Primeape into Annihilape: Best ways to introduce the Gen IX 'mon in Pokemon GO

With the recent wave of events in Pokemon GO bringing creatures from the Paldea region, many players have their sights set on the future, given how many new creatures this has the potential to include. One of the many discussed types to potentially make their way into the game is the evolution of Primeape into Annihilape.

Annihilape was one of the best creatures players could use competitively when the games first came out, leaving many to wonder if the pick will make its way to the mobile game. While no news has been offered on that front thus far, it could be fun to speculate about how players can obtain this particular monster if and when it debuts on live servers. This article discusses more.

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Everything to know about Annihilape in Pokemon GO

Annihilape's Pokedex picture in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet (Image via The Pokemon Company)

In the main series, Annihilape does not evolve through simple level-ups like many others. Instead, to evolve a Primeape into Annihilape in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, players need to get the creature to use its new signature move, Rage Fist, 20 times. After doing so, the monster will evolve the next time it levels up.

With this in mind, Niantic has a couple of different ways to implement such a feature into Pokemon GO.

The developers could restrict evolution to only Primeape, who knows Rage Fist, which may be introduced during a Community Day or similar event.

They could also give players a simple 100 Mankey candy requirement to evolve Primeape into Annihilape.

Niantic has not made a statement about the creature ever coming to Pokemon GO in the near future. However, if the introduction of Ursaluna is anything to go by, it shows that the company is not afraid to limit such new evolutions behind unusual game mechanics and features.

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Will Annihilape be good in Pokemon GO PvP?

Looking at the metagame for both Pokemon GO's Great and Ultra League, Annihilape is showing some serious potential. Ultra League is ruled by bulky Steel and Psychic-types, leaving perfect room for the Pokemon, a Ghost and Fighting-type, to take over. Great League fairs are relatively similar but may struggle against Flying-types, as well as Medicham.

The defining factor to tell if Annihilape will be good in Pokemon GO lies solely in how they handle its moveset. If Rage Fist becomes a move that can easily be spammed and keeps its Ghost typing, the Pokemon can easily take over. However, if the move is delegated to being a slow-charged attack or a fast attack, the creature may struggle.

Overall, nothing has been confirmed regarding Annihilape in Niantic's mobile game. With this in mind, it is impossible to tell if the monster will be good competitively or how players can definitively obtain one.

However, analyzing the patterns of the mobile title's metagame, one could assume that this creature has the potential to be a serious game-changer.