Detective Pikachu 2: 10 Pokemon That Need To Appear In A Sequel

This past summer, we caught a lot of our favorite Pokemon on the silver screen with Detective Pikachu. But we didn't catch them all! While there were a number of classic Pokemon given the live-action treatment in the video game adaptation, there were several who missed the cut.

Alas, they can't all be in the movie. But if plans are set in place to bring Detective Pikachu 2 to life, we hope Warner Bros includes these exciting Pokemon in the sequel.

Meowth

If they are going to make a movie filled with talking Pokemon, the least they can do is introduce Meowth into the fold. One of the earliest Pokemon from the anime's '90s day, it's safe to call Meowth one of the most instantly recognizable Pokemon in the entire expansive genre. Yet, for reasons unknown, the talkative character didn't make any appearances in this summer's detective-story blockbuster. Admittedly, there was no Team Rocket either, so it's not as though the character had an easy way to make itself known. But if there are plans to make a sequel, Meowth would be a great inclusion. After all, for a movie based on a Pikachu character who ultimately forges a bridge between humans and Pokemon, it would be nice to have a companion who can also speak more than its name. Certainly, there is a lot of potential to be found, and it would be a shame if they didn't seize it.

Mew

During the climatic moments of Detective Pikachu, we got to see Mewtwo in a city-wide showdown. But unfortunately, Mew was left absent in the major motion picture. It is a shame because the adorable little Mew is one of the most lovable little Pokemon out there, and we only got a glimpse of his evolved form. Nevertheless, if there is a sequel for Detective Pikachu, it'd be wonderful to spend some time with Mew. The small-yet-powerful little Pokemon is a powerful being, one that shouldn't be messed with. While the chances are slim that we'll get anything close to resembling Mewtwo and its third-act scenes with Mew in the sequel, it'd be nice to see Mew get his due time on the big screen two decades after Pokemon: The First Movie.

Charmeleon

While we got to see both Chaizard and Charmander in Detective Pikachu, the angsty teen of the group, Charmeleon, did not make an appearance in the new movie. While it is not quite as noteworthy as its predecessor and evolution form, it is hard not to feel bad for Charmeleon. The Pokemon gets entirely left out of the proceedings, and with not explantation or anything in the process? What a bummer. It is hard to know how exactly Charmeleon will make its way into Detective Pikachu 2, but if both Charizard and Charmander can make their way into the first movie, surely Charmeleon can too.

Mimikyu

Sometimes referred to as the "Disguise Pokemon," Mimikyu is a fascinating Pokemon oddity. The character is untraditional, to say the least, as it is unable to feel sunlight on its skin and the very sight of it causes people to fall ill, so it wears clothing to look like a Pikachu in order to make friends. It is a sad little thing, and naturally, the Pikachu dressing it wears makes it a natural fit for Detective Pikachu. Particularly given that the original movie wanted to introduce several original Pokemon into the fold, it's safe to assume that Detective Pikachu will probably feel emboldened to introduce a few of the newer Pokemon into the fold, which should make it easier to find a way to bring Mimikyu into the proceedings. It is such a tragic, tortured character, particularly in Pokemon lore, that it would be fascinating to see it brought onto the screen, and we hope to see it — if not maybe "see it."

Ho-Oh

Some Pokemon you just want to see brought to life on the silver screen. While not every Pokemon made a smooth transition into "live-action" form, there are several in the hit movie that look stunning, particularly based on their realistic-yet-still-adorable designs. When it comes to Ho-Oh, you really just want to see it brought to life. It looks absolutely gorgeous in it colorful rainbow design, and it is hard to imagine that it'd look anything less than stunning in its display. Sure enough, while it is hard to know how it would factor into the film, there is something absolutely magnificent about this particular Pokemon, and one would be hard-pressed not to want to see it in full majesty on the huge screen. It is such a stunning-looking Pokemon.

Magnemite

There were surprisingly few magnetic Pokemon in Detective Pikachu. While there are literally hundreds upon hundreds of Pokemon to choose from, in addition to telling a comprehensive story, Magnemite is one of several original Pokemon who nevertheless didn't make the transition into the film. The silver bolt of a character is a fascinating bit of machinery in Pokemon form, and it'd be fascinating to see how its smooth demeanor would translate to film form. Nevertheless, the character was notably absent in the original film, but maybe the magnetic character will make contact with the electronic Pikachu in the sequel. Certainly, at the very least, it would be cool to see how they find a way to bring it into the new movie, whatever it will be about.

Weedle

It is possible that the character made a blink-and-you-miss-it appearance in Detective Pikachu, but if it did, Weedle didn't stay for long. That is a bit of a shame, because while Weedle is far from the most practical or powerful Pokemon, it is such a small, gentle creature that it would provide a nice little mix among the more powerful Pokemon seen on screen. Weedle is an adorable little thing; there is (hopefully) little doubt that its live-action presentation would be adorable too. If Weedle did not weasel its way into Detective Pikachu, it was an all-too-short appearance. Hopefully, the sequel will make a point to give him a bigger display. It might not have a whole lot to do, but it would be nice to see it bob and weave onto the big screen.

Lapras

While there were certainly quite a few first generation Pokemon that made their way into Detective Pikachu, one that was notably absent was Lapras. And that's a shame, because the sea-based creature is another one of the few Pokemon that understands human speech and it would've been a fine inclusion in the new blockbuster. Nevertheless, the creature didn't make the cut. But perhaps there is some room in the sequel for Lapras to appear!

Ponyta

There is a scene early in Detective Pikachu where our main protagonist takes the train to Ryme City and passes several different fields and valleys. In that time, we see a few Pokemon, but we don't see Ponyta, which is a shame. Admittedly, it does perhaps make a bit of sense why this character in particular didn't make the cut. Fire is famously hard to make in CG form, and there's a good chance that this creature simply did not look quite right in its live-action presentation. Nevertheless, if there is room for Ponyta to run free in Detective Pikachu 2, we'd like to see this pony-like Pokemon there.

Mudkip

Among the Generation III Pokemon, it's safe to say that Mudkip is one of the most popular. The cute little character is charming and meme-friendly. Yet, the character ultimately didn't make a cameo in the new movie. It is a bummer, but perhaps there is a chance that it will make a cameo in the proposed sequel? If for little else, it would give the sequel some ample online credit and it would be a big hit on social media. Certainly, memes have become the currency through which a movie can gain some healthy exposure. Even just a simple hint of Mudkip would help things out immensely.

Ultimately, these are only a handful of Pokemon that the filmmakers can choose from. There are literally hundreds of different creatures to choose from, and it's hard to pick-and-choose between them. Ultimately, there are several Pokemon out there that fans and viewers alike are familiar with and would love to see. It's still a bit unclear if we're getting Detective Pikachu 2 in the next few years. But should the movie come into fruition, there are quite a few characters that the filmmakers can choose from, and we have only picked a mere handful of the characters that would make their debut.

But let us know what you think! We're sure you have your own personal favorite Pokemon, and we'd be curious to hear which ones you'd like to see in the new movie. Tell us in the comment section which Pokemon you love and which ones you think are overdue to make an appearance in the film.

Pokémon Go’s January events bring back Heatran and another egg Hatchathon

Pokémon Go's January events will include the addition of Shadow Moltres to the game, as well as the return of Legendary Pokémon Heatran.

January will have another Team Rocket Special Research to do, this time rewarding Shadow Moltres once you beat Giovanni. The steps will likely be the same as the December Special Research.

