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'Pokémon Go' trial gives players a peek at what might be inside their eggs
Pokémon Go developer Niantic is testing an update that lets players view the contents of their eggs amid increasing legal restrictions on loot boxes.
'Pokémon Go' super-sizes its creatures with Mega Evolutions
You can battle with giant versions of Venusaur, Charizard, Blastoise and Beedrill.
Pokémon Go gets easier and cheaper to play while you're stuck at home
It could be tough getting enough Poké Balls when you have to stay at home and can't visit PokéStops. To make sure you have enough balls to catch monsters with, Niantic has started selling a 100-Poké Ball bundle for 1 PokéCoin in the Pokémon Go shop. The company has launched a rotating 1 PokéCoin bundle that will change every week and will be available as one-time purchases. It's also increasing daily bonuses and giving you three times the Stardust and XP for your first catch of the day, as well as adjusting the number of gifts you can open in a day to 30.
'Pokémon Go' will let you play with your friends’ monster pals in AR
Niantic has been around for nine years now (it was originally part of Google before it spun out on its own), and the company is still going strong. A lot of that has to do with the success of Pokémon Go, as well as the recent debut of Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. Today, the company is making several announcements — a couple of improvements to Pokémon Go and new programs for small businesses and developers — that it hopes will fulfill its ever-growing AR ambitions.
'Pokémon Go' players can finally fight against each other
Over the last couple of hours, Niantic Labs has flipped all the switches and now Pokémon Go players worldwide can engage in PvP battles. They'll need to have reached at least level 10 before fighting, but as the company explained when they were announced, it limits CPs for competing Pokémon by dividing them into leagues to keep things balanced. Real-time battles between players is something people have been anticipating since the augmented reality game launched in 2016, so it could reinvigorate a player base that has dropped off from its peak. If you play, you'll be able to take on people from your Ultra or Best friends list no matter where they are, while fighting others has to be done in person. If you'd rather take on the computer then you can also fight the game's team leaders to gain rewards. Either way, you'll want to save up on in-game resources like Stardust and candies, using them to unlock new Charge attacks ahead of battles for characters like Dragonite or Tyranitar can cost 75,000 Stardust and 75 candies.
'Pokémon Go' will finally let you battle other players
If you've been waiting for the day when you can take on your friends in Pokémon Go, you'll be pleased to know you can do just that later this month. Trainer battles will finally arrive by the end of the year -- two and a half years after the game launched.
Niantic revives ‘Ingress’ for the post–’Pokémon Go’ world
Niantic has a problem. It's the king of GPS/AR/Maps–based "exergaming," but it's leasing its empire. Pokémon Go is built on IP it doesn't own or control, and a portion of the profits are sent back to Japan. A chunk of the proceeds from its forthcoming Harry Potter game, already a likely blockbuster, will go to J.K. Rowling. It's why Niantic is taking the time to remind the world that its own, original IP, Ingress, still exists.
'Pokémon Go' starts tracking steps using HealthKit and Google Fit
Pokémon Go players can finally unlock rewards without keeping the app open or using the game's Plus tracking dongle. The Adventure Sync option ties into Google Fit or Apple Health tracking to dole out bonuses based on all the movement players do throughout the day. That should mean earning more Buddy Candy and hatching Eggs, all without even opening the app. Players will still get a push notification for rewards, which should also help Niantic keep more casual fans engaged. A support page for the game explains how to make sure your account is linked, as the feature started rolling out today, arriving first for players at higher levels. Currently, anyone level 35 and above should be good to go, and once the rollout is complete it will be available for all players once they're past level 5 in the game.
'Pokémon Go' will track your activity without launching the app
Pokémon Go has encouraged more than a few people to step up their physical exercise, and Niantic wants to reward that. It's launching an Adventure Sync feature in its augmented reality games (starting with Pokémon Go) that syncs with Google Fit and iOS' HealthKit to translate steps into game progress without having the app open or using a smartwatch. If you regularly go for a run before work, you'll see that reflected in more Pokémon candy or more efficient egg hatching. You'll get weekly milestones, too.
'Ghostbusters World' combines 'Pokémon Go' and turn-based battles
Ghostbusters World is a mobile game from Ghost Corps -- the Sony company that "owns" Ghostbusters -- and South Korean game developer 4:33. The developer is no stranger to big-name franchise games, and released DC Unchained earlier this year. Here, however, the company has sought to bolt the franchise onto something more successful: Pokémon Go.
'Pokémon Go' gets a little bigger with 'Diamond' and 'Pearl' monsters
The Pokémon Company has announced that monsters from the Sinnoh region -- the Diamond and Pearl games -- are now available in Pokémon Go. Players will now be able to capture favorites like Turtwig, Chimchar and Piplup as they make their debut in the still-popular mobile AR game.
