You totally missed the point.
Few will care if it's poorly designed or a resource hog. The first is subjective, and I disagree with you - the art is quite good and the Pokémon look better than on the console versions (because a phone is capable of displaying a resolution higher than any of Nintendo's consoles BY FAR). It is a resource hog, but that's why powerbanks exist. Chances are you already have one and if not, they are relatively cheap.
The main point of this game is that it is a nostalgia trip for whoever played the original GB games back in the 90s. This was a genius partnership by Niantic who had experience with AR games (Ingress) and using a lucrative and always popular IP from The Pokemon Company. It had immediate impact, but I think every one of us couldn't have predicted it would be
this popular. The game is breaking all-time records for smartphone games, boosted Nintendo's falling stock by billions, and overall is changing the mobile gaming landscape forever.
Ingress didn't have this popularity because it has a steep learning curve and all those portals and reactors, etc, are nerd talk. You talk to anyone about Pokemon, they know Pikachu. The game mechanics are simple, and it's a fantastic way to get out and be active.
Again, you are wrong. This game
is actually fun. Hence the huge adoption rate and, most importantly,
retention rate. It's double the average. DOUBLE! What other smartphone app has this? It now has more DAU (daily active users) than Twitter and it's creeping up to the Snapchat level.
Nintendo needed this. It was a gamble, and it paid off immensely. No 3DS Pokémon game could or will ever compare because of the entry barriers and also the reptititive game mechanics.
This is AR: it's simple, it works, and it's the new thing to invest in due to Pokémon Go's excellent execution. Now they have to stabilize the servers to deal with demand, introduce trades and battles, add new generations, and they have a game with dedicated players for years to come which will still surpass any console Pokémon game.