The January Research Breakthrough reward will be Lapras with the moves Ice Shard or Ice Beam. Both Ice Shard and Ice Beam are legacy moves from 2018, and this is the first time they've been available since then. Unfortunately, Lapras isn't much of a raid or gym attacker, and it works well with Frost Breath and Blizzard (two moves that aren't locked behind an event). Switch out either of these moves for Ice Shard or Ice Beam to satisfy your rare Pokémon collection needs.

Heatran, the Legendary fire- and steel-type Pokémon from the Sinnoh region, will be returning to raids on Jan. 7, with the chance to appear Shiny, as well.

Image: Niantic via Polygon

From Jan. 2 until Jan. 16, players will be able to get special rewards for doing a lot of Adventure Sync walking during this year's Hatchathon. Players will get extra Stardust, Rare Candies, and even an Unova Stone for walking a lot. Special Pokémon wearing party hats will also be hatching from eggs and in the wild during the event period.

Pokémon Sword and Shield Top the Charts in Spain, Switch Sells 23,200 Units - Sales

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Pokémon Sword and Shield (NS) has remained at the top spot on the Spanish charts for week 50, 2019, which ended on December 15. The game sold 19,200 units in its second week to bring its total sales ...

Rental teams make competitive Pokémon Sword and Shield play more accessible than ever

The first few fans to get Pokémon Sword and Shield at a release event on Nov. 15 in New York City celebrate their purchase. Pokémon Sword and Shield has 400 monsters to catch and is the first full Pokémon game released on the Nintendo Switch. 

When Paul Chua first picked up a copy of Pokémon Sword in November, he knew he was ready to invest another hundred hours into the monster-collecting adventure to see which Pokémon was the very best. It's common for top competitive players to completely submerge themselves in a new game as soon as it hits store shelves.

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This time was a little different, though, as Chua didn't have to do it all himself. Instead, he grabbed a rental team.

"I just saw one of the Japanese players I follow share the team he was using," Chua said. "He found a six-mon squad including a Tyranitar, Arcanine, Mimikyu, Gastrodon, Corviknight and Rotom-Heat that he could easily download and play with himself. It's part of Pokémon Sword and Shield's rental system, where players can upload teams to share with other players and the wider community as a whole.

"I have used rental teams at the beginning, and I used them to get up to Master Ball rank [in online play] and then tried to create small variations based on that team," said Chua, who has competed in multiple Pokémon championships. "The only changes I made were pretty small, such as just changing attacks and items."

The process of building a competitive team in Pokémon is far more arduous than most casual fans or outsiders would think. Getting monsters with the best possible stats requires dozens of hours of work, if not more. From there, players have to make decisions on compositions, items to give their team members, in-match strategies and how their Pokémon fare in advantageous, neutral and disadvantageous matchups.

The rental-team system serves as a shortcut. It lets players figure out what they like before they go through the days of effort it will take to get their roster just right. That creates a gateway for new and veteran Pokémon masters alike to get exposure to the more intense competitive aspect of the game.

"[Rental teams] can open up the game and make testing easier, but some teams became so popular via rental codes that players started to take advantage of that," Pokémon competitor and commentator Markus Stadter said. "One way is by preparing a specific strategy for a common matchup, and the other thing is to mimic a popular rental team but change the movesets a lot."

The rental system was first introduced in Pokémon Sun and Moon, but it was held back due to a few awkward design choices. Players had to log in to a Pokémon account and create a QR code in order to share their teams, which was needlessly difficult. Sword and Shield lets players share their teams via 14-digit codes, and from there, any player worldwide can enter the code and match up against other players online with the rental squad.

Rental teams have provided a new avenue for Pokémon Sword and Shield players to test the waters of the competitive side of the game. Screenshot via Pokémon Sword & Shield

The game doesn't organize the available teams in any efficient way, though, so the Pokémon community has come together to build rental-team resources at sites like Victory Road and Trainer Tower.

"Rental teams are a great way to try out different team compositions before breeding and training them yourself," Stadter said. "It makes competitive play very accessible, and it's even possible to get a high rank using rental teams while improving and seeing other players' strategies. I have exclusively used rental teams so far in online play because I haven't decided yet what team I want to get in-game."

Sword and Shield is still fresh, having been released only in November. The 2020 competitive season doesn't kick off until Jan. 4, but fans will have their first chance to see top players test out their new teams at the Victory Road World Champion Invitational 2020 on Saturday. Eight winners of past championships will all meet in the community-run tournament.

Corviknight is one of the new Pokemon in Sword and Shield. Provided by Nintendo of America

Some of the top strategies, including new Pokémon like the steel/flying bulky bird Corviknight and the fossilized water/dragon-type monster Dracovish, are available for up-and-coming players to try out and tweak without ever catching or optimizing them. Chua, for example, reached the No. 1 spot in ranked online play after adopting the team composition of the Japanese player whose team he's renting but slightly altering the moves those Pokémon used.

"It's a strong tool that is going to help players to get in touch with already tested teams so they can practice different play styles and archetypes in a fast way without having to invest time in getting the team ready in-game," said Ecuadorian Pokémon player Paul Ruiz, who is competing in the invitational, "while at the same time letting them explore different options directly from top players that share their teams."

The rental teams are a welcome addition to the community, especially after Game Freak announced that only 450 Pokémon would be available in Sword and Shield, down from the total 800 Pokémon in the series. It's a change that will continue into future titles as well, as all upcoming games will feature a different combination of creatures rather than the full Pokédex, according to the game developer.

"Regional formats aren't affected at all by this change, but National and Restricted Dex might not see the light anymore," competitive player Dave Cognetta said. "Personally speaking, this is a positive change. It helps the balance of the game and avoids multiple threats running rampant all at the same time, avoiding an increase of the power creep year by year. It also gives the chance for more uncommon Pokémon to shine in a limited context, where they don't need to fear competition with other, often better, Pokémon similar to them."

The Pokémon Company adjusts the tournament rule set each season, meaning that some years already featured a limited set of monsters. Competition in 2014 and 2017 was restricted to Pokémon from the new Kalos and Alola regions, respectively. The limited number of Pokémon might not be completely new to players, but it could encourage different metagames and team compositions.

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"Limited formats force you to use Pokémon that weren't in the limelight before, like Excadrill, Rotom-Mow and Braviary, who are a lot better this year than ever before," Stadter said. "In National Dex formats like 2013, 2015 or 2018, Pokémon like Cresselia, Heatran and Landorus-Therian were always popular because they are well-rounded and they outclass a lot of other Pokémon."

Even if The Pokémon Company decides to use the national Pokedex for future tournaments, making almost every Pokémon in-game available for competition, it would still be restricted in that each game has only 450 monsters to choose from. We'd still see unorthodox choices and a wider variety of strategies at the highest level of play.

While we might not see the Pokédex change have a huge effect this year, it could mix things up down the line. On the other hand, the rising utility of rental teams means we could see some fresh faces and new strategies at the championship on Saturday.

For Chua, who has been around the competitive Pokémon community for years, a squad built off of for-hire pocket monsters might have some staying power.

"I really like the way it feels," he said, "so I will probably try and build off it."

Pokemon Go Holiday Event Now Live, Adds New Gen 5 And Shiny Pokemon

Pokemon Go's annual holiday event is back for another year. This year's event runs through January 1 and gives players around the world a chance to catch some holiday-themed Pokemon, complete exclusive Field Research tasks, and even add a few new Gen 5 monsters to their collections.

Throughout the holiday event, Ice-type Pokemon such as Sneasel, Delibird, and Snorunt will appear in the wild much more often than normal. You'll also have your first chance to catch Cubchoo, the adorable polar bear cub from Pokemon Black and White, as well as a Shiny version of Snover.

