With updates, activities, events, and more coming out every single day in Pokémon GO, we thought it was about time to take a look at this week, and how it stacks up with what we have seen in previous years. TWIPGH, or “This Week in Pokemon GO History,” is a series on GO Hub that takes a look at this calendar week from 2019 to 2016.
| This Week in Pokémon GO History Index | |
|---|---|
| Segment: | Featuring: |
| 2019 | Spark’s Candy Research Rewards / Kyogre Returns / Pokéstop Submissions / Purification |
| 2018 | Friendship System Released / The Legendary Titans |
| 2017 | Gym System Rework / Gym Battles |
| Final Notes | My closing thoughts on this week of Pokémon GO |
In this edition of TWIPGH, we are looking at Week 25 of this year, going back in history from June 17th to June 23rd.
Week 25 of 2019
This week of 2019 brought us some special Rewards, the return of a water-god, some new Pokéstop Submissions, and some mysterious code.
Spark’s Candy Research Rewards
After having completed Spark’s Candy Research Challenge, it was time to reap the rewards of Trainers’ hard work. This meant taking advantage of a slew of Candy-related bonuses, including 2x Catch Candy, 2x Hatch Candy, 1/2 Egg Hatch Distance, and a guaranteed Rare Candy per raid!
Kyogre Returns
Just as it was previously notified and announced, Trainers were a bit mixed when it came to Kyogre’s return, with some Trainers happy to get a shot at catching its shiny variant, while others were displeased to see it return to raid battles once again. Either way, this did not stop the turnout for Legendary Raid Hour featuring Kyogre!
Mini-News Roundup – Pokéstop Submissions
There wasn’t that much to announce this week when it came to the small stuff, but one of the best things we saw was the release of Pokéstop Submissions in Singapore! Besides this, Trainers in Chicago were surprised to see Niantic testing out Multi-Thousand Person raid battles right after GO Fest.
Game Data Changes – Purification
The strangest thing we have seen in a while was code referencing “Purification,” a process only before mentioned in older Pokémon games. Besides this, we saw the addition of a brand new move, a summer loading screen that was sneak-peeked at GO Fest, new badges, “no-evolve” forms, setting “Prime” items, and finally the return of the mysterious “Mewtwo A.”
Week 25 of 2018
This week of 2018 introduced us to one of Pokémon GO’s biggest features, and a very disliked Legendary Trio.
Friendship System Released
The biggest thing to hit Pokémon GO (during possibly the entire year) was the release of the Friendship System! The friendship system introduced the ability to add Friends in Pokémon GO, open Gifts that could reward brand-new 7km Eggs featuring some never before seen Alolan Pokémon variations, and of course, one of Pokémon GO’s long-awaited features, trading!
Game Data Changes – The Legendary Titans
Unlike other Game Data Changes, this one had to be one of Trainer’s least favorites! This was due to the discovery of the Legendary Titan Trio (Otherwise known by haters as the Regi-Trio). Other than this, we found references to the upcoming Friendship System, badges, moves, regional rotations, and a new ban wave targeting bot accounts.
Week 25 of 2017
This week of 2017 gave us what we had all been asking for, and more.
Gym System Rework
After a year of complaints, arguments, and hatred, Niantic decided to surprise Trainers by giving the Gym System a complete and total overhaul, just like the impact the Friendship System had in 2018, the Gym System Rework was the big thing to see back in 2017.
Game Data Changes – Gym Battles
This week had a lot to pack in, so let’s jump in! First, New code was found related to how the Gym System Rework would function along with Raids and Battle Teams, next we found some code on TMs, next changes to damage of attacks such as STAB or type effectiveness, then an overhaul of how Trainers earn Pokécoins, and finally the introduction of “slashed” Pokémon.
This Week’s Final Notes
Do us a favor, tell us about this week in your own Pokémon GO history, what was your best catch this week? How about your best catch this same week of 2018? How about from 2017? How has your Pokémon journey evolved since then? Be sure to tell us in the comments below.
Have fun, and stay safe, Trainers!