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2022 hasn't been an easy year for Pokemon GO fans, who have been disappointed by the changes Niantic has made to the game throughout the year. This includes shortening Community Day windows and placing Pokemon behind paywalls via event tickets.
A Redditor with the username Andrey35735cz recently shared a popular meme format from The Eric Andre Show. The meme pointed to Niantic's recent decisions in Pokemon GO as the reason players were dissatisfied in 2022.
Despite the meme, Andrey35735cz remarked that they were hopeful for improvements in 2023. They wrote:
"Hope new year changes something."
Pokemon GO's subreddit responds to Andrey35735cz's post
Many Pokemon GO Redditors lamented the state of Pokemon GO in 2022 along with Andrey35735cz, and some held out a similar hope for 2023.
Decisions made regarding several events, particularly Community Days having reduced timeframes, have rankled the feathers of many members of the game's community. Throw in paywalled Pokemon and increased Pokecoin prices for items, and it's understandable why so many players are upset.
Monetizing gameplay is certainly nothing new in the mobile gaming space. However, Niantic's decision to increase prices while reducing rewards for free-to-play players hasn't gone well.
Many fans who were happy to spend money in the past have stopped doing so out of dissatisfaction with what they receive. Additionally, the reduced operating hours and the phasing out of remote raid passes have provided fewer opportunities for trainers to interact with events if they can't commit to Niantic's defined schedule.
Several players are upset to the point where they've elected to stop paying microtransactions while also disabling their in-game Adventure Sync feature.
Considering this is the primary way that Niantic collects location data from players as they roam, some fans consider it a thumb in the eye of the developers for not listening to their concerns. Fans have long been critical of Niantic for not responding to community feedback, as the developers' content plan appears to be going downhill.
Unfortunately, unless Niantic encounters a considerable drop in revenue, they may not see any urgency to make substantial changes.
Additionally, the outspoken community members on the official subreddit may not be representative of the larger fan base. Many players may be happy with the current state of the game. If these are the same players forking over money to Niantic, the game may stay the course for the foreseeable future.
As the sixth year of the game comes to a close, trainers are at a crossroads. They can continue to play, knowing they're supporting Niantic while doing so, or they can walk away from the game until it improves.
2023 is a new year for the mobile title, and hopefully, the developers can deliver on the game's original promise better than they have in 2022.