Those aren't the only special Pokemon available during the event. You may also run into holiday versions of Pichu, Pikachu, and Raichu. On top of that, you may encounter another new Gen 5 Pokemon, Cryogonal, when you use Glacial Lures, and you can hatch Alolan forms of Sandshrew and Vulpix from 7 km eggs.

On top of the increased Pokemon spawns, Niantic has rolled out a set of event-exclusive Field Research tasks. Team Rocket has also added a few new Shadow Pokemon to their teams, including Shadow Delibird. Finally, wintry avatar items like a Stantler sweater and headband are now available in the Style Shop. You can read more about the holiday event on the Pokemon Go website.

In other Pokemon Go news, Niantic recently rolled out a new Buddy Adventure feature for Pokemon Go. The Gen 5 Legendary Virizion is also still available in the game until January 7, and the first Community Day of 2020 is set for Sunday, January 19. You can catch up on more Pokemon Go developments below.

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What’s on TV Saturday: ‘Pokémon Detective Pikachu’ and ‘American Beauty’

What’s on TV

POKÉMON DETECTIVE PIKACHU (2019) 8 p.m. on HBO; stream on HBO platforms. The first live-action movie based on the Pokemon franchise is sure to please fans of the video game series â€" less so film buffs. Tim (Justice Smith) arrives in Ryme City, where Pokémon and humans coexist, after his father, who is a detective, seemingly died in a car accident. He meets the fuzzy and adorable title character (voiced by an amusing Ryan Reynolds), who suspects Tim’s father may not be dead. The pair team up with a young journalist (Kathryn Newton) and search the city’s seedy streets for answers. The movie, directed by Rob Letterman, places colorful Pokémon creatures in a neo-noir ascetic, a juxtaposition that recalls “Who Framed Roger Rabbit” (1988). While that adds some visual eye-candy, most critics have said the film could have used a more ambitious plot.

What’s Streaming

AMERICA N BEAUTY (1999) Stream on Amazon or Hulu; rent on Google Play, iTunes, Vudu or YouTube. With Sam Mendes’s Golden Globe-nominated war drama “1917” in theaters this week, revisit his feature directorial debut, “American Beauty,” before it leaves Amazon Prime Video and Hulu on Dec. 31. Lester (Kevin Spacey) is an advertising executive in the suburbs who is going through a midlife crisis. He’s drowning in his own sorrow until he meets his daughter’s cheerleader friend Angela (Mena Suvari) and becomes infatuated with her. As he tries to impress her, other plotlines unfold. New neighbors move in, his daughter starts a relationship and his wife has an affair. The characters’ lives come together in a powerful climax, which leaves the moral of the story up to interpretation. The film made a splash when it first opened 20 years ago, taking home five Oscars, including best picture.

BETTER THINGS Stream on Hulu. The high s and lows (well, mostly lows) of aging take center stage in the third season of this dramedy series, now available on Hulu. The creator, director and star Pamela Adlon plays Sam, an actress and single mother of three in Los Angeles who is confronting menopause and her 50th birthday. Her children are going through their own changes: leaving for college, getting their periods, smoking marijuana. This is the first season Adlon worked on alone after her co-creator, Louis C.K., left the show in 2017. In his review for The New York Times, James Poniewozik named the season a Critic’s Pick and wrote that the series “kept its voice while taking on a structure that’s ingeniously both impressionistic and more cohesive.” The show is set to return for a fourth run next year.

HOT GIMMICK: GIRL MEETS BOY (2019) Stream on Netflix. In this Japanese drama, teenager Hatsumi (Miona Hori) is manipulated by her neighbor Ryoki (Hiroya Shimizu) and for ced to become his slave. When Hatsumi’s handsome childhood friend Azusa (Mizuki Itagaki) moves back to town, they start to date. But Ryoki’s jealousy and Azusa’s ulterior motives prove dangerous.

Two new Pokémon games launch on Facebook Gaming

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Pokémon Tower Battle and Pokémon Medallion Battle are Facebook exclusives

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A pair of new Pokémon games have launched exclusively on Facebook Gaming: Pokémon Tower Battle and Pokémon Medallion Battle.

Pokémon Tower Battle is available worldwide, and pits two players against one another. You take it in turns to drop pokémon out of the sky like Tetris blocks, trying to build a stable tower. If you knock the tower over or your pokémon tumbles off the platform, you lose.

We tried the game ourselves and it seems pretty mindless, though the press release promises some new features as you play: "As players discover, catch and level-up rare pokémon, they can compete in real-time against friends or across a global leaderboard. It might seem like a simple physics-based puzzler at first, but the strategic choices in where and how players stack pokémon will determine the true Tower Battle masters."

Pokémon Medallion Battle, by comparison, sounds like it has a little more depth, but it's only available to play in the Philippines right now.

It's a digital card battle game that allows you collect pokémon in the form of medallions. You can level them up, win gym badges, and try to fill out your Pokédex, with new pokémon being released every month, according to Variety. Judging by the screenshots below the game uses the usual element-based combat system, and even offers some social features.

Both titles were built using Facebook's Instant Games platform and come as the company makes more of an effort to attract gamers. Earlier this year, it launched a dedicated gaming tab, and Facebook now says that more than 700 million of its users play games, watch gaming videos, or take part in gaming groups each month. The company also recently acquired Spanish cloud gaming company PlayGiga.

In a press release, Pokémon Company CEO Tsunekazu Ishihara welcomed the launch of the new titles: "Launching these games through Facebook will allow people all over the world to experience Pokémon in digital form, and we are especially thrilled to collaborate with Facebook Gaming in enabling new audiences to enjoy Pokémon games online."

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Pokemon GO this week: All the bonuses and Shiny Pokemon

Christmas is over and it's time to roll back into Pokemon GO with a vengeance! New versions of Pokemon and Shiny Pokemon and a new wave of Pokemon right on the cuff of a new generation! New Pokemon that've launched this week include the snot-nosed Cubchoo, the evolution of said bear Beartic, and the snowflake by the name of Cryogonal. Then there's a Shiny or two, plus a new Pikachu!

This week you can find Shiny Snover at an increased spawn rate, as well as Shiny Stantler wearing bells! In Pokemon eggs, you'll find Alolan Sandshrew, Alolan Vulpix, Pichu wearing beanie, and Stantler wearing bells. Pokemon GO eggs have had a giant shake-up in recent weeks, so if you've got old eggs to hatch em, and get new eggs right now!

Below you'll see a list of the remaining bonus days and the bonuses that are given on each day for the rest of the week, on into the new year! The first two days of this holiday week had 2x Catch Candy and 2x Transfer Candy – now it's time for that dust!

• December 26: 2× Catch Stardust• December 27: 2× Catch Stardust• December 28: 2× Catch XP*• December 29: 2× Catch XP• December 30: 1/2 Hatch Distance in incubators• December 31: 1/2 Hatch Distance in incubators

The big event takes place on the 28th! This is the same day there's 2x Catch XP, and a few extra bonuses will appear for a limited time, perfect to ring in the new year with the last Saturday of 2019. This event will have 2-hour Glacial Lure Module duration.* This event will have 2 extra Raid Passes that you need to use during this event, and you'll see Regice in 5-star raids.

The Glacial Lure Module duration is 2 hours because you're encouraged to collect all manner of snowy Pokemon. The most important of these is GLACEON! To take part in that, you'll need to do the following, per Niantic: "If you use the Glacial Lure Module trick to evolve Eevee during the event, you'll get a Glaceon with a special charged attack." Check the Glaceon evolution guide in the Eevee reset feature to get a handle on that situation!

Pokemon Sword and Shield Guide Beginner's Guide

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Facebook Gaming releases Pokémon Tower Battle and Pokémon Medallion Battle as instant games

Facebook Gaming is announcing that it is releasing two new games, Pokémon Tower Battle and Pokémon Medallion Battle, on its Instant Games platform.

