Pokemon Go was a smash hit when it released this past July. Gamers everywhere were having fun, exploring their world, and making new friends. Spotting new Pokemon was always a fun experience, and people would race to locations before the Pokemon despawned to hopefully catch them and further their collection. However, the experience has taken a nose dive, and there has been a significant drop in players from then to now.
Of course there are dedicated players, including myself, who still enjoy the game and play it, but there are some who have sworn off of it. So, here are 10 of the most useful features that we think would improve the gaming experience and possibly bring a lot of players back to the game that they once played so avidly.
A More Accurate Tracking System
Currently Pokemon Go has “Sightings” which tells you a lot less about the Pokemon that may be nearby. How it works is the Pokemon that are lower down on the list are likely to be three footsteps away, the ones in the middle are more likely to be two and those at the top are more likely to be one footstep away when phrased in terms of the initial tracking system. As the Pokemon move up on the list, you get closer to them. However, even a “broken” tracking system when the footprint system was stuck at 3 still had its merit because the compass gave you a direction, sightings doesn’t do this. A better fix would be something like the “Nearby” feature that was briefly tested by a few lucky folks. The Nearby tracker lists Pokemon that are in your general vicinity and the PokeStops you’ll have to visit to hunt them down.
A Spawn Timer For Each Pokemon That Appears
This sort of goes hand in hand with the above tracking feature. Although we know that Pokemon generally stick around a spawn point for about 15 minutes, and spawn points usually spawn Pokemon every hour. There does not seem to be one exact time for how long a Pokemon tends to stay in one spot, however. Times range from 15-30 minutes. Some Pokemon also appear to stay in one area longer than others. Nevertheless, it would be nice to pin down exactly how much time that we have left to catch that Pokemon before it’s out of the location, and a countdown timer would do just that and give us a more solid time frame. There are some apps that do this, but in game is the most convenient way.
Weather Affecting Pokemon Frequency
Much like in the games, it would be interesting to see how weather affects the Pokemon in Pokemon Go. For example, snow would bring some ice Pokemon, rain would bring water Pokemon, and if conditions in your area just happened to be a little stormy, some electric Pokemon might be hanging around nearby. Bug Pokemon could also increase in the summer, or darkness could bring out Dark or Ghost type Pokemon. There are a variety of ways to do this, but weather affecting Pokemon sightings would sure add some spice to the game.
Battling Other Pokemon Trainers
Perhaps one of the most highly anticipated features is battling other Pokemon trainers in your area. Have a show-down with your friends to prove who’s the best of the best. And of course there should be opt-out option if you don’t wish to battle at the moment. It would also be cool if you could battle the team leaders as well once you reached a certain level or had a strong enough Pokemon team coordinated.
Battle By Proximity/Seeing Other Players on the Map
In my opinion I think this feature would be pretty cool in the sense that it would work like the games. If you come across a trainer wandering around and they have an option ticked, you can battle them. It would work like a mobile gym and you could battle them in exchange for candies and items, and of course, that prize experience. It would be nice to see what other trainers are in the area and what types of teams that they’ve built. Of course there may have to be some level scaling to even the playing field, but not necessarily.
Pokemon Trading System
Pokemon trading is a great way to get Pokemon that are not in your specific area. Trade with your friends, or trade by proximity could also be implemented. A way to trade with friends when they aren’t close by would also be great, via the online function of the game. Niantic could possibly limit the CP of traded Pokemon based on level (like it does with trainer level correlating with how much you can increase the CP of your Pokemon) because it seems so concerned with cheating. So this could possibly eliminate higher level players trading powerful Pokemon to lower level players.
More In-Game Events
With the boost in revenue that Pokemon Go saw with its Halloween event, it’s safe to say we hope more in game events are coming soon. For the event, Niantic increased the spawn rate of its ghost Pokemon. The studio also amped up the drop rate for candy, which has helped players evolve their Pokémon faster. It will be interesting to see what Niantic does for its next in-game event, assuming they continue with the trend of these fun holiday themed events. Niantic even extended the event for a few more hours yesterday so players could continue to reap the benefits.
Brand New Pokemon to Catch
For those who are avid Pokemon collectors, they’ve likely already completed or are close to completing their Pokedex. The Pokemon around them are the same ones, and it’s getting a little monotonous. This can’t be helped of course as things are now. However, it’s certain that fresh new Pokemon would definitely bring players back to the game, as the main focus is, of course, catching Pokemon in the real world. Also, once this happens, the level cap will likely increase, so it would most likely be connected. There is speculation about this being implemented, and it is rumored there will be 100 new Pokemon and 86 new moves.
New Starter Pokemon
When 100 new Pokemon will be added to the game, of course starters will also appear. Professor Willow will likely offer players a Gen 2 starter just like when they first started the game. According to an article on NowLoading a speculation that we also agree would be plausible is that the new Pokémon would appear and would begin replacing similar Generation 1 Pokémon depending on the time of day. “For example Hoot-Hoot would replace Pidgey and Sentret would replace Rattata at night. The Generation 2 Pokemon would also in general be more dependent on the time of day as to when they appear, just like the original Gameboy games.”
