Massive Pokémon Go Gym and Raid Update Out Now

[Maura]

Niantic is today rolling out possibly the biggest and most significant Pokémon Go update since the game was first launched last summer. Just as announced by the company a couple of days ago, the update ushers in a massive overhaul of the Gym system, as well as paving the way for the new Raid Battles.

First up, here are the release notes and comments from the Pokémon Go team:

[*]Gym features significantly updated to add the all-new motivation system.
[*]Added new Gym Badge feature.
[*]Added in-app and push notification system for Gyms.
[*]Added Raid Battles, a new cooperative gameplay experience.
[*]Added four new items available only by completing Raid Battles.
[*]Added Raids tab to Nearby screen.
[*]Added search functionality to Pokémon collection screen.
[*]Added visual indicator to unvisited PokéStops.

Also included in the update, as noted by Polygon, is a way of shaming cheaters, meaning that those Pokémon that have been obtained via cheating, i.e., what a Niantic rep referred to on Reddit today as “using third-party services that circumvent normal gameplay,” will be “marked with a slash in the inventory and may not behave as expected.” The Niantic rep did not reveal just how strangely the marked Pokémon might act, maybe it will even admonish the player in some way, which would be kind of cool to see! Polygon has asked Niantic for more confirmation about how differently Pokémon caught via cheating methods might behave.

Sources: 'Pokemon GO' Big Gym and Raid Update Going Live Now

Pokémon Go has a new way to shame cheaters