This marks the first time The Pokémon Company has created games for Facebook Gaming, and both were built on the Instant Games platform. Pokémon Tower Battle launches worldwide today and is available in the Facebook Gaming tab and bookmark on Facebook. Pokémon Medallion Battle is available now in the Asia-Pacific region.

Tsunekazu Ishihara, CEO of The Pokémon Company, said in a statement that launching these games through Facebook will allow people all over the world to experience Pokémon in digital form, and that means it will enable new audiences to enjoy Pokémon games online.

Above: Pokémon Medallion Battle is available in Asia.

Image Credit: Facebook Gaming

Instant Games have grown steadily over the last several years, and more than 40 billion instant game sessions have been played across Facebook, Messenger, and other surfaces.

Last week, Facebook confirmed the acquisition of PlayGiga, a cloud gaming company in Spain. And each month more than 700 million people play games, watch gaming videos, or engage in gaming groups on Facebook.

In late July, Facebook announced the migration of Instant Games from Messenger to Facebook and the Facebook Gaming tab.

Above: Pokémon Tower Battle screen shots.

Image Credit: Facebook Gaming

Pokémon Tower Battle was developed by Bombay Play, and Pokémon Medallion Battle was developed by GCTurbo.

In Pokémon Tower Battle, players compete by stacking Pokémon against one another to create the tallest Pokémon towers. As players discover, catch and level-up rare Pokémon, they can compete in real-time against friends or across a global leaderboard. It might seem like a simple physics-based puzzler at first, but the strategic choices in where and how players stack Pokémon will take skill.

And Pokémon Medallion Battle is a digital card battle strategy game where trainers collect, battle and evolve Pokémon in medallion form and embark on a journey with their companions to win gym badges and complete their Pokédex. Players can also discover new Pokémon — introduced every month — to create even better decks. The Medallion game is not available in Oceania and Vietnam.

Pokémon: Facebook Gaming has released 2 new games

© 2019 Pokémon. ©1995-2019 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK Facebook launched two new Pokémon games on its Instant Games platform.

Just in time for Christmas, Facebook has released two new Pokémon games on Facebook Gaming: "Pokémon Tower Battle" and "Pokémon Medallion Battle."

"Pokémon Tower Battle" is available to users worldwide, and players can face off against a friend or stranger online. The game is simple: players take turns dropping Pokémon from the sky as they compete to build a tower of Pokémon. If the tower is knocked over or one player's Pokémon falls off the tower, that player loses the game.

"Pokémon Medallion Battle," on the other hand, is currently only available to users in the Asia-Pacific region. It's a digital card battle strategy game where trainers collect, battle and evolve Pokémon.

"Pokémon Tower Battle" is an extremely basic game, while "Pokémon Medallion Battle" appears to offer more depth.

Facebook did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether "Pokémon Medallion Battle" would expand to other regions.

Depending on your region, you can find the games on Facebook's Instant Games platform, which is accessible through the gaming tab on the Facebook app, or through a bookmark on Facebook's homepage.

"We are excited to launch two new entries in the Pokémon franchise on Facebook Gaming," said Tsunekazu Ishihara, CEO of The Pokémon Company.

"Launching these games through Facebook will allow people all over the world to experience Pokémon in digital form, and we are especially thrilled to collaborate with Facebook Gaming in enabling new audiences to enjoy Pokémon games online."

© 2019 Pokémon. ©1995-2019 Nintendo/Creatures Inc./GAME FREAK "Pokémon Tower Battle" is available to users worldwide.

Two brand new ‘Pokemon’ games just launched on Facebook out of nowhere

If you're a Pokemon fan, chances are that you're still working your way through the latest entries — Pokemon Sword and Shield — on the Switch. But if you can't get to your Switch at the moment or you're hoping to get the console for Christmas, there are two other Pokemon games you can play right now for free.

This week, The Pokemon Company launched two games on the Facebook Instant Games platform: Pokemon Tower Battle and Pokemon Medallion Battle. Tower Battle, available worldwide, has players compete against one another by trying to stack the tallest tower of Pokemon without knocking any of them off of the platform. You can even catch and level up Pokemon along the way, and you can play with friends or strangers.

Medallion Battle, on the other hand, is a card battle strategy game currently only available in the Asia-Pacific region. In the game, players collect, evolve, and battle Pokemon in medallion form while winning gym badges and expanding their Pokedex. New Pokemon will be introduced every month so players can improve their decks.

Image Source: Facebook

"We are excited to launch two new entries in the Pokémon franchise on Facebook Gaming," said Tsunekazu Ishihara, CEO of The Pokémon Company, in a press release. "Launching these games through Facebook will allow people all over the world to experience Pokémon in digital form, and we are especially thrilled to collaborate with Facebook Gaming in enabling new audiences to enjoy Pokémon games online."

If you want to try out Pokemon Tower Battle, you can find it by searching for it on Facebook.com, or by searching on the Facebook Messenger app on your mobile device and hitting the Play button.

Preteen loves sports, Pokemon and vegetables! Right now he’s looking for an adoptive family

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OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - Javion is 12 years old and a bit of a sports fan. He loves both watching games and playing in them too.

In fact, he hopes to be a professional football player when he grows up.

We took this preteen to the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark to get on the field for a little holiday fun.

"What's on my Christmas list is a tablet, new clothes, new shoes, new Pokémon cards and that's pretty much it," Javion said.

Just ahead of the holidays, KFOR surprised Javion with a snow tubing adventure at the park.

A new companion will be by his side.

"Who is that? Oh Brix," Javion said.

He says he's afraid of heights, but it didn't take long for Javion to go down the slope over and over again.

"Was it scary?" Reporter Lacey Lett asked.

"Yeah," Javion said.

"Scary fun though right?"

"Scary fun."

The Oklahoma City Dodgers wanted to give Javion an early Christmas gift. It was his choice of gift, and Javion decided to keep his new friend with him.

"That's you, Brix. I'll keep it."

He says he'll sleep with his new stuffed toy every night at the group home.

Right now, Javion is enjoying his days being active.

"I like to play basketball, color, dance," Javion said.

Javion also likes running and playing football. He hopes to be a running back one day in the NFL.

"Who is your favorite running back?" Reporter Lacey Lett asked.

"Uhh if he's still out there Adrian Peterson. The one who played for OU," Javion said.

This 12-year-old is already as healthy as an athlete.

"Vegetables, celery, carrots, and broccoli," he said.

He loves pretty much any type of fruit too.

Javion would be a great child for any family, and he's looking for one too. He's been under DHS care for almost five years.

"A nice family. Just any family that will take me," he said.

Especially if there's older siblings and video games to play.

He says he's tired of always being the new kid in school.

"I'm just the new kid. They don't like me."

"Are you the new kid a lot?"

"Mhmm."

"Because you have to move a lot right? How many schools have you been to this year?"

"A lot."

Javion wants to be with one family in a place he can call home.

Your best shot at adopting a child is to go ahead and get the process started. It can take a few months to get approved. For all of the details contact the DHS hotline at 1-800-376-9729 or visit online at https://surveys.okdhs.org/TakeSurvey.aspx?SurveyID=96L368I#.

"A Place To Call Home" is sponsored by Great Plains Bank.

