During the Pokemon GO panel at this year's San Diego Comic-Con, Niantic CEO John Hanke confirmed the infamous Eevee naming tactic – but also teased more undiscovered Easter Eggs.
At this point, there's no denying the impact Pokemon GO has had on consumers the world over. Indeed, the mobile title has certainly exceeded expectations put in place by both developer Niantic and Nintendo, although some fans aren't so keen about the way the game currently plays. Some have even gone so far as to call Pokemon GO a bad game, but in spite of this, there's no question that the immensely popular spinoff pays a solid bit of homage to the legacy of the longstanding Pocket Monster series.
While some of these nods are known, like the Eevee-lution naming tactic inspired by the anime, it turns out that there are still more that gamers have yet to discover. Speaking to fans during the Pokemon GO panel at San Diego Comic-Con, Niantic CEO John Hanke confirmed that the team had indeed added the Eevee naming cheat for those keen enough to recall the classic 'The Battling Eevee Brothers' anime episode.
“Yeah, so, anybody got any Eevees out there? So yes, if you name your Eevee properly, you can control how it’s gonna evolve."
Not content on simply reassuring fans of the aforementioned and stealthily implemented bonus, Hanke then teased the inclusion of still undiscovered Easter Eggs.
"There might be a few other Easter Eggs buried in there yet to be discovered.”
At this point, it's hard to say just what other nods to the franchise's past could exist in Pokemon GO. When considering the wide variety of potential Easter Eggs that could be featured within a game that has 20 years of history backing it, it's almost impossible to speculate on just what other bonuses are currently laying in wait. With that said, given how dedicated the community surrounding the title is, it's likely only a matter of time before they are unearthed.
Meanwhile, Hanke was eager to have Pokemon fans in attendance (and worldwide) chatting about more than undiscovered Easter Eggs, which prompted the Niantic head to reveal more details about the leaders of Pokemon GO's factions later on in the same panel. Even though many in attendance were hoping for a little more (likely in the form of a legendary bird spawn), the information that came from the briefing was a rather informative affair.
Pokemon GO is available now for Android and iOS in select regions.