Beware! Playing 'Pokemon Go' On Windows Phones Will Get You Banned Permanently

Everyone's been crazy about "Pokemon Go" lately -- as the original tagline indicated, you "gotta catch 'em all." The game has become so popular that there had been reports how the game has had both postive and negative effects to its players all over the world. While the desire to play the game is to each our own, there is a large percentage of people who cannot play simply because of the phones they use: specifically, "Pokemon Go" cannot be installed in Windows phones.

In a new update, Niantic said that they will permanently ban "Pokemon Go" players who play the game in Windows phones, along with third-party cheats that enables the user to spoof GPS locations to capture the creatures -- something that is against game rules. Currently, the game is available for both Android and iOS platforms, but not for Windows phone users, and won't be for a while because according to Deccan Chronicle, the developers are not yer planning on hitting the Windows Phone platform anytime soon.

Still, there are those who managed to tweak the original app, with other apps emulating the operating system to for the game to make it think like it was running on a compatible platform. With a program that helps them detect unauthorized installations of the game, Niantic is banning these users from using "Pokemon Go."

The issue is larger than just a few "illegal" installations -- according to Softpedia, developers for Windows are working to bring "Pokemon Go" to Windows phones without collaborating with Niantic, and the third party app, PoGo UWP, has been a client in using "Pokemon Go" on Windows Phones. They worked for a while, but with a new update released by Niantic, the app was pushed out via the API which locked unofficial apps and all their updates to the game.

The warning regarding the unauthorized installation appeared on GitHub, reading, “Please do not install any builds that are not officially released at the link... We currently are not releasing new builds for a reason, which currently is: We don't have the right tools to spoof your device like an Apple device. If you download and run any non-dev generated appx, your account is being flagged and there is a high chance you'll get your Pokemon Go account banned. Please also do not ask for new builds."

Stay tuned to SWR for more updates on Pokemon Go for Windows phones.