ComicBook.com's Games of the Year: Pokemon Sword and Shield

Since 1996, every Pokemon game has followed the same basic plot: a child receives their first Pokemon and travels through a region, astonishingly beating seasoned professionals in their meteoric rise to champion, all the while foiling the plot of some nefarious villain with a harebrained scheme that threatens the entire world. It's both a strength and weakness of the Pokemon franchise-- when you sit down with a Game Freak-made Pokemon game, you know what you're going to get, and looking for a radical departure from the games' traditional framework only leads to disappointment. Maybe that's why Pokemon Sword and Shield is one of the most enjoyable Pokemon experiences we've played in years. While the game certainly sticks to time-honored Pokemon tradition, it also takes some bold new steps that pushes the franchise towards a bright future.

The newest pair of Pokemon games were released in November amid a storm of controversy involving several decisions made during the development process. For one, only about half of the franchise's 900 or so Pokemon can be used in Pokemon Sword and Shield, with other species left out due to a stated desire for better competitive balance and to focus on other aspects of the game. While an unpopular decision when first announced, the move lets players fully appreciate the 90 new Pokemon species brought into the franchise, and it allows some less popular Pokemon to enter into the spotlight.

And the new Pokemon are one of the biggest strengths of the game, as they represent some of the best we've seen in recent generations. Many of the Pokemon have a decidedly British flavor due to the Galar region's English influence, and there are dozens of adorable and frightening Pokemon in the vein of the original games. The Pokemon franchise got delightfully weird again with Pokemon Sword and Shield, as the games feature everything from bleached coral to a penguin with its head encased in an ice cube to a bear trap meant to ensnare Pokemon trainers. This generation of Pokemon is wild, and should go down as a pair of fan favorites for years to come.

More importantly, Pokemon Sword and Shield feels different because Game Freak took time to breathe life into the Galar region, the setting for the new games. The gym leaders all have distinct personalities and great designs, the rivals have their own motivations and exist to do more than narrate your own rise to the top, and the world itself feels truly different than any area of the Pokemon world we've seen before. This is definitely the most fleshed out Pokemon region we've gotten in years, even if a few of the cities are nothing more than glorified hallways with neat window dressing.

Pokemon Sword and Shield also keeps some of the recent innovations we've seen in past Pokemon games. Pokemon appear in the overworld once again, chasing down players, and the game blissfully remains free of HMs. There's also some cool new additions to the franchise -- particularly the Wild Area, a massive, semi-open world filled with hundreds of Pokemon species, changing weather, and interactions with other players who also pop up exploring the world. There's also the Dynamax and Gigantamax mechanics, the games' new gimmick that mixes Mega Evolution with Z-Moves. While I like the Dynamax mechanic and the multiplayer Max Raid Battles that come with them, the most important thing the game does is preventing Dynamaxing from being available in every battle, so that it doesn't take over the game the way that Z-Moves or Mega Evolution did in past games. It's a smart choice, and it keeps the mechanic feeling special.

All said, Pokemon Sword and Shield is not just a strong Pokemon game; it also represents a new beginning for the franchise. With Pokemon moving to the Nintendo Switch, we can now finally see what the franchise and Game Freak are capable of when not shackled to an admittedly inferior handheld console. We saw glimpses of where Pokemon as a whole could go with Pokemon Sword and Shield, and I'm curious to see if the franchise will keep pushing and innovating as it moves forward. In the meantime, I'll enjoy wandering through the Wild Area, playing with my new Pokemon, and waiting for that next Gigantamax Raid.

Pokémon GO’s Buddy Adventure: How To Get Hearts To Raise Your Buddy Level, And What You Get

Pokemon GO

Credit: Niantic

Pokémon GO fulfilled an essential piece of the Pokémon fantasy this week. Pokémon is a series not only about collecting and battling bizzare creatures, but also about a bond that forms between the trainer and their Pokémon: it’s an idea that really started with the anime, but the mainline games started incorporating those ideas as early as Pokémon Yellow. And now, Pokémon GO let’s us double down on it with a kind of Pokémon Tamagotchi, where we can choose a special creature to play with, feed andâ€"this is the most important partâ€"follow us around on the map. It’s magical. I’m currently rolling with a special little Mime Jr. I picked up overseas.

There’s a progression system baked in here, because even in Pokémon GO we need a little incentive to play with our new friends. Buddies can level up, just like friends, accruing new bonuses along the way.

You level up a buddy by getting hearts: up to 10 a day regularly, and double that if you use a special “poffin” for 100 Pokécoins.

You get these by walking up to 6km, feeding it treats three times, playing with it, battling with it, taking a picture and visiting a new place. Take note that “new place” means for that Pokémon as your special buddy, and not for you as a trainer.

You can see your heart progression on the buddy screen, both for the day and for all your time with the buddy.

Here are the levels, and what they get you:

Good Buddy: Comes along with you on your adventure.

Great Buddy (70 Hearts): Catch assist and brings you items.

Ultra Buddy (150 hearts): Helps you find locations and brings back collectible souvenirs. Unclear what sort of locations that means, but we’ll find out.

Best Buddy: Gets a CP boost in combat(needs to be equipped as buddy), and a special best buddy bow.

It leads to some interesting decisions if you’re trying to level your buddy: the CP boost clearly means that you should take along someone that’s meta-relevant and versatile, like a Tyranitar or a Mewtwo. And yet you might not need any candies for those, which means you’ll be missing out on all the extra candy from the traditional buddy system. And also I don’t exactly want to be walking around with my Tyranitars, it just doesn’t seem proper.

I’m building up a sort of baseline buddy that I plan to use for the souvenirs, catch boosts and items, and then I suppose I’ll swap him out every once in a while when I need candy for something new or when I want to look into maxing out something more useful in combat.

You could always fall into a trap where you try and max out several buddies at once, but that sounds exhausting.

'Pokémon Sword and Shield' Mystery Gift Distribution Gives More Special Poke Balls

Poke Balls are very important in the Pokémon franchise. They are the items that help you catch 'em all afterall, but there are different versions of the spherical capture balls that help trainers in various situations.

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, some of these special Poke Balls are only obtainable via the Ball Guy, a man in a mascot costume that hands out one of these special Balls in each town on your Galar-region journey.

However, The Pokémon Company is giving out more of these special Poke Balls for free via the Mystery Gift function.

HOW TO OBTAIN SPECIAL POKEBALLS IN SWORD AND SHIELD

To obtain these special Poke Balls, trainers will need to boot up their Sword and Shield games and go to the Mystery Gift feature in the menu. Follow these steps to collect your items:

Press X to access Menu

Select Mystery Gift

Select "Get with Code/Password" - make sure you have a wi-fi connection

Enter Code/Password

There are three passwords that trainers will need to input to pick up all nine special PokeBalls. Here's the passwords and the Poke Balls they yield:

0KUGAFUKA1B0RU - Love Ball, Friend Ball, Dream Ball

K0UN1NMASC0T - Fast Ball, Moon Ball, Level Ball

1YAHAYA - Heavy Ball, Lure Ball, Beast Ball

Input one or all three of these passwords in the Mystery Gift feature to have them sent to your bag in Sword and Shield.

WHAT DOES EACH POKEBALL DO?

As we alluded to before, certain Poke Balls have different properties that can help trainers catch a variety of Pokémon.

Love Ball - Works best when catching a Pokémon that is of the opposite gender of your Pokémon

Friend Ball - Will make a wild Pokémon caught with it more friendly toward you immediately

Dream Ball - Different Poké Ball that makes it easier to catch wild Pokémon while they're asleep

Fast Ball - Makes it easier to catch Pokémon that are usually quick to run away

Moon Ball - Makes it easier to catch Pokémon that evolve using a Moon Stone

Level Ball - Makes it easier to catch Pokémon that are at a lower level than your own Pokémon

Heavy Ball - Better than usual at catching heavy Pokémon

Lure Ball - Good for catching Pokémon that you reel in with a rod while out fishing

Beast Ball - Different Poké Ball that has a low success rate for catching a Pokémon

Pokémon Sword and Shield is available now for Nintendo Switch.

