Niantic’s plans to celebrate the seventh anniversary of Pokémon Go have now been revealed, with seven days of special bonuses ahead.
Statistics have also been released on certain aspects of player interaction with the game, such as battles fought, Pokémon caught and more.
Gotta celebrate ‘em all!
Pokémon Go first launched on July 6 2016 and has been a powerhouse of the mobile games industry ever since, having generated $6 billion in player spending by its sixth anniversary. As for the seventh anniversary, while current revenue figures are unclear, what is clear are Niantic’s plans to celebrate.
Special events will vary through the week, such as bonuses to experience, candy and stardust, plus halving the walking distance needed to hatch eggs. The return of a Masterwork Research Story is also planned, and different Pokémon are set to appear each day – Squirtle and Pikachu both having a chance to show up in a celebratory hat.
There will also be a good chance of running into ever-coveted shiny Pokémon during the event, including all starter Pokémon from Bulbasaur to Fennekin.
As for the stats of Pokémon Go thus far, more than 614 billion Pokémon have been caught in its seven years, and more than 11 billion have been traded – just as many as the total raid battles that have taken place. Pokémon Go is now available in over 150 countries and regions around the world – surpassing the original number of Pokémon species.
“We want to thank all of the Trainers who have joined us in adventuring, exploring, and learning more about Pokémon over the last seven years,” Niantic said.
Niantic has formed many partnerships to encourage people out into the real world (while still looking at their phones), such as working with Kung Fu Tea’s 350+ shops in America to keep Pokémon Go players refreshed.
