Details on Pokémon GO's Gym overhaul revealed
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Details on the upcoming changes to Gyms in Pokémon GO have been revealed. Additional changes to other parts of the games have also been revealed. Until these features are implemented, Gyms are closed and all Pokémon that were placed in them will be returned to their Trainers shortly.
It will be possible to spin the Photo Disc at Gyms to obtain items, just like at PokéStops.
The old Prestige and training for Gyms has been removed. Instead, Gyms now have six permanent slots that can be filled by the controlling team's Pokémon. Only one Pokémon of each species can be assigned to a Gym at a time. Additionally, opposing teams battle the Pokémon in the order they were assigned to the Gym.
When a Pokémon is assigned to a Gym, it is assigned a motivation value. Pokémon assigned to defend a Gym lose motivation over time and when they are defeated in battle. As a Pokémon's motivation decreases, so does its CP temporarily, making it easier for opposing teams to defeat. Players can feed Pokémon from their team Berries to restore their motivation. If a Pokémon loses all motivation, it will leave the Gym and return to its Trainer the next time it loses a battle.
Additionally, the update will introduce Gym Badges, which track how the player has interacted with each Gym. Badges have four tiers (Basic, Bronze, Silver, and Gold), with player unlocking tiers as they interact with more Gyms. Players can increase the tier of their Badge by battling at the Gym, feeding Berries to the Pokémon in the Gym, and spinning the Gym's Photo Disc. Increasing the Gym's Badge's tier allows the player to obtain bonus items when spinning the Gym's Photo Disc.
Pokémon GO will also introduce a new Raid Battle feature. A Raid Battle is a cooperative game event that occurs at Gyms in which players work together to defeat an extremely powerful Pokémon known as the Raid Boss. When a Raid Battle occurs, a large Egg and countdown appear atop the Gym; the Raid Boss is revealed when the countdown reaches zero. All Pokémon assigned to the Gym return to their Trainers before a Raid Battle begins. After the Raid Battle is completed, the Gym is restored to its state, with any Pokémon previously assigned to it returning to defend it.
Players require a Raid Pass to participate in Raid Battles; players can obtain one Raid Pass per day by visiting a Gym, but Premium Raid Passes will also be available for purchase from the in-game shop. Up to 21 players can work together to defeat the Raid Boss, and they have a five-minute time limit to do so.
After defeating a Raid Boss, players have a change to catch an extra powerful Pokémon and receive a collection of rewards, including some new items obtained only by defeating a Raid Boss: Rare Candies, Golden Razz Berries, and two types of Technical Machines (Fast and Charged). A Rare Candy can be used on a Pokémon, which turns it into that Pokémon's Candy. Golden Razz Berries can be used to either greatly increase the chances of catching a wild Pokémon or fed to a Pokémon assigned to a Gym to fully restore its motivation. Technical Machines can be used to permanently teach a Pokémon a new Fast Attack or Charged Attack (which were previously referred to as Special Attacks).
Raid Battles will slowly be rolled out over the next few weeks, starting as a beta, with raids visible only to a subset of players at certain Gym locations. Over a few days, more players will be invited to participate and raids will be enabled at more Gyms around the world.
