Beat the Street: The game that's making moves in Ayrshire

The game got millions of people across the globe out and about as they tried to catch the ‘pocket monsters’ from the hit video game and cartoon series in real life.

And now, eight years on, a new game has hit the streets of Ayrshire, and other areas of Scotland, aiming to capture some of the spirit, and the success, of Pokémon Go by getting people out and about in their local communities.

Beat the Street's underlying ambition, though, is to get people fitter and healthier by walking - and getting them to think about travel options that don't involve jumping in a car.

The game can be played via the app or, if you're under 13, with a physical card, until Wednesday, March 27.

It's getting hundreds of people in Ayrshire and beyond to hit the streets - and at the Herald we decided it was time to try it out in Ardrossan.

Before heading off on my adventure around the town, I downloaded the app, which welcomed me to the game and invited me to create a team.

But don’t fret if you are a single player - teams don’t need to have multiple players, and indeed several of the 'teams' on the Beat the Street leaderboard are individuals.

Once the app was all set up on my phone, I could access an interactive map of the town which showed me where all the Beat Boxes were.

After planning my route, I was good to go, and set out to find my first Beat Box on Hill Street.

I was happy to find that the weather was on my side on a bright and sunny day and, for the first time in a while, it wasn’t freezing cold outside.

Before I knew it, I had located my first Beat Box and got a notification in the app telling me I was within its radius and letting me know I just had to swipe to get my first 20 points.

With that, my quest for points had officially started; I was officially in the game and could now see hidden gems around the map.

These gems were an opportunity to earn more pints and get more rewards – but they would disappear from the map if I didn’t find another Beat Box in the next hour.

Luckily, there was one just a five-minute walk down the street which took me to the waterfront and gave me another 20 points and a beautiful view across South Beach.

From there, I made my way along the beach, where I snagged my first gem and got twenty points from another Beat Box.

My next stop took me up to the Beat Box in the Holm Plantation, along to the stop in Barrie Terrace, and finally to the box in front of Winton Primary School.

Heading back down to the beach, I again passed two Beat boxes near the shore and the stop on Hill Street.

Sadly, other appointments meant I didn't have time to keep going for any longer - but I still had a total of more than 180 points to show.

My view of Ardrossan South Beach (Image: Newsquest)

My brief try at the game means I'm never going get close to the teams on the top of the leaderboard – as some have tens of thousands of points - but I did find a new walking route, enjoyed the fresh air of a brisk spring day, benefited from an hour of exercise, and was in an overall better mood.

Try Beat the Street for yourself and find out what you could gain from the fun game. You could win cash prizes and vouchers if you’re one of the top points scorers.

Or, like me, you could simply find some new walking routes and motivate yourself to keep active - and I think that's enough reason to give Beat the Street a go.

There's still time to sign up and take part before the local game ends on Wednesday, March 27.

To find out more see www.beatthestreet.me/activenation or @BTSActiveNation on social media.