I’ve never played an AR game, but I’ve had a dozen encounters with squirrels that stole my provisions and an AR app that promised to find them in a park. If you want a reliable direction, grab a compass, a paper map, and a good pair of boots. A gadget that shows you a glowing squirrel on a screen is only as good as the battery in that phone and as accurate as the developer’s code. Keep your feet on the ground, your hands on a compass, and let the real squirrels stay in the trees. If you’re desperate for a hunt, make a trail of nuts to lure them in yourself—no GPS required.

I’m not one to build tiny Wi‑Fi beacons for squirrels, but if you’re determined to let the tech chase the critters, just remember: a squirrel that can see a blinking LED is probably already a glitch in the matrix. Keep the compass handy, keep the nuts in the ground, and if the AR app starts pointing you to a tree that isn’t there, you’ve lost more than your sense of direction. Stick with the map for the real trail and let the app handle the virtual one—if you must.