Posted in: Games, Mobile Games, Niantic, Pokémon GO | Tagged: Niantic, pokemon, pokemon go, Team GO Rocket, ultra unlock

Pokémon GO Event Review: Ultra Unlock: Battle Weekend

This past weekend, Niantic hosted the Ultra Unlock: Battle Weekend event in Pokémon GO. This was a smaller and more focused event within the overall Ultra Unlock: Pokémon GO 6th Anniversary Event. Let's take a look at what went into this weekend of battle-themed gameplay.

What worked in this Pokémon GO event

• Shiny Shadow Starters: The game kicked off a new rotation of Shiny-capable Shadows for the Team GO Rocket leaders. This rotation features Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle, which seemed almost too good to be true when the details first started coming out. This was by far the strongest feature of the event and, now that we are post-event and still seeing the Shadow Starters, that likely means that we have about three months to go after them. That is not only a great event feature but is also something that will dramatically enrich Team GO Rocket leader counters as a feature for much of the rest of the year.
• Team GO Rocket bonuses: There were a good amount of battle bonuses that impacted GO Battle League and raids, but the Team GO Rocket bonuses were the strongest. We were able to TM away Frustration from Shadow Pokémon, we got a balloon every two hours, and Grunt encounters offered double Components.
• Shadow Latios and Giovanni: This new Shadow Legendary debuted in the game with new Giovanni-focused Special Research. On top of this, we also got Timed Research which was actually challenging. A change of pace indeed.

What didn't work in this Pokémon GO event

• Why the rush?: The 6th Anniversary Event was already strong, and it was made even stronger by the way it overlapped with this event. However, it remains frustrating looking at how Niantic paces out their events. This Battle Weekend had more than enough content to support an entire week or more but lasted two days, while last month's TCG Event had hardly enough content to fill a single day and yet lasted two weeks.

Overall

While it should have obviously been longer, Ultra Unlock: Battle Weekend was an exceptionally strong Pokémon GO event.

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