Pokemon GOhas quickly become a mobile gaming phenomenon, but there’s still room for improvement. Here are five ways Niantic can makePokemon GOeven better.
Many people thoughtPokemon GOwas going to be a hit, but few could have predicted just how much of a phenomenon it would become in such a short amount of time. Since it launched last week,Pokemon GOhas become one of the most popular mobile games, causing Nintendo’s shares to soar, and making the game one of the most discussed topics on social media.
Developer Niantic has captured lightning in a bottle, and if it plays its cards right, it could maintain its spot at thetop of the mobile charts. However, to keep players engaged for the long term, Niantic will have to keepPokemon GOupdated with new features and content. To that end, Game Rant has compiled a list of five things in particular Niantic could implement to makePokemon GOan even better experience for its legions of dedicated players.
51. Pokemon Trading
Since trading Pokemon has always been a key feature forPokemongames, it was somewhat surprising to seePokemon GOlaunch without it. Perhaps developer Niantic is still trying to decide how trading will work inPokemon GO, and whether it will require players to be in close proximity to each other, or if trading will be possible over the Internet. In any case, we know thatPokemon tradingis already in the works forPokemon GOin some form, so hopefully Niantic can offer details soon.
42. Battling Other Trainers
Even dedicated fans could admit that one area wherePokemon GOis lacking is with its battles. As it stands,battles can only take place at gyms, and those battles consist of one human player fighting an AI-controlled Pokemon. While battling Pokemon seems like an afterthought inPokemon GO, it would still be nice for Niantic to expand on that feature for those that enjoy it. The most obvious way this could be accomplished is by allowing players to battle one another with their team of Pokemon, just as they are able to do in otherPokemongames.
33. World Events
In thePokemon GOannouncement trailer, it was teased that special world events would take place, encouraging players to congregate in one location to work towards a specific goal. The example in the trailer saw legendary Pokemon Mewtwo spawn, and asked players in Times Square to defeat him within a time limit. We imagine that this will be the primary method that players capture legendary Pokemon, so hopefully we hear concrete news on world events soon.
24. Elite Four
In the corePokemongames, one of the greatest challenges a Pokemon trainer faces is the grueling final battle against the Elite Four. There’s no Elite Four equivalent inPokemon GOjust yet, but if added in a future update, it could give players more incentive to level up their Pokemon, as defeating them would presumably bring with it special rewards.
15. Sub-Teams
Uponreaching level 5 and battling at a gym, players are asked to join one of three teams: Team Valor (Red), Team Mystic (Blue), or Team Instinct (Yellow). While this system is fine and makes for good competition when teams attempt to control gyms in different towns, it could still be improved with sub-teams. By having sub-teams, players could could form groups with the people that they are actually playingPokemon GOwith, chat with one another, and basically operate as clans do in other games.
Pokemon GOis still in its early days, and so it’s likely that it will be updated numerous times over the coming years. These five suggestions could makePokemon GOan even better experience to help ensure the game maintains its popularity, so hopefully Niantic implements some of these features in the manyPokemon GOupdates to come.
What do you want to see added toPokemon GO? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Pokemon GOis available now for iOS and Android mobile devices.
