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Pokémon Go announces a far-reaching update with new features, avatars, graphics, and more.
After eight years out in the wild, Pokémon Go is introducing a wealth of fresh features, seasons, events, and regions as part of a wide update. For ongoing players of the AR game, this offers enough new content to last a fair long while.
In a trailer encouraging fans to ‘rediscover GO!’, Niantic has outlined what Pokémon Go players have to expect, ahead of the initial launch on April 17. Features will be launched gradually between then and May 7. There’s no need to do anything if you have automatic updates turned on, as the new content will be downloaded automatically when available.
This comes after Niantic announced a range of updates to various Pokémon games in this year’s Pokémon Presents.
What’s included in the Pokémon Go update?
The first wave of the update to launch is updated ways to customize avatars within Pokémon Go. The classic looks remain but more detailed avatar options and the Style Shop allow gamers to tweak their in-game appearance as they please.
The surroundings are also getting a makeover, with refreshed graphics to bring scenery from woods and snow to mountains and oceans to life. Encounter and battle screens also have a new look, with the redesign reviving the app across every corner of the game.
What’s more, the game is returning to Kanto once more, with Pokémon found in specific biomes. Niantic promises that new locations will play home to special Pokémon, although details on exactly what features these will be is not yet clear. No new Pokémon are specifically mentioned, so it could be that these special editions are alternative versions of the same creatures we know and love.
Once you find them, an upgrade coming to the Go Snapshot feature means that you’ll be able to include three Pokémon in one photo, creating new options for your in-game library of snaps.
Featured image: Niantic
