Pokemon GO appeal crosses borders with 1m playing in Russia, even though it isn’t officially out there yet

Even though it isn’t officially out there yet, over 1m people are playing the game in Russia, writes Ilya Khrennikov

More than a million people in Moscow are playing Pokemon Go, the mobile game that’s dominating download charts in three dozen countries. The number is especially impressive because the game isn’t supposed to be available in Russia.

Despite attempts by app developer Niantic to manage global demand, fans in Russia and elsewhere have taken special steps to track down and install Pokemon Go before it is released officially, a process that sometimes involves tricking their phones into thinking they live in another country.