Pokémon GO: The GO Fest shows how bad the GO Plus is

In Pokémon GO, the GO Fest 2021 is currently happening. MeinMMO editor Patrick Freese is playing the event with the “GO Plus” gadget and notices that no one should really try to emulate him right now. At least not when it comes to catching.

What’s going on in Pokémon GO? Once a year, the mobile game hosts the big “GO Fest”. This year, the developers dated the event to July 17 and 18. Saturday focused on the theme of “catching” and changed the spawns of Pokémon so that many rare Pokémon appeared in the wild.

For this purpose, I activated my “GO Plus” again. This is a gadget that turns PokéStops and attempts to catch a Pokémon at the push of a button. This way, I could catch Pokémon even when I wasn’t in the mood to throw curveballs or stare at my phone. At least, that’s the theory. But the result was a huge disappointment for me.

What is the GO Plus?
It’s a drop-shaped gadget that connects to the smartphone and Pokémon GO via Bluetooth. It has exactly one button. It can light up to indicate when Pokémon or Stops are nearby. The device also vibrates. You use it to
– spin Stops to receive items
– catch Pokémon

During important events in Pokémon GO, I probably won’t catch again with the GO Plus

That was the plan: On July 17 at 10:00 AM, the GO Fest of Pokémon GO kicked off. I had been looking forward to it for weeks, as Niantic announced many Pokémon that would appear more frequently for the occasion and also bring their rare shiny forms. For me as a fan of shinies, this was perfect to stock up my collection with rare specimens.

But at the same time, I was still writing articles here at MeinMMO. I didn’t have the time to interrupt my writing every few seconds to catch Pokémon and then continue writing. That’s why I grabbed my GO Plus. All I had to do was press a button, and the device would try to catch a Pokémon for me.

Pokémon GO Plus Ring — This is what the GO Plus looks like – In red and white colors, it resembles a Pokéball. However, in a distinctly different form.

I hadn’t used the device in a while because I preferred to play the last events “myself”. But I gave the red and white plastic drop another chance. And so, I wrote an article while diligently pressing the button on the device.

This is how it turned out: When I took a short break to see how high my shiny yield was, I could hardly believe my eyes. A huge percentage of the wild Pokémon that the GO Plus tried to catch had fled. Out of the last 14 Pokémon encounters, just 10 fled. TEN!

Among them also a wild Tyranitar and the small Unown. Frustrated, I immediately disconnected my Bluetooth connection and preferred to take occasional breaks from writing, glance at my phone, and then catch an exciting Pokémon myself when available.

I didn’t want to lose any more Pokémon. It breaks my heart.

Pokémon GO Plus fled 1 — My diary in Pokémon GO – it shows how the last activities in the game went

Pokémon GO Plus fled 2 — My diary in Pokémon GO – it shows how the last activities in the game went

Responsible for this poor catch rate is the function of the device. While spinning stops usually works without problems, catching Pokémon is just a lackluster attempt. As a trainer, I have the choice between Poké, Great, and Ultra Balls (the Ultra Ball has the highest catch chances, while the Poké Ball has the lowest) and I can increase my catch chances with berries. The GO Plus uses only Poké Balls and no berries.

As a trainer, you usually have multiple attempts to catch. If a Pokémon breaks out, you can often try to catch the same Pokémon multiple times with new balls. The GO Plus, on the other hand, throws only once. If the Pokémon breaks out, the device gives up, and there are no further chances to catch the wild Pokémon.

Many of my friends and fellow players reported to me that the Pokémon on the first day of the GO Fest were cool, but they usually wouldn’t stay in the ball without berries. And certainly not in Poké Balls. And for that reason, the GO Plus was not much help for me.

Sure, one could argue: “If you hadn’t used the GO Plus, you would’ve missed 4 Pokémon.” Yes, I would have. However, that doesn’t justify the completely outdated state of the GO Plus.

You are asked: Do you use gadgets like the GO Plus or the Pokéball Plus and unofficial alternatives, or do you just play “yourself” and not use such extensions at all?

I’m curious about your opinion in the comments. Feel free to discuss it with other readers there. My conclusion about the GO Plus in 2021 follows here:

Conclusion: The GO Plus simply feels old and poorly made

I bought the GO Plus early after the release of Pokémon GO to test it. Back then, it cost 30 euros and worked “okay” in the game. When on the go, you could easily catch a few Pokémon without looking at your phone. It also saved battery. It was always a help for spinning PokéStops while driving, cycling, or skating. But now, 5 years after the release of the game, the gadget simply feels unloved and outdated.

The development simply stagnated. If you tell a player today, “I only throw one Poké Ball at a Pokémon – if it breaks out, I leave the battle,” you would probably get laughed at. But that’s exactly how the GO Plus works. And that’s simply poor given the current state of Pokémon GO.

When do you use the gadget then? To spin stops and collect items while on the go – that usually works without problems. In the future, I will use it at events where the Pokémon don’t matter to me. Whether they flee or not would be irrelevant to me.