Which of these special items is your favorite? Let us know in the comments section.

Pokemon Sword and Shield Brings in the Holidays With Delibird Max Raids

December 21, 2019 4:08 PM EST

Pokemon Sword and Shield is bringing in the holiday season with a brand new Max Raid battle featuring Pokemon's unofficial holiday mascot Delibird. Delibird is an Ice/Flying type that has a signature attack called "Present," which has unpredictable results ranging from inflicting major damage to even healing the target instead.

Defeating Delibird in Max Raid Battles will also give players more candies as rewards during the event. Players can encounter Delibird in the Wild Area and can appear in any Dynamax den, so players should just bounce from den to den until they find a Delibird that appeals to them. Delibird raids will have five levels of difficulty, ranging from easy one Star raids to more difficult five Star raids. The event will last until December 25th, fittingly enough.

According to the latest NPD data for Pokemon Sword and Shield, the latest installment in the long running series, has the highest launch month dollar sales in Pokemon franchise history. And for the month of November, Pokemon Sword was the third best selling game, the double pack including both titles ranking at fourth place, and Pokemon Shield being in fifth place. However, if you combined those sales then total it would bring them to the number two spot.

In other recent news, Pokemon Sword and Shield are already the eighth best-selling Nintendo Switch games of all time at six million units sold during its launch weekend alone. Check out pictures of the game's launch event held at Nintendo NYC. And in not so cheery recent news, Pokemon Company International is looking to sue leakers who spread around pictures of their then unreleased official strategy guide.

The Pokemon Company announced a new animated series called Pokemon: Twilight Wings, which will debut on YouTube next month. The seven-part animated web series will be coming in January 2020 with each episode approximately five minutes long. Not to mention the studio that's developing and animating is Studio Colorido, which was previously known for producing the animated film Penguin Highway, and is being directed by Shingo Yamashita.

Pokemon Sword and Shield released for Nintendo Switch on November 15th. Meanwhile check out our in-depth review for the game here, in which the News Editor states that "Pokemon Sword and Shield are a lot of fun, even if the series is experiencing growing pains with the transition to home consoles." You can purchase Sword here and Shield here.

This post contains affiliate links where DualShockers gets a small commission on sales. Any and all support helps keep DualShockers as a standalone, independent platform for less-mainstream opinions and news coverage.

December 21, 2019 4:08 PM EST

Pokemon Fans Uncover One Monster's Ghostbusters Origins

Two of the hottest fictional properties in the world right now are Pokemon and Ghostbusters. With the story of Ash Ketchum and Pikachu maintaining a level of high popularity since the series' inception in the later 1990s, Ghostbusters has returned thanks in part to the upcoming sequel, Ghostbusters Afterlife. Now, one fan has discovered a link to the two different franchises, revealing how the origin of the ice cream themed pocket monster of Vanilluxe ties into the decades old, legendary comedy!

Twitter User and Poke-Fan DrLavaYT shared a breakdown of how this strange Pokemon was originally inspired by the most recognizable threat to the Ghostbusters, the Stay Puft Marshmellow Man, who had been inadvertently summoned thanks in part to Ray's inability to stop his mind from wandering:

Vanilluxe was originally introduced as part of the fifth generation of pocket monsters, making its video game debut in Pokemon Black and White, giving fans one of the stranger Pokemon to appear in the series' history. Besides being inspired by Mr. Stay-Puft, Vanilluxe was also inspired by its Pokemon "cousin" in Weezing.

As mentioned earlier, Ghostbusters has seen a resurgence in popularity recently thanks in part to the upcoming sequel, Ghostbusters Afterlife, which will be dropping into theaters next year. The trailer, which debuted earlier this month, features a family having to move to a small mid-Western town, discovering the old technology and vehicles of the Ghostbusters themselves. Each of the living original Ghostbusters are seemingly confirmed for the upcoming film, though we doubt any Pokemon will be making a crossover in this one.

The Pokemon series is quite familiar with ghosts, having even gone so far as to create a type of pocket monsters that is labeled "Ghost" such as Gengar and Haunter to name a few. Surprisingly enough, Vanilluxe itself is not a ghost type but is rather squarely in the field of ice.

What do you think of this link between Pokemon and Ghostbusters? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly on Twitter @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, Ghostbusters, and Pokemon!

Pokemon: The Series, is now airing new episodes weekly in Japan, but unfortunately is still not officially licensed for an English language release as of this writing. Staff confirmed for the new series include Daiki Tomiyasu serving as chief director for OLM, Maki Odaira as series director, and Kunihiko Yuyama as creative supervisor.

Pokemon Go's New Buddy Adventure Feature Now Live

Pokemon Go is capping off 2019 with a big new gameplay feature. The newly revealed Buddy Adventure feature is now live for most players, and it gives you more ways to interact and strengthen your bond with your Buddy Pokemon.

Just as you can increase your friendship level with other players, Buddy Adventure allows you to raise your Buddy Level with your Pokemon. After feeding your Buddy Pokemon a berry from the new Buddy Pokemon profile page, you'll become Good Buddies, and you'll be able to see your Buddy Pokemon following along behind you on the overworld screen. You can further increase your Buddy Level to Great, Ultra, and Best Buddies by playing with your Pokemon, using it in battle, and taking snapshots of it.

Each Buddy Level also opens up different bonuses; you can see what each friendship tier unlocks below, courtesy of the official Pokemon Go website:

Good Buddy: Your buddy can join you on your map view! You'll also see how your buddy feels on the Buddy profile page.

Great Buddy: Having a hard time catching a Pokemon? Your buddy may help you out in Pokemon encounters! It can also bring you items that can help you in your Pokemon Go journey.

Ultra Buddy: Your buddy will help you explore the world around you by letting you know about interesting places nearby! Your buddy will also bring you Souvenirs, which you can keep track of on the buddy profile page.

Best Buddy: Become Best Buddies, and your buddy will sport a Best Buddy Ribbon to show off to everyone just how close you two are! Pokemon that you're Best Buddies with can get a CP boost in combat as long as they're still assigned as your Buddy Pokémon.

On top of that, the new Buddy profile page lets you see your Pokemon's mood, its progress toward finding Candy, and a list of daily activities to complete that will earn you hearts and, in turn, improve your Buddy Pokemon's mood. Once your buddy's mood is maxed out, it'll be able to find Candy at half the distance it normally takes. On top of that, the Buddy Adventure update will make it so that changing Buddy Pokemon will no longer reset that Pokemon's progress toward finding Candy.

Following the release of Buddy Adventure, Niantic teases that you'll be able to meet other players' Buddy Pokemon in a new "Shared AR Experience" mode. This feature will allow you to sync with up to two other players and take group photos with your Buddy Pokemon. You can read more about the feature on the Pokemon Go website.

2020 is just around the corner, but in the meantime, there are still a lot of events in store for Pokemon Go this month. The Legendary Gen 5 Pokemon, Virizion, is now available around the world in Raid Battles, while Ho-Oh and Lugia are returning for a special Raid Weekend from December 20-23. Pokemon Go's annual holiday event will follow beginning December 24 and will introduce a handful of new Gen 5 Ice Pokemon to the game. You can catch up on other recent Pokemon Go news below.

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Pokemon GO Buddy Adventure: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

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Niantic announced a new feature that brings the fun of Pokemon-Amie, Pokemon Camp and walking with your partner Pokemon in the main series Pokemon games to Pokemon GO.

The Buddy Adventure feature will use augmented-reality technology to play with, feed and explore the world with your Pokemon.

Here's everything you need to know about Pokemon GO Buddy Adventure.

