Pokémon GO Players Are Boycotting The Game After Niantic Removes COVID Changes

In recent months, Niantic, the creators of Pokémon GO, have reversed the changes they made to the game for players affected by the global pandemic (read: everyone). Yesterday, they specifically removed the increased interaction range for various points of interest in the US and New Zealand, the former of which is seeing an increase in COVID cases.

Pandemic changes in Pokémon GO focused on security and accessibility, increasing the distance that players could interact with PokéStops and gyms, and making sure that players did not have to leave the house to obtain key items such as summoning. of Pokémon. Incense.

While some of the features, such as increased incense duration and remote battles, will remain in the game, the removal of many of the other features has drawn the ire of the Pokémon GO community, including some of its names. more important.

Coaches with a large following, like Leek duck, ZoëTwoDots, Y Brandon tan He took to Twitter to express his discontent through a letter written by the community:

In the letter, community members expressed “disappointment” at Niantic’s decision to remove the changes, specifically the reduction of the interaction range. According to the letter, the wider interaction radius contributed to a safer, more accessible and respectful way to play the game, which did not require entering dangerous areas, trespassing or blocking entrances.

“Trainers were given the impression that this increased PokéStop interaction radius would be permanent,” the letter reads, citing a November 19 blog update:

“Some of these changes will remain in place for the foreseeable future, such as the ability to raid remotely, changes to the GO Battle League, and the increased distance Photo Discs can be rotated in gyms and PokéStops.”

A Change.org petition with more than 160,000 signatures says increasing interaction distance is “one of the best changes [Niantic has] ever created, making the game safer and more accessible to everyone, “and asked people to boycott the game and the company until Niantic responds. YouTuber ZoëTwoDots and Twitch streamer PkmnMaster Holly joined the call for a boycott, with the former declaring that it would not spend money on the game until Niantic agreed to keep the COVID changes, and the latter declining to broadcast the game.

In addition to the issues addressed in the letter, the pandemic is actually not over for a large portion of society. New waves of cases have been reported in Florida, Iran, Thailand and Turkey over the past two weeks, and many people have not yet been fully vaccinated. For most players in the game, either it is not possible to play as they used to, or it is still very risky.

Unfortunately, some of the boycott and complaints have been directed at specific developers and community managers, and some of the videos and tweets from the big names in Pokémon GO have specifically asked his followers not to turn their complaints into harassment.

Niantic gave the following statement to Eurogamer:

“As we announced in June, we are introducing new exploration bonuses for players in the US and New Zealand and are removing or changing some of the bonuses introduced last year.

People can check the Today view in the game to see what specific bonuses are available to them. We will continue to monitor health and safety guidelines related to outdoor activities. “

Have you been disappointed by Niantic’s decisions? Are you boycotting the game? Let us know in the comments below.