If you needed any more convincing that Pokemon Go is an absolutely massive cultural phenomenon, Google released statistics from YouTube that further prove that the mobile game is wildly popular: in its first week, Pokemon Go had twice as much watchtime as Overwatch and three times as much as The Division during their respective launch weeks.
In a blog post, Google explained that the Pokemon Go craze is represented in how well videos about the game have done on YouTube. “We asked the YouTube data, and can confirm that Pokemon Go is a unique video game phenomenon like no other,” the post read. “Overall, since launch, Pokemon Go has racked up millions of hours of watchtime and consistently been one of the top 3 games on YouTube (trailing only Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto V).”
Considering that GTA V and Minecraft are two of the highest-selling video games in history, Pokemon Go’s in pretty good company.
Google also pointed out that the release of Pokemon Go had a humorous effect on a two-year-old April Fool’s prank. The company’s video from April Fool’s Day 2014 is a parody called “Google Maps: Pokemon Challenge” which, although definitely meant to be funny, now seems strangely prophetic. The recent release of Pokemon Go apparently caused a significant increase in views of that video, which you can watch here.
Also, if you’re interested in which Pokemon Go team has won the YouTube battle, Google also provided those statistics: Team Mystic and Team Valor are currently tied for search popularity, with Team Instinct slightly behind.
Pokemon Go has spawned an absurd number of strange stories, events, and even a dating app, and you can read all of the news about the game here.