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The Pokémon GO Update No One Was Asking For

It’s happened, it’s here.  Sometime this evening (a few hours ago) I logged onto the game to be greeted with this latest bit of news in the app.

That’s right.  With all that Pokémon GO has been missing in the past few months, this is the update that just dropped.  We have new clothing for our avatars.

If you are keeping up with the Pokémon GO community there is a very common communication you hear from players.  We’re bored.  We want something new.  We love the game but we don’t feel like there’s any reason to play on a day-to-day basis.

Here’s a list of a few things I can think of that I’ve heard that people want:

  • Daily/weekly quests
  • A clear path toward obtaining Mewtwo
  • Releasing the remaining Gen 1 and Gen 2 legendaries
  • Releasing Gen 3
  • PvP
  • Trading
  • Dealing with spoofing
  • A battle upgrade

I’m sure I’m leaving stuff out.  However, you may notice that nowhere in there did I mention that we are looking for new hats.

Forgive me.  A new hat.  A new hat.  Apparently there is exactly this: a new pair of shoes, a new pair of shorts, a new shirt, and a new hat.  One version of each for the male avatar, one version of each for the female avatar.

Avatar customization probably wouldn’t rank even in the top fifty things I’d like to see implemented in Pokémon GO.  That being said if there were changes to be made, I can think of a lot of things I’d rather see than one of each article of clothing.  I’d much rather see facial hair, tattoos, and better customization of body type to name just a few things.

Rumors are circulating that some sort of Thanksgiving event may be on the horizon.  Perhaps even the release of Ho-Oh.  While that is somewhat interesting it is just yet another legendary raid, a part of the game that was once exciting and is now sufficiently stale.

December is going to see the release of some (or all) of Gen 3.  This will give the game a momentary boost but once our Pokédexes are filled again we will all be craving some new content and reason to play.  Let’s hope Niantic hears our pleas and doesn’t give us a Slaking T-shirt instead.

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The Shiny Shuppet Showdown

 

As the Pokémon Go Halloween event draws to a close we currently have shiny versions of two of the Pokémon familes available.  The running theory is that Shiny Shuppet should should be showing up any moment now in the game.  With Sableye being released initially followed by Duskull a few days later, it seems that Shuppet should show up any time now.

This is somewhat exciting as we now have five available shiny Pokémon in the game where we only had two a little over a week ago.  However, the release of these shinies makes Pokémon GO even more of a tedious slog than it already is.

One thing last year’s Halloween event didn’t have was shinies.  I remember by the end of the event last year being quite happy with never seeing a Cubone, Meowth, or Gastly ever again.  This year I feel the same way about Duskull, Shuppet, and Sableye.  Unfortunately the lure of a potential shiny keeps me glued to the game in hopes of catching a rare version of even just one of the Gen 3 ghost types.

Shuppet, in particular, annoys me the most.  I find there are just some Pokémon that I find I always hate catching.  Shuppet falls into that category.  Duskull, while getting old, never seems like such a bother.

I can’t complain.  I’d rather catch 5,000 more Shuppets than just one single Venonat.  Venonats make me wish there was an option to switch to Wolfenstein mode and dispatch of them with a Chain Gun.

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Universal Paperclips

Universal Paperclips is the first game in over 15 months to divert my attention from Pokemon Go with any significance.  While this obsession only lasted about 36 hours it is promising to learn that there different more obsessive compulsive games out there to consume my attention even if for a fleeting moment.

Play Paperclips here!