Pokémon GO

This article is a short summary of Pokémon GO. Bulbapedia features a more in-depth article.

Pokémon GO

Pokémon GO

Game icon

Developer(s): Niantic, Inc. Publisher(s): Niantic, Inc. Platform: iOS, Android Category: Real World Adventure Players: 1+ Predecessor: N/A Successor: N/A

Release dates N. America: July 6, 2016 Japan: July 22, 2016 Europe: July 13, 2016 Australia: July 6, 2016

Ratings ESRB: E10+ PEGI: 3 ACB: PG App Store: 9+

Bulbapedia has more information on this game: Read it now!

Pokémon GO is a mobile augmented reality-based game in the Pokémon, released in 2016. The game was developed in collaboration between Nintendo, Niantic, and The Pokémon Company. The project initially started as "Google Maps: Pokémon Challenge", an April Fools' Day prank made in collaboration with Google. Several "field tests" were also conducted in several regions leading up to the final release.

Accompanying the release of the game is Pokémon GO Plus, a peripheral developed by Nintendo that alerts players to in-game events. The game will also be made compatible with Apple Watch.

Blurb

Venusaur, Charizard, Blastoise, Pikachu, and many other Pokémon have been discovered on planet Earth!
Now’s your chance to discover and capture the Pokémon all around you—so get your shoes on, step outside, and explore the world. You’ll join one of three teams and battle for the prestige and ownership of Gyms with your Pokémon at your side.

Pokémon are out there, and you need to find them. As you walk around a neighborhood, your smartphone will vibrate when there’s a Pokémon nearby. Take aim and throw a Poké Ball… You’ll have to stay alert, or it might get away!

Search far and wide for Pokémon and items
Certain Pokémon appear near their native environment—look for Water-type Pokémon by lakes and oceans. Visit PokéStops, found at interesting places like museums, art installations, historical markers, and monuments, to stock up on Poké Balls and helpful items.

Catching, hatching, evolving, and more
As you level up, you’ll be able to catch more-powerful Pokémon to complete your Pokédex. You can add to your collection by hatching Pokémon Eggs based on the distances you walk. Help your Pokémon evolve by catching many of the same kind.

Take on Gym battles and defend your Gym
As your Charmander evolves to Charmeleon and then Charizard, you can battle together to defeat a Gym and assign your Pokémon to defend it against all comers.

It’s time to get moving—your real-life adventures await!

Gameplay

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Upon starting the game, the player must sign into the game, using either a Google account or a Pokémon Trainer Club account. The player is then able to create their own avatar, customizing their outfit, skin color, eye color, and hairstyle.

During normal gameplay, the player appears on a map of the world, the game tracking the player's actual location using the device's built-in GPS capabilities. Pokémon will appear on the map, which the player can tap on to engage in battle, which can either be in AR (making the Pokémon appear as though it is in the real world) or on an in-game background. During these battles, the player must toss a Poké Ball at the Pokémon to catch it.

Rather than using the stats system of the core games, Pokémon in Pokémon GO instead have a "CP" (Combat Power) value, which can be raised by feeding the Pokémon candy (obtained by either catching or sending to Professor Willow a Pokémon of the same species or evolutionary line).

Technical details

Technical details Media: Digital download (mobile) Download size: iOS: 110 MB Android: 58 MB System requirements: iOS: iOS 8 or later (iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch) Android: version 4.4 or later Supported features: Internet connectivity (in-game purchases) Input / compatible controllers: Touchscreen

Updates

Like Miitomo before it, the iOS and Android releases of Pokémon GO have received separate updates. In addition to this, the game has also received various server updates, such as increasing the power of certain Pokémon and changing the spawn locations of certain Pokémon.

