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Prank · April Fools

Pokémon Challenge, catching Pokémon in Google Maps (2014)

On March 31, 2014 Google announced, with Pokémon and Nintendo, a "training tool" for catching Pokémon scattered across streets, forests and mountains in Google Maps. Users needed the updated app on iPhone or Android and typed "press start" in the search bar.

Hand holding a phone with Google Maps, showing a yellow Pokémon in an office
Header image of the 2014 prank post. Google, March 31, 2014 · Source: Become a Pokémon Master with Google Maps · Image by Google, displayed from the original server; not covered by the museum’s CC BY 4.0 license.

March 31, 2014

Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge

Prank · April Fools · Concluded

sources · timeline 2010–2014

Interpretive reconstruction · Unification Early-2010s conventions: a dark top bar, flat white surfaces, solid red and blue buttons. Does not reproduce any Google page.

Dates

  • March 31, 2014 Date · exact date [1]

What the sources say

ClaimRecordConfidenceSources
Partners Pokémon and Nintendo 2 · Single primary source [1] primary
How to play Type press start in the Google Maps search bar on a phone 2 · Single primary source [1] primary

What the confidence levels mean

Historical captures

No archived capture has been located for this record yet.

Sources

  1. Become a Pokémon Master with Google Maps — Tatsuo Nomura — Google, March 31, 2014. Source primary · accessed November 2, 2026 · look for a copy on the Internet Archive

What still needs documenting

  • Google pranks between 2003 and 2013
  • Link to Pokémon GO (2016)

On GD

GD has followed Google since 2006. Search GD for “Pokémon” (in Portuguese)

How to cite

"Pokémon Challenge, catching Pokémon in Google Maps (2014)", Google Museum (GD), https://gd.eurisko.com.br/museu/en/collection/pokemon-challenge-2014/, CC BY 4.0. Reviewed on November 2, 2026.

ID: pokemon-challenge-2014 · Reviewed on November 2, 2026