1. Pokemon GO Buddy Adventure Is Out Now

The Buddy Adventure feature is now available to Pokemon GO players who are at level two and above, according to the Pokemon GO official Twitter account.

Buddy Adventure uses the AR+ mode to place your Buddy Pokemon into the real world with augmented reality. Once the feature is live, all you have to do is head to the new buddy profile page and tap on the "Play!" button to interact with your Pokemon. From there you can play with your Buddy Pokemon and see it react to things. Different Pokemon will react in different ways, according to Niantic. You can even feed it Berries.

Buddy Adventure expands upon the Buddy Pokemon feature in Pokemon GO, where you pick a Pokemon to be your Buddy and it will appear alongside you in your Trainer Profile and will give you Candy of that Pokemon's evolutionary family whenever you walk a certain distance.

The mode also appears to take inspiration from Pokemon-Amie from Pokemon X & Y where players could pet and feed their Pokemon. There also might be some influence from the Pokemon Camp feature in Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield, where players could go camping with their Pokemon while playing with toys and cooking curry to eat with them.

2. You Can Walk Around In the Game World With Your Buddy Pokemon

fortyseven communications

When the Buddy Adventure feature goes live, your Buddy Pokemon can walk around with your avatar in the map view. All you have to do is feed your Buddy Pokemon Berries so that it reaches the Good Buddy Level.

In addition, swapping Buddy Pokemon will no longer reset the progress toward earning Candy by walking.

The often requested feature of walking with your Pokemon in the main series of Pokemon games last appeared in Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu and Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee. The feature has not come back for Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield, the latest core Pokemon games.

3. You'll Unlock Bonuses by Increasing Your Friendship

fortyseven communications

Growing your bond with your Buddy Pokemon and you'll reach different tiers known as Buddy Levels, according to Niantic.

At the Good Buddy level, not only will your Buddy Pokemon join the player in the map view but players will also be able to check on how their Buddy Pokemon feels in the buddy profile page.

At the Great Buddy level, your Buddy Pokemon will start occasionally helping you out in wild Pokemon encounters and may also start bringing you helpful items.

At the Ultra Buddy level, your Buddy Pokemon will alert you to interesting places nearby. The Buddy Pokemon will also give you Souvenirs, which will be tracked in the buddy profile page.

At the Best Buddy level, the highest level, Your Buddy Pokemon will wear a Best Buddy Ribbon. Best Buddy Pokemon can also get a CP boost in combat so long as they are assigned as your Buddy Pokemon.

4. Grow Your Bond with Affection

fortyseven communications

As you explore with your Buddy Pokemon on the map, battle with your Buddy Pokemon, pet it, feed it and take snapshots with it, you earn hearts which measure how much affection your Buddy Pokemon has. The more affection, the better the mood of your Buddy Pokemon.

If the Buddy Pokemon's mood is at the highest level (excited), then you'll earn Buddy Candy in half the distance, earn double the hearts per action, and earn bonus hearts.

You can find a chart of activities you can do each day to earn affection with your Buddy Pokemon in the buddy profile page. The buddy profile page will also track the distance before you earn Buddy Candy, your Buddy Pokemon's current mood and your Buddy Level. The profile page will also show you a history of your other Pokemon who have been assigned as your Buddy and all the things you did together.

5. You Will Be Able to Take Group Photos with Buddy Pokemon

fortyseven communications

Up to three players with AR+ will be able to sync up with each other to take a group photo with their Buddy Pokemon in the Shared AR Experience mode.

According to Niantic, this feature will be released sometime after the initial release of Buddy Adventure.

In other Pokemon GO news, the Legendary Pokemon Virizion will appear in five-star Raids from December 17, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. PST to January 7, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. PST, according to a blog post from Niantic. Lugia and Ho-Oh will return to Raid Battles for a Special Raid Weekend from December 20 to 23.

The Pokemon GO Holidays 2019 event will go live from December 24 at 12:00 a.m. to January 1, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. in your local time zone. During that time, select Pokemon will appear in holiday costumes, event-exclusive Field Research tasks will be on offer, and Delibird will be available from Team GO Rocket members as a Shadow Pokemon. In addition, ice-type Pokemon from the Unova region will make their debut in Pokemon GO. Cubchoo will be available in the wild while Cryogonal will appear in the wild if a Glacial Lure Module is used.

See also:

Go on a Buddy Adventure in Pokémon Go to become closer to your monsters

Pokémon Go continues to be one of the biggest location-based augmented reality (AR) games around, and continued updates and new features have certainly gone a long way toward enabling its longevity. Soon, a Buddy Adventure system will be coming to the game, giving you yet another way to interact with your Pokémon and blur the line between fantasy and reality.

With the new Buddy Adventure feature, you will be able to choose a Pokémon to play with, feed, and keep by your side as you explore the world. The more you interact with it and build up your connection, the more benefits you'll see in other areas of the game. Get them to the "good buddy" rating and they'll show up on your map. Reach the "great buddy" level and they can even help during wild encounters and bring you extra items.

"Remember: Friendship is something you build together!" developer Niantic said in an announcement. "So be sure to complete the daily activities with your buddy each day to earn more affection and become fast friends!"

You'll be able to play with your buddy in AR+ mode as well, making it appear as if they're hanging out with you right in your living room or in a park. Depending on the monster you are buddies with, they may react in a different way.

The new Buddy Adventure feature was introduced in a trailer (above) that may have drawn a few of our tears. It shows a child going through his early years with a stuffed Squirtle toy before playing with his Buddy Squirtle in Pokémon Go. Once we can go surfing with our Squirtle or wear matching sunglasses as members of the Squirtle Squad, we may never stop playing the game.

In the future, Niantic will also be adding the ability to see your friends' Buddy Pokémon via a shared AR experience. Using this method, you'll be able to sync up with up to two other trainers and take a group photo that shows off everyone's Pokémon. Buddy Adventure will start rolling out in 2020, so keep an eye out and don't miss your chance to make a new friend. The new games Pokémon Sword and Shield are available now on Nintendo Switch.

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New 'Pokémon Go' Buddy Adventure Feature Coming Soon

One of the most beloved features in Pokémon games is when a Pokémon can follow you in the overworld and it's about to come to Pokémon Go.

Niantic just announced that a new feature called Buddy Adventure is coming to Pokémon Go. Once this feature is pushed, trainers will be able to interact with their Buddy Pokémon in new ways including having your Pokémon follow you and have them give you more items using the AR+ feature.

Feed your Buddy Pokémon a Berry and they'll become a "Good" Buddy. As you interact and walk with your Buddy Pokémon more and more, their status will increase. Here's each Buddy Pokémon level and what they do.

Good Buddy: Your buddy can join you on your map view! You'll also see how your buddy feels on the buddy profile page.

Great Buddy: Having a hard time catching a Pokémon? Your buddy may help you out in Pokémon encounters! It can also bring you items that can help you in your Pokémon GO journey.

Ultra Buddy: Your buddy will help you explore the world around you by letting you know about interesting places nearby! Your buddy will also bring you Souvenirs, which you can keep track of on the buddy profile page.

Best Buddy: Become Best Buddies, and your buddy will sport a Best Buddy Ribbon to show off to everyone just how close you two are! Pokémon that you're Best Buddies with can get a CP boost in combat as long as they're still assigned as your Buddy Pokémon.

Growing your Buddy Pokémon's affection is a huge part of this new Pokémon Go feature. Affection is measured in hearts, which you can view in the new Buddy profile. By walking, battling, petting, feeding and taking snapshot with your buddy will increase that Pokémon's affection towards you.

As your Buddy Pokémon's affection increases, it's mood will be better and give trainers the following perks:

The distance it takes for your buddy to find Candy will be cut in half.

