All games run into issues somewhere, and Pokemon GO is no exception. Throughout its run, Pokemon GO has run into a variety of errors, and now one bug in particular has forced the mobile AR title to remove a Pokemon from three-star raids almost immediately after it was implemented.
Pokemon GO Fest 2021’s Ultra Unlock Part 3 event added a variety of Pokemon from Sword and Shield to Pokemon GO recently. However, less than 24 hours ago, the official Niantic Support Twitter account shared a solemn announcement that one of those Pokemon, Falinks, was being removed from three-star raids.
Apparently, the source of this quick decision lies in a bug that was causing Falinks to appear distorted in the raid screen. Rather than try to fix the glitch, Niantic appears to have decided to simply replace Falinks with an existing Raid Pokemon, Machamp. However, fans of Falinks will still be able to encounter the Pokemon in event Field Research and it will have a boosted spawn rate in the wild.
According to Niantic Support, Machamp will be replacing Falinks in three-star raids on today from 10:00 AM to Thursday, August 26 at 10:00 AM local time. Also present will be Gengar, and the ghost Pokemon will be appearing in three-star raids from August 26 to Wednesday, September 1 at 10:00 AM local time. While some Pokemon GO fans responded to the change by protesting Niantic's decision to once again replace a new Raid Pokemon with a Gen 1 Pokemon, others appear enthusiastic about the opportunity to encounter Falinks in the wild rather than burning Raid Passes. It's significantly easier for most players to capture a wild Pokemon than a Raid Pokemon, although Raid Pokemon do have their own benefits.
Other Raid Pokemon, including Snorlax, Galarian Stunfisk, and Gengar, should make their expected appearances on time, but uncertain fans may want to keep an eye on the Niantic Support Twitter account. Hopefully, the Falinks bug will be addressed and the formation Pokemon will be able to join the raid Pokemon line-up. In the meantime, fans can locate pictures of the glitch that made Falinks appear with its group scattered rather than following the leader on Twitter without too much trouble. While Falinks is still recognizable as Falinks in the images, fans may be able to see why Niantic opted to remove it from Pokemon GO until the glitch has been addressed.
Pokemon GO is currently available for Android and iOS devices.