Pokemon GO just got a whole lot bigger. After announcing the January 2020 Community Day Pokemon, Niantic has also announced two major additions to the augmented reality game: a new game mechanic for Pokemon evolution, and several new Pokemon in the wild waiting to be caught.
Seasoned Pokemon GO Trainers are likely excited to catch, evolve and trade these new Pokemon from the Unova region, which are available now. Players will be able to both grow their collection and try out the Trade Evolution mechanic, which will allow players to evolve their Pokemon at a lower price than usual.
The returning Pokemon are:
Accelgor
Archen
Axew
Basculin
Boldore
Conkeldurr
Crustle
Dwebble
Escavalier
Fraxure
Galvantula
Garbador
Gigalith
Gurrdur
Haxorus
Joltik
Karrablast
Maractus
Palpitoad
Roggenrola
Sawk
Seismitoad
Shelmet
Sigilyph
Throh
Timburr
Tirtouga
Trubbish
Tympole
In a blog post released on Friday, Pokemon GO revealed that it would be releasing several Generation 5 Pokemon, which debuted in Pokemon Black and White. While all of these Pokemon are available to be hatched from eggs, caught in the wild or won in raids, several of these new Pokemon will be region exclusive. The Pokemon Throh, for example, will only be available in North America, while Pokemon like Sigilyph will only be available in Egypt and Greece. According to Niantic, four of the new Pokemon (Boldore, Gurdurr, Karrablast, and Shelmet) and several of the older Pokemon are compatible with this mechanic.
Although Trade Evolution has been a part of the Pokemon series since Red and Blue, with Pokemon like Haunter, this is the first time that the trading mechanic has made any impact on the evolution process in the mobile game. Furthermore, if a trainer previously received a compatible Pokemon through a trade with another player, that Pokemon is retroactively eligible for an evolution with the discounted candy cost. Outside of candy savings, Niantic is also encouraging Pokemon trades through its January research tasks and rewards for Pokemon GO players. The developer is currently offering a Glalie encounter if trainers trade a Pokemon.
With this new update, Niantic is sure to excite veterans and newcomers alike with a bevy of new Pokemon and an exciting new twist on existing gameplay mechanics. While avid Pokemon fans might be pleased that Pokemon GO is adopting more elements from its handheld and console counterparts, newcomers might be glad that trading with friends will lower the requirements to unlock evolutions and more powerful Pokemon - or they may just engross themselves in trying to catch the Wurmple with a party hat. Ultimately, all trainers will likely find an event or task to fill their time in-game this January.
Source: Niantic/Pokemon GO