Mega Evolution has finally made its way to the world of Pokémon GO! Niantic has shared a bundle of information announcing the new feature, and partially explaining the new Mega evolution mechanics.
Mega evolution in Pokémon GO
Collecting Mega Energy:
- Select Pokémon can Mega Evolve using a newly discovered resource called Mega Energy.
- You can collect this mysterious substance by completing Mega Raids, which are Raid Battles that feature Mega-Evolved Pokémon.
- It seems the faster you defeat a Raid Boss, the more Mega Energy you’ll receive for that Pokémon.
- You may also earn Mega Energy by other means, such as completing research tasks. Mega Energy can only be used for one specific Pokémon species, so you’ll need to defeat a particular Mega Raid Boss multiple times and collect enough energy to Mega Evolve them.
Evolving Mega Pokémon:
- You can Mega Evolve any of your Venusaur, Charizard, Blastoise, and Beedrill once you have enough of their corresponding Mega Energy!
- Some of these Pokémon are appearing in Mega Raids too.
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While Mega Evolving a Pokémon for the first time costs a significant amount of Mega Energy, Mega Evolving that Pokémon subsequent times will cost less energy. However, note energy costs are only reduced for the specific Pokémon you Mega Evolve, not others of its species.
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After they’re Mega-Evolved, Mega-Evolved Pokémon will stay in their Mega-Evolved form for 4 hours, after which they will return to their regular form.
Mega evolution mechanics:
- Pokémon can’t be powered up while Mega-Evolved. Their boosted stats are calculated based on their stats in their normal form, so make sure you’ve powered up Pokémon you want to Mega Evolve as much as possible before Mega Evolving them.
- After you’ve Mega Evolved a Pokémon, the Mega Energy required to Mega Evolve that specific Pokémon will decrease from then onward.
- Please note that Shadow and Clone Pokémon cannot be Mega Evolved.
- Keep in mind that you can have only one Mega-Evolved Pokémon at a time. If you Mega Evolve another Pokémon, it appears that the first Mega-Evolved Pokémon will revert back to its original form.
- To help you keep track of all of the Pokémon that can Mega Evolve and the ones that you’ve successfully Mega Evolved, you can check out the all-new Mega Pokédex.
What can mega evolved Pokémon do?
Mega evolved Pokémon behave almost as regular Pokémon, but stronger. They can do the following actions in Pokémon GO:
- Battle in raids. All other Trainers’ Pokémon in the raid will receive an attack boost, and Pokémon whose attack types are the same type as any of the Mega-Evolved Pokémon’s types will receive an additional attack boost for those attacks. Please note that Pokémon can benefit from attack boosts from only one Mega-Evolved Pokémon at a time.
- Battle in Gyms. Note that Mega-Evolved Pokémon can’t defend Gyms.
- Battle Team GO Rocket.
- Battle your friends—Mega-Evolved Pokémon are extremely strong! Note that Mega-Evolved Pokémon currently cannot battle in the GO Battle League, but that might change in the future as we discover more about Mega Evolution!
- Make it your buddy to see it on the map, play with it, and feed it!
- Take a snapshot! Be sure to share snapshots of your Mega-Evolved Pokémon on social media using #GOsnapshot!
Mega Bracelet avatar items available now!
Avatar items inspired by Mega Bracelets are now available in the shop! Trainers in some regions wear Mega Bracelets to help their Pokémon Mega Evolve, but in the world of Pokémon GO, only Mega Energy is required. Feel free to wear one, but you don’t need to for your Pokémon to be able to Mega Evolve.
Mega Evolution–themed Special Research is available
What else can we discover about Mega Evolution? Be sure to open the app to access the new Mega Evolution–themed Special Research, A Mega Discovery. Join Professor Willow as he learns about Mega Evolution. Plus, if you complete the Special Research, you’ll be able to help Beedrill Mega Evolve by receiving Beedrill Mega Energy!
Mega Evolution–themed event coming in September
You can look forward to a Mega September event, Trainers! There will be three weeks of Mega Evolution–themed events and features for you to enjoy. Keep a lookout for more details soon, but here’s a look at what each week will be about.
- From Tuesday, September 1, 2020, to Monday, September 7, 2020, your goal will be to complete as many Mega Raids as you can! Gather Mega Energy to Mega Evolve your Pokémon and feel like a hero in your Raid Battles!
- From Friday, September 11, 2020, to Thursday, September 17, 2020, hone your battle skills with your Mega-Evolved Pokémon. Take part in Gym battles, Team GO Rocket battles, and Trainer Battles (excluding GO Battle League battles).
- From Tuesday, September 22, 2020, to Monday, September 28, 2020, become buddies with your Mega-Evolved Pokémon and spend time with it! Be sure to take snapshots and share them with us on social media using #GOsnapshot.