'Pokémon Go' AR+ mode brings life-size monsters to Android
Pokémon vary in size, from as small as 4 in. to as tall as 47 ft. But for Android users, regardless of size, Pokémon looked kind of the same. Well developer Niantic has released a new update for the Android version of Pokémon Go which incorporates the ARCore. The enhanced AR mode was released in iOS back in December of 2017. Called Pokémon Go AR+ Android users can download ARCore from the Google Play Store and finally see the scale of Pokémon out in the real world. As players walk up to Pokémon, it will scale in size and will notice player movements. Not all devices are supported, but already users on Twitter are taking photos of Pokémon, and the scale seems to be matching up correctly. pic.twitter.com/WUIGX7G0DU — 🎃Travler👻BOO👻Jackson🎃 (@SeasideQuest) October 11, 2018
'Pokémon Go' adds Meltan, the first monster to debut in the spinoff game
If you gotta catch 'em all, you're going to have to get off your couch. In a new video released on the official Pokémon YouTube channel, it revealed that the popular mobile game Pokémon Go will get its first exclusive monster with Meltan. And for those wanting to fill their Pokémon Bank with every single critter, there will be a timed period where Meltan can be transferred from the mobile game to the upcoming Pokémon: Let's Go Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go Eevee! on Nintendo Switch via a special item. Once it's in the game, it can likely be transferred to your Pokémon Bank, which can then be transferred to the next mainline series Pokémon game that's set to release in late 2019. The Pokémon Company has done limited releases of Pokémon in the past, usually through events at GameStop. But this is the first time a new creature will be introduced to players through Pokémon Go. Players noticed last month that caught Ditto were transforming into Meltan. It's unclear how viable Meltan will be for competitive play. But considering Meltan is a mythical Pokémon, it's likely that its base stat total will be 600, which is above average. It's also possible that players will need to catch multiple Meltan to find the right one. And, if finding a Meltan in Pokémon Go proves to be a challenge, it's going to drive competitive players wild. Meltan itself is a steel-type Pokémon and is classified as hex nut, a new species. Its body is made of liquid metal and its shape is fluid. Meltan generates electricity using the metal it absorbs from outside sources. Pokémon: Let's Go Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go Eevee! are set to arrive on November 16th on Nintendo Switch.
'Pokémon Go' adds Sinnoh region critters from 'Diamond' and 'Pearl'
Here's hoping you saved those candies in Pokémon Go. Now Sinnoh Region Pokémon, introduced in the versions of Diamond and Pearl from the Nintendo DS, are making their way into the game. A teaser of what's to come shows that at least Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup and the legendary Giratina will be in this upcoming wave. A release date was not announced. There will also be some balance changes to the game as well. CP and HP values will be adjusted to even things out. Defense and stamina values will too be rebalanced, preventing tanky Pokémon from taking too long to defeat. Defense overall has been nerfed. And with four generations of Pokémon down, it's only another four before developer Niantic and The Pokemon Company catch up to the mainline series of games. And while Pokémon Go might not have the same hype it did back in 2016, it still has an active--and recently growing. This is in large part to Niantic's continued update release schedule and events, helping inject the game with new things to do. For Halloween this year, the Psychic Spectacular event has trainers capturing as many strong-against-ghost Pokémon as possible. This will culminate with the chance to capture the legendary Pokémon Suicune, as well as some other shinies.
Nintendo used ‘Pokémon Go’ to reveal a new mythical critter
Recently, there have been sightings of a new mythical Pokémon in the popular mobile game Pokémon Go. The rare creature is apparently called Meltan, and it's a Hex Nut Pokémon. But there's more going on here than just the addition of a Pokémon: According to the release, Pokémon Go is somehow the key to encountering Meltan in the upcoming Nintendo Switch games Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Pokémon: Let's Go, Eevee!, which are available on November 16th. The video below teases more, but it doesn't tell us much because this is apparently just the first of many updates.
Pokémon Go's top players can nominate PokéStops in Brazil and Korea
Hot off its 35 percent active player boost this summer, Pokémon Go aims to keep the momentum going with a new PokéStop nominations beta. "Coming soon" for level 40 trainers in Brazil and Korea (excluding kids), with plans for a wider rollout, the feature will let you submit PokéStop locations and objects -- all from within the app's Settings menu.
'Pokémon Go' will offer parental controls with a log-in for kids
Pokémon Go will debut a new log-in system called Niantic Kids that will give parents a way to keep a close eye on their children's accounts. The upcoming log-in platform will give parents access to a portal where they can manage their child's privacy settings and control the personal info they share. They'll also be able to review and approve permissions for their kids. According to ComicBook, the new feature will finally give kids under 13 a way to trade monsters with friends.
'Pokémon Go' cheaters now get three strikes before a ban
In a post today, Niantic provided details on its new three-strike discipline policy for Pokémon Go players. In most cases, players found to be cheating will first get a warning through the Pokémon Go app and certain gameplay experiences may degraded for about a week. For example, that player may not be able to encounter rare Pokémon in the wild and could be excluded from receiving EX Raid Passes. The second strike will result in a temporary suspension that will last for approximately 30 days. If a player continues to cheat, the third and final strike will be a permanent ban.
The new 'Walking Dead' mobile game won’t topple 'Pokémon Go'
I don't like The Walking Dead, or zombie-related content, more generally, but I'm a sucker for a location-based mobile game like Pokémon Go and Silent Streets. Next Games' The Walking Dead: Our World uses Google Maps to turn your local area into a hostile, zombified environment, and I just had to give it a try. Sadly, after a couple of hours dipping in and out of the game, I'm not sure I want to spend a lot of time fighting the undead.
'The Walking Dead' AR game adds some horror to your walk home
It's summertime in the Northern hemisphere, which means sidewalks and parks are full of folks catching Pokémon with their phones. If you'd rather be the prey, though, maybe give The Walking Dead: Our World a chance then. The free-to-play AMC-licensed shooter uses augmented reality to put you in the middle of a zombie apocalypse. As you play you'll unlock new weapons, and stars from the show will help out in battle including Rick, Daryl and Michonne.