Since the release of Pokémon GO, there has been a maximum level that can be reached. More and more trainers are reaching this level and MyMMO editor Noah Struthoff has long wished for an increase.
This is the situation regarding the maximum level: Once you reach level 40 in Pokémon GO, you can no longer level up. Since its release in the summer of 2016, this level has remained the same as the maximum. In total, 20 million XP are required to reach it.
More and more trainers are reaching this maximum level and at least in my city, almost every player who has been playing since the beginning is now level 40. Many trainers who started only a few months ago have also already reached the maximum level.
Pokémon GO urgently needs a new maximum level
Here’s what it’s about: Rumors about a new maximum level are getting louder. Recently, Niantic also confirmed that they will have more plans for XP after level 40 in the future.
The level increase will therefore take place, but no one knows when. I would like to mention a few reasons why this increase should happen sooner rather than later.
Reason 1 – So far unchanged maximum level: For now, level 40 has been the maximum in Pokémon GO for 4 years. Once you’ve reached this level, you can completely stop collecting XP.
I completely understand that there are casual players and hardcore players, but anyone who has caught a few Pokémon daily and participated in raids here and there for 4 years is certainly level 40. So why wait so long to raise the level?
Reason 2 – Earning XP is getting easier: Collecting XP is no longer comparable to the start of Pokémon GO. Back then, you earned the most XP when you evolved Pokémon. Then came raids that provide 10,000 XP in one go, and then friendships that can yield up to 200,000 XP at once.
The collecting of XP has become significantly easier over time. The 20 million XP for level 40 was quite a huge number in 2016, but now you can quickly collect over a million XP in half an hour with the help of a few friends, making it seem much easier to reach level 40.
The fact that you can now earn XP so easily is also shown by the top players of Pokémon GO. More and more trainers are reaching 1 billion XP – in comparison, 20 million for the maximum level seems quite small.
Reason 3 – No noticeable differences between trainers: If you look in gyms, you see numerous trainers at level 40. But can you tell how long they’ve been at this level and how strong that trainer really is? Unfortunately not.
The calculation is rather simple. If you have “only” caught 20,000 Pokémon, you naturally have significantly less stardust than a player who has caught 200,000 Pokémon. With less stardust, you also have fewer Pokémon at maximum level and usually a weaker team.
The maximum level should not be a reason to show off. It should rather show a difference between a hardcore player with a really strong team and a player who has occasionally caught Pokémon over 4 years.
This is also important for raids, where you don’t know your teammates. You can immediately recognize whether you can successfully complete the raids with the existing players, as you can at least roughly estimate the strength of the team.
Reason 4 – You finally have a goal again: One of the biggest goals in Pokémon GO is reaching level 40. Once that is achieved, you have to set many goals for yourself. This can get really tiring over time.
I myself have been at level 40 since the summer of 2017 and would be thrilled to collect XP again with a purpose. While I do continue to collect actively, there would be a huge hype if a bar finally fills under my level again.
Reason 5 – The competition among friends starts again: Currently, there are only a few opportunities to really compete in Pokémon GO – the PvP league is the exception.
If every player had a new goal in sight again, then competition would begin: Who can reach the new maximum level first? A task that would be a lot of fun for me at least.
However, until the increase in the maximum level, you can still enjoy numerous events. For example, there are still 2 events planned in June and in July the big GO Fest starts.
