Finding Equilibrium for Gym Ownership Distribution Based on Game Dynamics in Pokémon Go

The game Pokémon Go has received tremendous attention across the globe since July 2016 as a location-based augmented reality game. However, an important element of the game, namely "Gym battles", periodically stagnate because of several influencing factors, including non-optimally managed gameplay. A key factor of such stagnation is an imbalance between the three different groups of players called teams. In this paper, we analyze how Gym ownership is distributed among the three teams, and explore how the game dynamics can change the distribution of the Gyms among the teams. We propose a model based on an analytical framework to find the equilibrium regarding the fair distribution of Gym ownership among all the teams in a certain geographic area. We also discuss the possibility of applying strategies that can change the game dynamics in such a way that stagnation can be mitigated.