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

Were March 2021's Pokémon GO Test Events Successful?

Niantic tested three new kinds of Spotlight Hours in Pokémon GO this month. With the events of April 2021 announced and no mention of any of these returning, let's look back on these trial events and determine which we think will come back and which are getting nixed.

• Team GO Rocket Hour: This hour featured increased Team GO Rocket balloon encounters, which made for a fun but very light hour of gameplay. This, I believe, will work as a weekly or monthly event. Another full Pokémon Spotlight Hour wouldn't work, as Spotlight Hour completely overwhelms players with spawns. That's the whole point. This is very much the opposite in pacing, and that's why it works. With the value of Shadow Pokémon as raid counters and in GO Battle League, Team GO Rocket encounters are valued by players and this would be something that would be actively played on a week-to-week basis.
• Mega Bonus Hour: This hour featured extra Candy when you caught Pokémon that matched the typing of your currently Mega Evolved Pokémon. There's no way in the world this becomes a weekly feature. Firstly, the idea is convoluted and casual players won't understand it. Pokémon GO works when it is accessible for casual players while offering rewards for players who get more intense. Spotlight Hour and Team GO Rocket Hour are simple to understand and can be played both lightly and intensely. This, not so much. Secondly, this feels more like a bonus that should run through an entire event rather than a single hour, considering the cost of Mega Evolution.
• Mega Raid Hour: Mega Raids are less exciting to players than Legendary Raids. They're treated differently, too, with Mega Raids rotating a slate of the same Pokémon back and forth as a means to build Mega Energy with Legendary Raids feeling more like a month's main event. As a result, I can't see these becoming a weekly event. Monthly, though? Absolutely. It'd even make sense to combine this with the Mega Bonus Hour for a monthly Mega Raid Hour with a Candy bonus.

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