The big “GO Beyond” update changes quite a bit in Pokémon GO. MeinMMO editor Noah Struthoff is excited about it, but fears a new feature.
What’s happening in Pokémon GO: This week, Niantic dropped the bomb and announced the “GO Beyond” update. This brings several new features:
- The introduction of level 50, a new maximum level
- The first Pokémon from Generation 6
- Seasons that are supposed to bring a bit more variety to Pokémon GO
As a long-time trainer who has been at level 40 for a while, I’m really excited about the new maximum level. Finally, my XP grind has meaning again! However, a small adjustment that has gone unnoticed among all the hype worries me. It could jeopardize my beloved catch trick.
Revision of the catch system could be fatal
What Niantic announced: At the very bottom of the news surrounding level 50, there is still a heading: “Far-reaching changes to Pokémon GO gameplay”. At first glance, this looks really good, but among other things, the catch system is supposed to be revised, and I don’t find that good at all.
What could happen to the catch system? That’s certainly a good question. The current catch system has a “bug” that makes playing Pokémon GO significantly easier: The catch trick.
With the catch trick, you can skip all the animations when catching – that is, the ball wobbling, the overview of the earned XP, and even the view of the Pokémon after you’ve caught it.
Anyone who masters this trick well saves about 10 seconds for each Pokémon. If you multiply that by just 100 Pokémon caught in a day, that’s 16 minutes. Quite a bit of time you can save with just 100 Pokémon.
Why could this ruin my trainer career? For me, the catch trick is essential and I can no longer play Pokémon GO without it. I have saved hours of time, if not even days.
Now Niantic wants to revise the catch system and this “bug” could suffer. After all, it’s a mistake that shouldn’t actually be in the game. However, thousands of trainers use this catch trick in reality, and I certainly wouldn’t be the only one who would suffer from its removal.
If the catch trick actually disappears, my trainer career could indeed suffer massively. Even if I spend the same amount of time on Pokémon GO, I could not play as successfully as I do now.
What gives me hope: So far, it has only been an announcement, and it remains to be seen how significant this adjustment actually is.
I can’t imagine that Niantic would want to upset thousands of trainers. Perhaps the new catch system is even tailored to these trainers, and you can skip the catch animation without exploiting bugs.
In any case, I’m curious to see what the adjustment will ultimately result in. In general, I’m really looking forward to the update and new challenges that come with it.
Pokémon GO brings the biggest update of all time – Gen 6 & Seasons
