Niantic, the developers of Pokémon Go, is testing a new feature for its mobile game: Eggs you can see through (kind of). Specifically, you’d be able to see the possible contents of the eggs. This test is currently available to a small group of users, and it marks the first time in the game’s history that Trainers can have an idea of what’s inside their Eggs.
Niantic announced the test on Twitter saying, “…a limited number of Trainers will be able to see which Pokémon may hatch from Eggs in their Inventory!” It added in another tweet, “Trainers included in the test will be able to tap an Egg to see a list of possible Pokémon and their rarity level. Please note this will not show if the Pokémon may be Shiny.”
Eurogamer managed to get pictures of what this test looks like, and it presents the Pokémon that could be in the Egg, with rarity of the monster denoted by a symbol and the different monsters laid out in a tier list. However, it doesn’t say what the probability of getting any particular Pokémon is. So its helpfulness is questionable. According to Eurogamer, fans have previously requested greater transparency in item probability. Notably, in response to the announcement, users asked if they’d be able to get rid of Eggs that don’t have contents they want, to which the answer was a repeated, “No.”
Lootboxes — meaning a reward system involving real money that offers randomized prizes — have been a big controversy in gaming for the last couple of years. The question of whether or not the use of them constitutes gambling has been a persistent legal and philosophical question. There’s some debate about whether Eggs in Pokémon Go are lootboxes, but having them offer more transparency about what’s inside them would most likely be beneficial for users.
Source: Eurogamer
