Pokémon Go Fest 2022 isn’t quite over yet, as Niantic is hosting several in-person events and one big finale over the next several months to turn the previously single weekend into a summer full of festivities—for better or worse.
The original Go Fest event, which ran on June 4 and 5, was met with serious community backlash. This was due to players raising concerns about a lack of Shiny Pokémon encounters even with raised odds and other bugs, along with continued concerns surrounding Niantic’s decisions to revert accessible gameplay changes made during the pandemic.
Previously, Niantic gave a statement to Dot Esports discussing fan backlash during the event, specifically focusing on the Shiny Pokémon rates and saying that Shiny encounters being too prevalent “degrades the game in the long term.” Now, in a press event discussing Go Fest and future events, Niantic has also provided some context surrounding the Incense issues that plagued the first event.
Niantic director Michael Steranka reiterated the developers are aware of the bugs in which some Pokémon would still appear on the map even after they had despawned, confirming that, as of now, they have been fixed and are being monitored.
“It was really unfortunate timing for that bug to take effect,” Steranka said. “That bug has been fixed and we are going to be continuing to monitor that over the course of the coming months to make sure that it doesn’t reemerge across any of the in-person experiences or the global finale.”
The Niantic team also confirmed several key aspects of upcoming Go Fest events, noting the finale will be used as a “springboard” from the end of the ongoing Season of Go into the next season.
As previously announced, more Ultra Beasts will be appearing at the in-person Go Fest: Berlin, Go Fest: Seattle, and Go Fest: Sapporo events. Pheromosa, Buzzwole, or Xurkitree will be making their Pokémon Go debut at one event each before becoming more widely available later, likely alongside new additions closer to the finale on Aug. 27.
And fans who weren’t thrilled with their initial Go Fest experience might have an improved experience to look forward to at the finale even if they were disappointed earlier, though Niantic didn’t share exact details yet.
“We don’t have too many details to share just yet, but just know we are looking at this as a way to cap off the entire Season of Go, wrap up the story we are telling with the Ultra Beasts, and then also springboard us into the next season, which we are hoping to reveal at a later date,” Steranka said.
Don’t expect to see news about the Pokémon appearing at that finale event any time soon though, as the team is trying to keep them a surprise for as long as possible.
