The Pokémon GO Fest is over and thousands of players had great experiences. We will show you 6 things you missed if you weren’t there.
This was the GO Fest: Fans of Pokémon GO from all over the world gathered last weekend in Dortmund, transforming the city into a Pokémon mecca. Players were everywhere, as far as the eye could see.
The reason for this was the GO Fest in Westfalenpark, where rare shinies, regional Pokémon, and an unbelievable number of attractions could be experienced.
These 6 things you missed at the GO Fest
1. Rare Shinies: The heart of shiny hunters raced at the sight of the spawns in Westfalenpark. Rare shinies were found at every corner. Flunkifer, Nebulak, Onix, and Krabby. Everything could be found on site.
The shiny rate was also significantly increased. Players reported 5 to over 30 shinies. Those who were diligent could really score at the GO Fest and finally catch their missing shinies. According to early reports, the probability of finding a shiny was about 1 in 50.
2. Regional Pokémon: Besides all the shinies, most players also received a new PokéDex entry. Venuflibis, which can only be found in North America, also appeared in Dortmund.
In addition to Venuflibis, Icognito was certainly new for some players. This Pokémon rarely spawns in the wild, and fans were able to secure some new letters.
3. A glimpse into the huge community: Over the entire weekend, more than 100,000 players were expected in Dortmund. Virtually the entire city was populated, and in Westfalenpark, you could meet many players in funny costumes.
There were also quite a few crazy players in terms of XP. Various players from all over the world, who already have several hundred million XP, could be seen on site and exchange some missing Pokémon with them.
4. Experience Pokémon GO like in the early days: When the game was launched in 2016, it was chaos in every city. Everywhere you saw players, and that was exactly what was experienced now in Dortmund.
Even on Sunday, the last day of the event, players were everywhere, and there were always over 100 trainers at the raids. It felt a bit like 2016 again, and you could immediately tell: Pokémon GO is far from dead.
5. Catching Pokémon even more realistically: If you were in Westfalenpark, you saw how much effort Niantic put into the setup. The 4 habitats were built according to their themes, and you could take perfect snapshots of suitable Pokémon there.
This was partly also part of the special research at the GO Fest. Jirachi only appeared if you had photographed certain Pokémon in their habitats beforehand.
6. Meeting various Pokémon stars: Especially for younger trainers, the autograph session with YouTubers was a highlight. Tickets for this were free but sold out quickly.
Furthermore, you could take pictures with Pikachu and Evoli or cool photos with cutouts of the team leaders or Professor Willow.
Was there also anything negative to report? Some players had problems with the internet. Although there were not the same issues as in 2018 during the Safari Zone in Dortmund, there were still times when you couldn’t access the app. Niantic needs to improve on this in the future.
When will there be another such event? On social networks, Niantic has already confirmed that such events should also start in 2020. It remains to be seen whether Westfalenpark will be chosen as the venue again.
Will you attend such an event next year?
