A few months ago, I thought 2020 might be the end of Pokémon Go. Here was this thing millions use as daily motivation to exercise, see friends, feel rewarded for playing, and all of it was suddenly impossible. Socialising and many in-game activities like raids and trading were out of the question. Events were cancelled or indefinitely postponed. A lot of people felt they could no longer play. I remember thinking, even when things did start to get better, if this game could ever fully recover.
Turns out, people still really love playing Pokémon Go. A few months later, more than a million players bought a £15 ticket to this weekend’s Go Fest 2020, which offered 20 hours of special bonuses and new creatures to catch. Obviously, things have started to improve in some parts of the world, but Pokémon Go’s ability to ride out 2020 has been helped hugely by developer Niantic’s numerous additions to make it far more accessible, wherever you might be playing.
So yes, Go Fest 2020 was different to Pokémon Go’s usual summer festivities. Instead of hundreds of thousands of people descending on a few key cities worldwide, the event was opened up to everyone. Instead of a specific park with themed areas where you could encounter specific creature types, the game rotated its menageries of monsters on a hourly schedule. And instead of flying a physical hot air balloon overhead to signal the impending arrival of Team Rocket, the game’s skybox was instead filled with virtual balloons piloted by the villains – and then celebratory fireworks once all was said and done.
1 of 3 Caption Attribution British summer weather meant playing from home was both safer and drier.
There was a wide variety of Pokémon spawns on offer, from rare and sought-after species like Gible, to regional creatures I’d usually have to travel to other countries to find. More highly-prized Shiny Pokémon debuted in Go Fest 2020 than in any other event the game has ever run. There was the now-expected debut of a new Mythical Pokémon to add to your Pokédex (Victini), the surprise addition of another species new to the game (Rotom), the debut of the incredibly powerful Shadow Mewtwo, and improved repeats of other Shadow Legendary creatures received so far. Players got a decent helping of premium items and plenty to keep them busy, whatever their playstyle.