Pokemon GO is embracing the Lunar New Year's Year of the Rabbit by offering increased spawns of Buneary and Bunnelby. The game will also embrace the holiday's traditions of sharing good luck, offering increased odds of gaining Lucky status with friends and the Pokemon those friends trade with each other.
The Lunar New Year tradition focuses on doing tasks and giving gifts intended to bring good luck to a person in the new year. Items adorned in red are shared with loved ones in the hopes that they bring prosperity and good fortune in the year to come. Pokemon GO will embrace the Lunar New Year celebrations in its own way. Right on the heels of its Twinkling Fantasy event, Pokemon GO rolls into its next event where wishes for good luck and positivity are at its core.
Pokemon GO's Lunar New Year event, which starts on January 19 at 10 AM local time, will see increased spawns of Buneary and Bunnelby, as well as many more Pokemon with red fur or skin. These Pokemon will be Ponyta, Magmar, Magikarp, Numel, Fennekin, and Combee, and lucky trainers may see more Flareon and Darumaka in the wild. All the Pokemon mentioned above, except for Flareon and Fennekin, are more likely to be shiny in the wild.
Shiny Darumaka is this event's most significant good luck find, being offered as an event bonus reward at many levels. Event bonuses will include more shiny Darumaka encounters, double stardust rewards in gifts sent to friends, increased chance for traded Pokemon to become Lucky Pokemon, increased odds of friends becoming Lucky Friends, gaining an additional special trade during the event, and a feature making its return from Part 2 of Pokemon GO's Holiday Event, a Timed Research reward when trainers can choose from 3 different bonuses for completing their Timed Research path.
The Lucky Wishes Timed Research path will guarantee a Lucky Egg, stardust, and encounters with Magikarp, Azumarill, Combusken, Darumaka, Galarian Darumaka, and Bunnelby. Trainers will choose a reward path that will either increase stardust, increase Daily Adventure Incense time, or focus on egg hatching. Pokemon found in 7km eggs during this event will be Chingling, Riolu (may be shiny) Darumaka and Galarian Darumaka (may be shiny), and Scraggy. Field Research tasks that can reward Pokemon will have Charmander, Paras, Cyndaquil, Chimchar, Torchic, Buneary, Combee, Tepig, Darumaka and Galarian Darumaka, Fennekin, Bunnelby, and Litten as the reward for finishing the task. All of those Pokemon except for Fennekin and Litten can be shiny.
Mega Lopunny will be the Mega Raid Pokemon during this event, Regice will return to 5-Star raids, Blaziken, Druddigon, Flareon, Diggersby, and Shuckle will be in 3-Star raids, and Hisuian Voltorb, Shinx, Darumaka, and Galarian Darumaka will be in 1-Star. Capping off the Lunar New Year offerings, the new Red Lantern Backpack avatar item will be available in the store and will stay in the store after the event ends on January 23.
Pokemon GO is out now on Android and iOS devices.