iOS

Version Number	Date Released	Description
1.0.1	July 12, 2016	Players no longer need to sign in again after a forced log out, added stability when signing in with a Pokémon Trainer Club account, fixes the Google account scope, fixes crashing issues.
1.0.2	July 13, 2016	Fixes issues when signing in with a Pokémon Trainer Club account.
1.0.3	July 20, 2016	Text fixes
1.1.0	July 30, 2016	Adds the option to change one's avatar appearance in-game, removes the "footprint" tracking system, adds a new menu to the Pokémon status screen, adds new images for achievement medals, fixes issues with displaying certain map features, improvements to memory issues, move damage adjustments, animation adjustments, text fixes.
1.1.1	August 1, 2016	Performance improvements.
1.3.0	August 8, 2016	Adds a warning in case a player is driving, improves curveball throw, fixes a bug preventing EXP from being given for catching awards, fixes medal icons, allows players to switch their nicknames one time, fixes ad re-enables battery saver mode, implements a testing version of the "Nearby Pokémon" feature, adds visuals for the team leaders, text fixes.
1.3.1	August 11, 2016	Stability improvements.
1.5.0	August 23, 2016	Adds "Pokémon Appraisal", bug fixes.
1.7.0	September 13, 2016	Adds "Buddy Pokémon, adds Pokémon GO Plus compatibility, improves performance when the device switches networks, makes it easier to tap smaller Pokémon on the screen, fixes a bug where Eggs would hatch without the animation.
1.7.1	September 16, 2016	Improves Pokémon GO Plus stability, adds a quick help screen when first connecting Pokémon GO Plus, text fixes.
1.9.0	September 23, 2016	Shows where Pokémon were captured on their status screen, allows players to obtain Pokémon using Incense with Pokémon GO Plus, bug fixes.
1.11.2	October 12, 2016	Adds a "Catch Bonus" for catching more Pokémon of a specific Type, allows players to train by battling at friendly Gyms, the Egg and Incubator screens will periodically update with the current distance traveled rather than needing to close and reopen the screen, decreases evolution time, audio fixes, other fixes.
1.11.4	October 14, 2016	Minor fixes.
1.13.3	October 24, 2016	Adds alternate patterns for Eggs depending on distance required to hatch, adds type icons to the Pokémon stats screen, adds a low battery indicator for Pokémon GO Plus, text fixes.
1.13.4	October 27, 2016	Minor bug fixes
1.15.0	November 7, 2016	Adds daily bonuses, allows the player to be the only one to place a Pokémon in an open gym for a brief period after defeating the previous Gym Leader, increases the amount of Prestige lost when defeating a rival Gym trainer and decreases the amount gained by training at a friendly Gym, text fixes.
1.17.0	November 19, 2016	Fixes a bug that causes the egg-hatching animation to start playing on the map screen, text fixes.

Android

Version Number	Date Released	Description
0.29.2	July 13, 2016	Added support for devices running Android N Development Preview and Intel x86.
0.29.3	July 20, 2016	Text fixes
0.31.0	July 30, 2016	Adds the option to change one's avatar appearance in-game, removes the "footprint" tracking system, adds a new menu to the Pokémon status screen, adds new images for achievement medals, fixes issues with displaying certain map features, improvements to memory issues, move damage adjustments, animation adjustments, text fixes.
0.33.0	August 8, 2016	Adds a warning in case a player is driving, improves curveball throw, fixes a bug preventing EXP from being given for catching awards, fixes medal icons, allows players to switch their nicknames one time, fixes ad re-enables battery saver mode, implements a testing version of the "Nearby Pokémon" feature, adds visuals for the team leaders, text fixes.
0.35.0	August 23, 2016	Adds "Pokémon Appraisal", bug fixes.
0.37.0	September 13, 2016	Adds "Buddy Pokémon, adds Pokémon GO Plus compatibility, improves performance when the device switches networks, makes it easier to tap smaller Pokémon on the screen, fixes a bug where Eggs would hatch without the animation.
0.37.1	September 16, 2016	Improves Pokémon GO Plus stability, adds a quick help screen when first connecting Pokémon GO Plus, text fixes.
0.39.0	September 23, 2016	Shows where Pokémon were captured on their status screen, allows players to obtain Pokémon using Incense with Pokémon GO Plus, bug fixes.
0.41.2	October 12, 2016	Adds a "Catch Bonus" for catching more Pokémon of a specific Type, allows players to train by battling at friendly Gyms, the Egg and Incubator screens will periodically update with the current distance traveled rather than needing to close and reopen the screen, decreases evolution time, audio fixes, other fixes.
0.41.4	October 14, 2016	Minor fixes.
0.43.3	October 24, 2016	Adds alternate patterns for Eggs depending on distance required to hatch, adds type icons to the Pokémon stats screen, adds a low battery indicator for Pokémon GO Plus, text fixes.
0.43.4	October 27, 2016	Minor bug fixes
0.45.0	November 7, 2016	Adds daily bonuses, allows the player to be the only one to place a Pokémon in an open gym for a brief period after defeating the previous Gym Leader, increases the amount of Prestige lost when defeating a rival Gym trainer and decreases the amount gained by training at a friendly Gym, text fixes.
0.47.0	November 19, 2016	Fixes a bug that causes the egg-hatching animation to start playing on the map screen, text fixes.

External links

• Pokémon GO on Wikipedia
• Pokémon GO guide on StrategyWiki