But fans of Pokémon Go, a video game with 100 million users that asks people to hunt for fictional creatures using their mobile phones, could also be devastated by its planned destruction.
The “Sheringham Bus Stop Mural” is a PokéStop in the popular game (Image: Save Sheringham’s Historic Bus Shelter)
The brick shelter in Station Approach, erected in the 1950s, has become the scene of a now nine-day-long protest that has seen demonstrators sleep at the site in an attempt to fend off its demolition.
Pokémon Go players visit real-world landmarks such as Norwich Cathedral to receive useful digital items – and the Sheringham bus stop is one of these so-called Pokéstops.
For a location to become a PokéStop, it must encourage exploration and possess “historical, cultural, or unique visual value”.
Protesters have been at the shelter for more than a week (Image: Charne Jones)
Bailiffs have been sent to the bus shelter by Norfolk County Council (NCC), which wants to build a new ‘Travel Hub’ at the site.
They slapped the protesters with an eviction notice last week, but demonstrators resisted the letter, which was deemed invalid due to the land being owned by Sheringham Town Council.
Pokémon Go is a videogame that lets you use your mobile phone to catch the fictional creatures (Image: Newsquest)
The fate of the shelter will be decided tonight at an extraordinary “secret” meeting.
And if NCC gets the green light to remove the protestors, the Pokéstop could become invalid.
It would mean north Norfolk Pokémon hunters will be left with one less place to grab some Pokéballs – an item used to catch the fictional monsters – no doubt ruining their hunts.
Bus stop protester Paul Goldsmith in his homemade “Save Our Shelter” hat (Image: Denise Bradley)
Could Pokémon Go be affected if the shelter is destroyed?
Niantic, the company behind Pokémon Go, does not automatically remove a Pokéstop when the landmark it is connected to is destroyed.
Locations are only deleted from the game when an eagle-eyed player files a report stating that a Pokéstop is no longer valid.
You can see the Pokémon in the real world by using your phone’s camera (Image: Newsquest)
If the bus shelter is demolished, and nobody thinks to report this to Niantic, Pokémon hunters could soon find themself searching for a landmark that no longer exists.
But if the demolition is reported, players will be left with one less place to visit when playing the game.