Pokémon GO talks about the future – Trainers worry about their home bonuses

A new “Dev Diary”, ie developer diary for Pokémon GO, has been published. Among other things, the future of the game is discussed there – and a paragraph on bonuses in particular is currently being discussed by players.

What kind of dev diary is this? In the developer diary on the Pokémon GO blog (via pokemongolive.com) different members of the Pokémon GO team talk about different aspects of the game. The main theme of the current diary is the seasons in the game.

For example, Dan Thomas from the Game Design department writes about the current “season of origin”, which wants to focus on different places in the Pokémon world, such as the “Drachenstieg descent” event. The rest of the season should also be oriented towards those locations that should ultimately lead to the upcoming Johto tour.

The experiences from the previous seasons should also flow into the future. For example, there was long-term special research on Hoopa at the time of the joke, which could also be a topic in the future: “We learned a lot and are working hard to make the next special research, which spans an entire season, even better. In the meantime, we’re trying a different approach based on the season of origin, which relies more on the monthly temporary research and seasonal bonuses, ”explains Thomas.

Bonuses are discussed: The seasons are to be expanded in the future. This is also described by Live Game Director Michael Steranka, who also addresses another point about the changing seasons: “For us, every new season is an opportunity to assess the current state of the game and derive changes and optimizations to make it even further to improve, ”said Steranka.

Now, in the coming seasons, they want to focus more on “Niantic’s mission to encourage coaches to exercise outdoors, explore their surroundings and socialize with other coaches,” explains Steranka.

At the same time, we are also re-evaluating some bonuses that have been active in recent seasons. These include the effectiveness of smoke when standing still and the increased damage in long-range raid battles. Perhaps you have already noticed at the last Community Day events that we have chosen bonuses that are intended to encourage you to social gameplay or raid fights on site. Similarly, we want to encourage coaches around the world to go outside and discover the world with our seasonal bonuses.

Michael Steranka im Dev Diary (via pokemongolive.com).

And it is this paragraph in particular that is currently being discussed in the community.

Trainers fear weaker smoke & long-range raid damage

What is the problem? Pokémon GO has had various bonuses since 2020 that make playing from home easier. Originally introduced due to the pandemic, many players now see these bonuses as a fundamental improvement in the game.

It is important to note that the current developer diary only speaks of a reassessment of the bonuses and not explicitly of a weakening or removal. Nevertheless, players in the Pokémon GO subreddit are now concerned about the smoke effectiveness and remote raid damage due to the wording. Instead, they suggest other solutions:

• “Ugh, please don’t,” comments user Bogdwin (via reddit): “Don’t make the smoke less effective when you are standing, but make it more effective when you are moving. Doesn’t reduce damage for long-range raids, but adds bonuses for being physically present at the raid, such as extra damage or premium balls. “
• “They want us to explore, then let’s just look for Pokémon nearby. I would go to a new place if I could see that there was a Relaxo or something else exciting there … Instead, I only see two Safcon, four Habitak and the Starter / Pikachu that are currently being featured, ”says a user (via reddit).
• “Give me double candy for physical presence in raids (including XL candy) and I’ll get a lot more active,” agrees brokeguydtd (via reddit) to.
• “Rauch should spawn a rare monster (Spleen, Galapaflos, etc.) for every X KMs that you walk,” suggests user “mwm5062” (via reddit) before.

Not the first bonus discussion: There was already a big discussion in the summer of 2021 when some of the “home bonuses” were withdrawn.

After Niantic reduced the interaction radius with PokéStops and Arenas, which was increased to 80 meters, to 40 meters, various members of the community wrote an open letter that attracted a lot of attention and called for the change to be withdrawn. With success: In the end, the radius was increased again.

How do you see the topic? Would you mind changing the bonuses or would it not be a problem for you? Tell us in the comments!