, as long as it was done.

Set over a number of California locales, some of the actions aren't too far from what we've seen in the Formula One this year between teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.

Either way, it's probably a good thing this craze never caught on.
 

4. ANGRY BIRDS: If this had caught on our pig farming industry could have been decimated.

Farmers left to defend their thieving swine from the feathered fury of dive-bombing birds.

What a shambles. Thankfully actual birds haven't worked out how to use smart phones yet.
 

5. PAC-MAN: Okay so random people walking around chewing on pills probably isn't all that foreign an idea.

In fact, sounds like a pretty standard night out in any major or not so major venue of a weekend.

But still, it wouldn't be a good look if people were walking through the supermarket doing it at 10am on a Tuesday would it?

Originally published as Pokemon GO: Five games we’re lucky didn’t follow suit