First Pokemon Go dating service launches

“Gotta catch ’em all, together” is the slogan of a new dating service that matches singles who share a love for the viral app Pokemon Go.

“PokeDates” are described as “curated dates where singles are matched based on their questionnaire preferences and a mutual desire to play Pokemon Go.”The service takes care of all the details — from finding the match and a time based on members’ availability, to selecting a convenient PokeGym or PokeStop meeting point.

The first PokeDate is free, and members can earn more PokeDates by referring friends or paying $20 per date.

Project Fixup, a popular offline dating startup that launched in Chicago in 2012, founded PokeDates.

“Project Fixup is known for creating tailored dates that enable people with similar interests to do something fun together in the real world,” said Sarah Press, co-founder and CEO of Project Fixup. “As soon as Pokemon Go launched, we knew it was a perfect fit for our users; Pokemon Go enthusiasts and new members alike.”

Pokemon Go, which has made billions for Apple since becoming available to download less than two weeks ago, has been blamed for distracting its obsessive players. But Project Fixup sees PokeDates as a way to take the distraction out of online dating.

“People dating online are spending more time online than out there dating, and since it all comes down to human chemistry, we wanted to cut out all the steps between signing up to a service and going on a date. Browsing, swiping, messaging back-and-forth starts as fun and exciting and turns into a huge time-suck. PokeDates and Project Fixup give people their time back and turns online dating into offline dating,” said Dank Korenevsky, chief fixup officer at Project Fixup.