Every so oftenPokemon GOdeveloper Niantic hosts themed events in an effort to bring players back to the game. While these events usually benefit individual players for taking part, this latest event will letPokemon GOplayers work together to unlock rewards for everyone.
Pokemon GOGlobal Catch Challenge tasks players around the world to catch billions of Pokemon.Pokemon GOTrainers have from now until November 26 to catch three billion Pokemon, with rewards being unlocked as they tick off milestones along the way.
IfPokemon GOplayers can catch 500 million Pokemon then they will unlock the Bronze tier, which includes double XP rewards, six-hour lure modules, and “more Pokemon” will appear globally. The next tier of rewards is unlocked at 1.5 billion Pokemon caught and includes all of the Bronze rewards, even more Pokemon will appear globally and players can also get double stardust. And finally, the Gold tier includes all of the Silver tier rewards, plus Farfetch’d will appear worldwide for 48 hours, and Kangashkhan will be available in East Asia for 48 hours.
The decision to host a global challenge event is interesting given thePokemonseries' history with them. For example, atPokemon GOFest in July, players across the world were challenged with catching Pokemon during timed windows in order tounlock the very first legendary. That global mission was a disaster as technical issues withPokemon GOFest attendees saw the times delayed and the fact that Niantic told fans the wrong mission times in the first place also didn’t help.
Global challenges haven’t exactly been successful with the mainPokemongames, either.Pokemon Sun and Moonplayers continued tofail their global missions, with some chalking the failures down to issues with registering Pokemon Trainer Accounts.
The fact thatPokemon GOplayers are feeling’very discouraged' by the gamemay also hinder the chances of success. Fans say that Niantic has yet to address key issues with the game and this global challenge event may not provide these disgruntled players with a fix or a good enough reason to jump back into the game.
But Niantic will be hoping that it can overcome all of these hurdles. As part of this event, it is hosting aPokemon GOTravel tour where some of the game’s most famous players go all around the world, sharing stories about their travels on social media. The tour will also end with aPokemon GOSafari Zone event in Tottori, Japan.
Whether this will be enough to get people playing the game is unclear. But Niantic and those players eager to unlock those rewards will certainly be hoping so.
Pokemon GOis available now on Android and iOS.
