The latest update for Pokémon GO version 0.179.0 is on its way to you. This update finally includes raid invitations and a friends feature. Niantic just needs to activate the invitations.
What kind of update is this? Niantic announced on Twitter the rollout for update 0.179.0 in Pokémon GO. This means that this patch is now gradually being released to trainers worldwide and made available for download.
The developers have already said something about the content. With this update, you will see a setting for remote raid invitations in the settings. This type of invitation was announced by Niantic in early June after receiving a lot of criticism about the system.
When will raid invitations for friends finally start?
When does it start? Niantic also added on Twitter: “Although the switch [in the update] is present, the feature itself is not yet active.” They ask trainers to wait for announcements from Niantic in the coming weeks.
The update thus lays the important foundation for invitations to remote raids. However, you won’t be able to use them right away after updating your version of Pokémon GO.
When this point in time will exactly occur is unclear. Niantic is keeping that under wraps. It could happen next week or even later.
Why is this important? This new feature comes just in time for Pokémon players. They expressed these problems with remote raids back in May.
In difficult raids, you can invite a few friends to join. They can be scattered all over the world. The new social feature that shows friends’ online status also helps.
Social feature in the new update
What was found? The dataminers from PokéMiners have already taken a close look at the new update 0.179.0. They noticed that the social feature is active in it.
You can decide for yourself whether you want to share your online status with your friends or prefer to stay incognito and not share it.
How do raid invitations for friends work?
How do the invitations help: Niantic aims to optimize Pokémon GO for single players and is therefore adding the function to invite friends to raids. They do not need to be near the gym, but can comfortably raid from anywhere in the world.
How does it work? As soon as Niantic activates the feature, you will find a “+” symbol in private and public raid lobbies, provided you have joined the lobby yourself.
If you tap this plus symbol, you can invite up to five friends who can then battle with you in this raid.
Invited players will see this invitation in their “Nearby” display and as a push notification. Through this invitation, they can then join the lobby.
Do you have to use a pass? Yes, invited players must use a pass to participate in the battle. However, the pass only needs to be redeemed when the battle starts, not to enter the lobby.
These are already promising prospects for your future raid battles. We from MeinMMO talked in an interview with Niantic about the GO Fest from home and a level increase for trainers.
