This research investigates the augmented-reality smartphone game Pokémon Go and proposes that nostalgia is one particular reason for the game’s popularity and success. We propose that nostalgia acts as both a precursor to individuals’ desire to play the game, and a variable that predicts entertainment experiences and well-being while using the game. Two studies investigate these predictions. Study 1 was conducted in Germany before the game’s release in 2016 and shows that the meaning players ascribe to Pokémon predicted anticipated nostalgia, which in turn motivated them to play the game. Study 2 replicates and extends these findings in an American sample after the game’s release. Again, meaningfulness of Pokémon predicted game-induced nostalgia, which mediated the effect of meaningfulness on eudaimonic entertainment. Eudaimonic entertainment, in turn, predicted psychological well-being. Taken together, these findings draw a bi-directional link between nostalgia and media consumption and substantiate research regarding the well-being functions of both.
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