Nick Johnson is really gearing up to catch them all.
Two weeks into Pokémon GO, Johnson declared that he had caught all 142 Pokémon in the game that can be found in the United States. As the mobile game is based on the franchise's original games, it has a total of 151 Pokémon to be caught. This leaves with nine more to find, six of which are rare and currently unaccounted for while the other three are only located in certain international regions.
Johnson is taking his Pokémon journey outside of the United States then, heading for Paris, Hong Kong and Sydney to look for Mr. Mime, Farfetch'd and Kangaskhan, respectively, courtesy of Expedia and Marriott Rewards.
Accompanied by his girlfriend, Johnson flew to Paris on July 29 and has already caught Mr. Mime and Farfetch'd, according to his Twitter account.
#MrMime is Mr. Mine. #gottacatchemall #FriendOfMR #NickKetchum @MarriottRewards pic.twitter.com/iowIB71Oai
— Nick Johnson (@NLJ_1) July 30, 2016
Got him. #PokemonGO #NickKetchum #gottacatchemall #HongKong @MarriottRewards pic.twitter.com/iqBnllkTze — Nick Johnson (@NLJ_1) August 2, 2016
Talking to Business Insider, Johnson said he won't be using third-party tracking tools to find the Pokémon he needs, instead scouring Reddit for information and relying on local Pokémon GO player communities when he arrives at his destination.
The Pokémon GO player is now heading for Sydney, where he will be spending two days to catch Kangaskahn. After that, Johnson is jetting off to Tokyo for some vacation time, also thanks to Expedia and Marriott Rewards.
Throughout his trip, he stayed at the Renaissance Paris Arc de Triomphe, the Renaissance Hong Kong Harbour View and Pier One Sydney Harbor, while his last stop will be at the Tokyo Marriott Hotel.
Apart from finding the three Pokémon, Johnson will also do media rounds and contribute to Expedia's Viewfinder blog. While Johnson is the first to catch all 142 Pokémon in the United States, it's impressive to note that he was able to keep his hunt for Pokémon strictly after his work hours. However, when he started hunting, he would go on for up to 8 hours straight, walking about 8 miles per day. His first Pokémon was Squirtle while his last (of the 142 in the U.S.) was Omastar, which he evolved himself from an Omanyte.
Johnson's Pokémon journey is far from over, but he has a couple of tips he'd like to share with fellow players: buy good walking shoes and invest in egg incubators.
There's no word yet on where the last six rare Pokémon can be found, but Niantic has hinted that details may be released soon and that they might be connected with the three teams players choose to be part of when playing Pokémon GO.
Update: 8/5/2016
Johnson's trip to Sydney has been fruitful as he has caught Kangaskahn.
