This freshly leaked Pokemon Go beta footage makes us want to hit Route 1 immediately

GAME Previews has just unveiled 9 minutes of footage following the early gameplay of Pokemon Go. We get to see a user customize his character and get started down the road to become a Pokemon master with naught but a backpack and a baseball cap to his name.

Thus we find ourselves following the beginnings of the adventure of the edgily-named “Darkathion” as he strikes off to visit scenic Giant Rock Stack and the local library, locations where he finds eggs, items, and gyms. The game really does seem geared to get people up and active, emulating world of Pokemon where creatures must be sought out in the wild and eggs have evolved not to hatch under warm, calm conditions, but rather only after jiggling around in a backpack after a certain number of steps. If you wanna catch ‘em all in Pokemon Go, you’re going to have to give those calves a workout.

The video also showcases a gameplay mechanic that was kind of taken as a given in the games and anime series: actually hitting the damn Pokemon with the Pokeball. We never really appreciated what an arm Ash Ketchum had until we watched Darkathion struggle to peg a Vulpix. Also on display is how the visual augmented reality aspects of the game can be toggled on the fly. Gyms are fought over by three teams, and the controlling team leaves their strongest contenders behind to face off against the competition

There’s still no official release date for the game yet, but with leaks like this trickling out, the hype train is certainly leaving the station. While we wait around for official info, let us know what you think of this upcoming free-to-play augmented reality game in the comments below!