As Pokemon GO EX Raid battle testing continues, developer Niantic has been hosting battles in new locations and sending out more invites to players. While this is good news for fans eager to try their hand at the new gameplay feature, those new EX raid players may struggle due to inexperience.

It's no secret that Pokemon GO players love to help each other out. After witnessing a bit of a disastrous EX Raid battle event in San Francisco, one player has outlined a few tips for newcomers to the feature. The following list includes things for new EX Raid players to be aware of before trying to take on the boss:

  • Keep an eye out for mentions of EX Raid invites on Discord, or whatever communication channel local Pokemon GO players generally use to coordinate meetups and raid attempts. If there isn't much chatter, then it's likely that that the EX Raid will be overrun by spoofers.
  • If it looks like the EX Raid is going to include a lot of spoofers, players should prepare by bringing many Max Potions and Max Revives just in case multiple attempts are required. Maxing out counter Pokemon is also recommended as spoofers are usually ill-prepared and don't bring the best counters for the job.
  • Additionally, if players do need to battle more than once, join the lobby before healing Pokemon. Otherwise, the lobby could begin battling before the player has managed to join.
  • Players should arrive at the EX Raid battle early and definitely shouldn't arrive late - this way they can join the first public lobby, giving themselves the best chance at successfully completing the battle.
Pokemon GO Exclusive Raids

Other useful advice for new EX Raid players includes maintaining good "situational awareness" and not getting preoccupied with phone calls and healing Pokemon. Infrequent raiders are also advised to check Pokemon GO regularly so that they don't miss an invite, and to stay up to date on the latest counters in case the rest of the team is inexperienced too.

The experienced Pokemon GO player also offered some feedback for Niantic to make EX Raid battles better for all players (new and old). One major suggestion is to be transparent about how EX Raid invites are sent out and to fix the push notification system that alerts players when passes and invites are sent out. Moreover, the player isn't so convinced that EX Raid battles will re-engage lapsed players and encourages Niantic to launch the PvP and trading features.

It's unclear when the PvP and trading features might be released, but Niantic has promised to improve the way that EX Raid invites work. With any luck, the developer will see this feedback and begin working to address fans' concerns.

Pokemon GO is out now on Android and iOS.

Source: Reddit