Pokémon GO’s August 17-23 2026 week has us well into the post-GO Fest season of Forever Forward! The Water Festival brings Arrokuda and Cramorant, plus Mega Starmie debuts!
Plus the weekly rotating Raid Hours, Spotlight Hour, Dynamax Battles and Mega Raids.
⭐Highlights
- Max Monday (August 17): Dynamax Magikarp is featured in Max Battles from 6 PM to 7 PM.
- Ultra Unlock: Water Festival Event (August 18-26): Arrokuda and Cramorant debut
- Raid Boss Change (August 19): Lunala and Mega Swampert return to the raid pool
- Raid Hour (August 19): Lunala is featured in Five-Star Raids from 6 PM to 7 PM
- Spotlight Hour (August 20): Magikarp is featured for Spotlight Hour from 6 PM to 7PM
- Super Mega Starmie Day (August 22): Mega Starmie debuts in Super Mega Raids with boosted shiny rates
Weekly Pokémon GO Schedule
Max Monday: Dynamax Magikarp
Dynamax Magikarp
On Monday, August 17th, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Dynamax Magikarp will appear in Max Battles! Dynamax Magikarp will continue to appear from August 17 to August 23 in Max Battles.
Spotlight Hour: Magikarp
Magikarp
2x Catch XP
On Thursday, August 20th, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Magikarp will be the featured Pokémon for Spotlight Hour, along with 2× XP for catching Pokémon.
Raid Hour: Lunala
Lunala
On Wednesday, August 19th, from 6 PM to 7 PM local time, Lunala will be the featured Pokémon for Raid Hour.
📔 Related guides: Lunala
Events in Pokémon GO This Week
Choose Your Path: Venom and Vines
From Tuesday, August 11, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, August 17, at 8:00 p.m. local time choose Your Path Timed Research: Venom and Vines will be available.
Ultra Unlock: Water Festival
Arrokuda and Cramorant make their Pokémon GO debuts during the Ultra Unlock: Water Festival 2026 event! Running from Tuesday, August 18, at 10:00 a.m. to Monday, August 24, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time, the event features a new GO Pass, boosted Shiny rates for select Pokémon, escalating catch bonuses, and more.
Super Mega Starmie Raid Day
Mega Starmie will debut during a special Super Mega Raid Day event on Saturday, August 22, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time. You can look forward to Mega Starmie in Super Mega Raids, with the potential to be shiny (with boosted odds!), and up to five additional free raid passes for the day.
Raids
Five-Star Raids
From August 12 to August 18, Groudon will appear in Five-Star Raids.
📔 Related guides: Groudon
From August 19 to August 25, Lunala will appear in Five-Star Raids, and it can be shiny for the first time.
📔 Related guides: Lunala
Mega Raids
From August 12 to August 19, Mega Garchomp will appear in Mega Raids.
📔 Related guides: Mega Garchomp
From August 19 to August 25, Mega Swampert will appear in Mega Raids.
📔 Related guides: Mega Swampert
Shadow Raids
One-star and three-star Shadow Raids will be available daily, while five-star Shadow Raids will take place on Saturdays and Sundays unless otherwise noted. Also, Shadow Altered Forme Giratina will swoop into five-star Shadow Raids during Forever Forward! You may even encounter a Shiny Shadow Altered Forme Giratina—if you’re lucky!
August GO Pass and GO Pass Deluxe
Pokémon GO’s August 2026 GO Pass and GO Pass Deluxe feature exclusive rewards, including an encounter with Lugia, XP and Stardust bonuses, and the Lucky Trinket!
Trainers can earn GO Points by completing Pass Tasks, unlock milestone rewards through ranking up, and access premium items by upgrading to the Deluxe version via the Pokémon GO Web Store.
Trainers will automatically receive GO Pass: GO Pass: August on Tuesday, August 4, at 10:00 a.m. local time.
GO Battle League Season 27
GO Battle League: Memories in Motion began on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. PDT(GMT −7). Each week brings a different selection of Cups and active Leagues. Here are the active Cups and Leagues this week:
| Dates | Cups |
|---|---|
| August 11 – 18 |
|
| August 18 – 25 |
|
(*) 4× Stardust from win rewards (this does not include end-of-set rewards)
Season of Forever Forward
Get ready for Pokémon GO’s Forever Forward Season! Running from June 2, 2026 to September 8, 2026, this incredible season focuses on new Mega Pokémon, new Dynamax Pokémon, GO Fest and more!
Forever Forward Egg Hatches
The following Pokémon will hatch from Eggs this Season. These are just some highlighted Egg hatches, more Pokémon can hatch from each egg group.
2km Eggs
5km Eggs
10km Eggs
7km Eggs
Adventure Sync Rewards
The following Pokémon hatch from Adventure Sync Eggs this Season. These are just some highlighted Egg hatches, more Pokémon can hatch from each egg group.
5 km Adventure Sync Eggs
10 km Adventure Sync Eggs
Routes Rewards
7 km Eggs from Mateo Gift Exchange
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Research Breakthrough
Encounter Pokémon by completing the Research Breakthrough! Complete Field Research to unlock Research Breakthrough encounters with one of the following Pokémon:
