Technology nowadays results in physical isolation since people don't need go out or meet others face-to-face in order to find entertainment, perform tasks, or to communicate. Everything can be done online or on their gadgets.

Using technology to get people to leave home, walk distances, and have face-to-face interactions with other people in this day and age is an accomplishment. This is what Niantic has done for Pokemon Go players in their hunt for more creatures to collect.

According to gaming website IGN, Niantic Labs has announced that Pokemon Go players have walked a combined 8.7 billion kilometers. The development team for Pokemon Go revealed the information in a post on the official site for the game.

Niantic said that December 7 was the date that the total distance amount was last computed. The company mentioned that the number was double the 4.6 billion kilometers that was recorded as of September.

The combined distance was said to be equivalent to 200,000 trips around the world. A commercial jetliner would take more than a thousand years to travel that distance.

Gaming website GameSpot reported that Niantic also revealed that Pokemon Go players have caught more than 88 billion Pokemon. The developer mentioned that this is an average of 533 million Pokemon caught per day since the game was launched.

The distances covered by players will be made easier with the launch of the Pokemon Go app for the Apple Watch. Before the Pokemon Go Apple Watch app was released, Niantic had to respond to rumors that the app had been canceled.

The company had to confirm that the Apple Watch version was not canceled. They had to assure fans that it was coming soon. Pokemon Go for the Apple Watch was announced earlier to launch within 2016 and the app almost didn't make it.

Aside from the Apple Watch app, Pokemon fans have also been waiting for a holiday-themed event for Pokemon Go. An earlier update did not provide any additions that were worth noting.

Before the update, a few fans raised the possibility that a holiday event was being considered based on the fact that Halloween and thanksgiving were marked with special activities and rewards. When the update arrived with no noteworthy additions, most believed that Niantic did not have any plans to celebrate the holiday season with any special event.

According to Forbes magazine, when a later update was released, data miners Silph Road discovered items, filenames and labels in Pokemon Go's code that indicated that a holiday event was going to take place. What the data mining group discovered anticipated the Pokemon Go holiday event which went live on Christmas day.