Pokémon GO to have Solstice Event, add collaborative features, host local events
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To promote its one year anniversary and 750 million global downloads, Pokémon GO will have a number of changes and special events.
Pokémon GO will have a Solstice Event from June 13 to 20, 2017. During this in-game event, Fire- and Ice-type Pokémon will appear more often. Additionally, Trainer will receive large XP bonuses for throwing Poké Balls accurately (i.e. scoring "Nice!", "Great!", and "Excellent!"). Furthermore, Lucky Eggs will be discounted in the in-game shop.
Shortly after the Solstice Event, a new update will be released focused on collaborative group gameplay features. In preparation, Gyms will be temporarily disabled for a short period of time starting June 16, 2017.
Additionally, several official real-world Pokémon GO events will be held.
Pokémon GO Fest Chicago will be held on July 22, 2017 in Grant Park in Chicago, Illinois in the United States. Tickets and more information will be available at PokemonGoLive.com/Fest at 10 am PDT on June 19, 2017 (Monday). At present, the website simply offers a place to subscribe to the mailing list for the event and a countdown until June 19. Pokémon GO Fest Chicago will includes live group activities, in-game events, and "unique challenges" for the chance to obtain "special rewards".
In Europe, Pokémon GO celebrations will be held from June to September in partnership with Unibail-Rodamco shopping centers. A complete schedule for these events will be released soon.
The "Pikachu Outbreak" held in Yokohama, Japan from August 9 to 15, 2017, an annual event hosted by The Pokémon Company, will include a "unique Pokémon GO experience". More details on this event will be released in the coming weeks.
Furthermore, Niantic have taken out advertisements on billboards in New York, London and Tokyo over the past few days. These billboards celebrate Pokémon GO's "top Trainer cities" by publishing "near real-time stats" about local Pokémon GO gameplay activity. Yesterday, over 16 million Pokémon have been caught in New York, 17.5 million in London and 32.2 million in Tokyo. Many of these billboards have been turned into PokéStops in the game. Niantic intends to do similar campaigns in other cities. This campaign was devised by Niantic's new creative agency, Wieden+Kennedy.