Pokémon Go is Finally Giving Players What They Wanted From the Very Beginning

June 20, 2017

Pokémon fans have a new reason to get excited with Pokémon GO’s latest update that adds several changes to the game, including a feature that players have wished for since it first came out.

As part of a larger rework on Pokémon Go Gyms, Niantic is set to add Raid Battles to the game in the coming weeks, according to the game’s official site.

Once the feature is available, players will begin seeing an egg with a timer to periodically appear in gyms. After the timer’s meter drops to zero, Raid Boss Pokémon will hatch from eggs and then take over the gym. Up to 20 players can gang up and try to defeat the high-powered Pokemon, which will reportedly have five difficulty classes. Within one hour, players, regardless of team affiliations, will be working together in teams to take down the powerful Pokémon Raid Bosses.

Upon victory, participants will be treated with exclusive rewards and the opportunity to catch elusive Legendary Pokémon.

As pointed out by SoraNews24, the concept has been teased last year when Niantic unveiled the very first trailer for the game.

In an action-packed clip, a crowd is shown participating in an ongoing Pokémon battle in New York’s Times Square where Pokémon GO players join in to defeat and capture Mewtwo.

Of course, such epic gameplay never made it into the final product, leaving many fans disappointed. Niantic’s recent announcement seems to be an attempt to finally fulfill the undelivered promise that got millions into downloading the game.

The Raid Battles, by far the game’s biggest update yet, is expected to make Pokémon GO a more intense game compared to the relaxed nature of the catch-athon gameplay players were given upon launch.

The rest of the changes in the gyms are also quite significant. The assigned Pokémon capacity in each gym will drop to just six members, which includes a condition that all six should be from different species. Inter-team battle rules are also tweaked to include a motivation stat that affects combat performance to each Pokémon.

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