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As experienced players of Niantic's mobile game will know, Pokemon GO is far from perfect. Some would argue that the title has only become worse over time, thanks to some questionable decision-making on Niantic's part. With 2023 right around the corner, it may be somewhat nostalgic to look back on the many unpopular choices Niantic made in the current year.
5 of Pokemon GO's biggest mistakes in 2022
1) No more free Special Researches
Earlier in the year, Niantic gave players the choice to take on a range of special tasks with the reward of having the opportunity to catch some Mythical Pokemon. This was how players used to get their hands on creatures like Zarude, Hoopa, and Meloetta.
However, with Keldeo's reveal, Niantic seemed to be getting rid of the concept in Pokemon GO. Instead, players were required to pay a small fee of around $8, not for the creature itself but for the tasks required to eventually earn an encounter with one.
This has understandably left many players feeling it was nothing more than a negative change meant purely to cash in on Pokemon GO's dedicated playerbase.
2) Zorua Spotlight Hour gets canceled
The Shuppet Spotlight Hour in Pokemon GO planned for October ended up being a trick. This event actually marked the debut of the Tricky Fox Pokemon, Zorua. However, due to an issue with the creature and how its disguise mechanic worked, players would quickly find themselves with a Zorua that had a much higher combat power than what was possible.
To fix this, Niantic canceled the Spotlight Hour, moving it to the second part of the Halloween event. Later, Niantic gave trainers a free gift box they could redeem as a way to apologize for making them miss the anticipated debut event. However, given the low quality of the items distributed, many players were unsatisfied with how Niantic handled the situation.
3) Community Days last for fewer hours
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Niantic was much more lenient with the amount of time given to players to participate in many of the popular events. One of these events was the monthly Community Day. During this grace period, players had six hours to catch as many creatures and complete as many tasks as they could.
The playerbase welcomed these changes and felt that it was healthy for the game, so it was all the more cruel when Niantic took it all away. Community Days have returned to their three-hour time limit but now feature an event-exclusive Four-Star Raid Battle that requires players to have Raid Passes, which they may need to buy with real money.
4) Elite Raid Battles remain inaccessible to many
One of the most disappointing new additions in 2022 was the new Elite Raid Battles in Pokemon GO. This new challenge was pitched as the most daunting challenge players could face in the mobile game. However, as the community looked further into it, it appeared to be more of an extortion scheme by Niantic as a way to get detailed location data from players.
These raids required participants to be at the location in person. This meant players could not use remote raid passes, which was already a major turn-off for many. They would also be required to assemble a group of seven or eight to challenge the raid, which was not feasible for most of the playerbase.
5) Increased microtransaction prices
One of the biggest changes this year was when Niantic upped the price of Pokecoins in some countries. This change was not made with the community in mind but was done for the financial benefit of Niantic as a company.
This is just one of the many anti-consumer practices that players have had to roll over and accept. Considering all of the contentious decisions that Niantic has made in 2022, players can only hope that the company improves in the upcoming year.