The number of hearts earned per action will double.

Trainers can earn bonus hearts!

The release of the new Buddy Adventure feature is unknown, but it's something Pokémon Go trainers can look forward to in 2020. And while the Buddy Adventure feature will come soon, trainers will also be able to meet your friend's buddies too in the overworld.

Using a shared AR experience mode, you can sync up with up to two other trainers with AR+ to take a group photo with your buddies together.

What do you think of the Buddy Adventure feature? Let us know in the comments section.

Pokemon Go Adding New Buddy Adventure Feature

Pokemon Go will kick off the new year with a big new gameplay feature. Niantic shared the first details on Buddy Adventure, a new feature that is rolling out around the world by 2020 and gives you more ways to interact and strengthen your bond with your Buddy Pokemon.

Just as you can increase your friendship level with other players, you'll be able to raise your Buddy Level with your Pokemon once the Buddy Adventure feature goes live. After feeding your Buddy Pokemon a berry from the new Buddy Pokemon profile page, you'll become Good Buddies, and you'll be able to see your Buddy Pokemon following along behind you on the overworld screen. You can further increase your Buddy Level to Great, Ultra, and Best Buddies by playing with your Pokemon, using it in battle, and taking snapshots of it.

Each Buddy Level also opens up different bonuses; you can see what each friendship tier unlocks below, courtesy of the official Pokemon Go website:

Good Buddy: Your buddy can join you on your map view! You'll also see how your buddy feels on the Buddy profile page.

Great Buddy: Having a hard time catching a Pokemon? Your buddy may help you out in Pokemon encounters! It can also bring you items that can help you in your Pokemon Go journey.

Ultra Buddy: Your buddy will help you explore the world around you by letting you know about interesting places nearby! Your buddy will also bring you Souvenirs, which you can keep track of on the buddy profile page.

Best Buddy: Become Best Buddies, and your buddy will sport a Best Buddy Ribbon to show off to everyone just how close you two are! Pokemon that you're Best Buddies with can get a CP boost in combat as long as they're still assigned as your Buddy Pokémon.

On top of that, the new Buddy profile page will let you see your Pokemon's mood, its progress toward finding Candy, and a list of daily activities to complete that will earn you hearts and, in turn, improve your Buddy Pokemon's mood. Once your buddy's mood is maxed out, it'll be able to find Candy at half the distance it normally takes. On top of that, the Buddy Adventure update will make it so that changing Buddy Pokemon will no longer reset that Pokemon's progress toward finding Candy.

Following the release of Buddy Adventure, Niantic teases that you'll be able to meet other players' Buddy Pokemon in a new "Shared AR Experience" mode. This feature will allow you to sync with up to two other players and take group photos with your Buddy Pokemon. You can read more about the feature on the Pokemon Go website.

In the meantime, there are still a lot of events in store for Pokemon Go this month. The Legendary Gen 5 Pokemon, Virizion, is making its debut in Raid Battles today, December 17, while Ho-Oh and Lugia are returning for a special Raid Weekend from December 20-23. Pokemon Go's annual holiday event will follow beginning December 24 and will introduce a handful of new Gen 5 Ice Pokemon to the game. You can catch up on other recent Pokemon Go news below.

Pokemon: The Gold (and Silver) Standard

Today on Nerd, Andrew looks back at his favorite Pokemon game to find lessons that Sword and Shield could learn from!

Pokemon Sword and Shield, the latest step in the evolution of Pokemon is making Pokemon history by being the first Pokemon RPG game released for an HD console, the Nintendo Switch. For Pokemon, Switch could be the game changer that forever alters Pokemon evolution and Pokemon history, but from the first view of the Pokemon Sword and Shield Trailer, fans have been in an uproar about perceived changes to the Pokemon formula.

Andrew's Pokemon Sword and Shield review is unsullied by the controversy of Dexit, he really enjoyed the game, but to him, it still doesn't touch the a mazing Pokemon Gold and Silver. Any new Pokemon has to live up to its amazing legacy, and as we learned from the response to the Pokemon Sword Shield trailer, fans have extremely high expectations. In the world of video games, it's not neccesary to have the appeal of Pokemon explained, from the adorable antics of Pikachu to the groundbreaking Pokemon Go, the series' impact on gaming cannot be denied. Game Freak and Nintendo have created a monster out of their monsters, and while Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield are amazing games, there's always room for improvement.

This video, "Pokemon: The Gold (and Silver) Standard", first appeared on

nowthisnews.com.

'Pokémon Sword and Shield' Leakers Can Now Be Legally Pursued in Court

A court has given The Pokémon Company permission to move forward with its attempts to find the individuals who leaked information on Pokémon Sword and Shield to the fullest extent of the law.

According to a Forbes report from November, The Pokémon Company filed a lawsuit against those who leaked multiple pages from a Sword and Shield strategy guide on various sites including Discord, a popular voice and text chat usually for gaming purposes, and 4Chan, a popular forum site for various discussions.

The Pokémon Company hired outside forensic experts to identify that there are four Discord users who spread this information. One user was the originator of the images, with the other three helping to spread the information on social media.

The identities of these four individuals have not been disclosed, but The Pokémon Company looks to serve subpoenas on Discord and 4chan to discover that information.

A spokesperson for Discord confirmed to Newsweek they have received a subpoena from The Pokémon Company, but won't be commenting further at this time.

Newsweek reached out to 4chan for comment, but have yet to receive one. The story will be updated with any statement received.

The 16-page suit details how more than 300 web pages of leaked images and information from the official strategy guide were shared on other social media sites and video game outlets.

Starting November 1 (two weeks before the official release of Pokémon Sword and Shield), images of Gigantamax Machamp were uploaded to Discord. Over the course of 15 hours, more unreleased images and information followed.

According to the suit, lawyers from Perkins Coie, who previously represented Google and other tech giants, wrote that the leaks caused "irreparable injury" to The Pokémon Company, and that the company "is entitled to damages in an amount to be proven at trial."

Pokémon Sword and Shield were released on November 15 and went on to sell more than 6 million units worldwide in its first weekend, according to Nintendo's internal numbers. Sword and Shield also became the highest-grossing and fastest-selling Pokémon games in U.S. history.

GameFreak and The Pokémon Company purposely withheld a lot of information about Sword and Shield leading up to release to give fans more to discover as they play. One of the many critiques of Sun and Moon and Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon was that too much information was revealed prior to the games' release.

Prior to November 15, only certain aspects of Sword and Shield like Dynamax and Gigantamax -- new battle features -- were revealed as well as a handful of new Pokémon and regional Galarian forms and evolutions.

In previous generations of Pokémon games, the evolutions of the Starter Pokémon were revealed prior to release, but that wasn't the case for Sword and Shield.

Pokémon Sword and Shield is available now for Nintendo Switch.

What do you think of The Pokémon Company's attempts at finding the leakers? Let us know in the comments section.

Pokemon Company Given Legal Permission to Pursue Sword and Shield Leakers

The Pokemon Company has been diligently searching for the individuals behind the Pokemon Sword and Shield leaks prior to its official release. Now, they've been given permission to pursue the individuals in question to the full extent of the law.According to a report from Forbes, via Nintendo Everything, the Pokemon Company has begun a lawsuit against the individuals and is planning on issuing subpoenas against Discord and 4chan that would force them to come forward with information regarding the users behind the leaks. While the individuals in question have yet to be identified, Forbes notes "[The Pokemon Company] has identified four Discord users, though, after it hired outside forensic experts to hunt down the leakers. One is believed to be the person who supplied the images to the other defendants, who posted or helped post the photos online."

The leaks began a couple of weeks prior to Pokemon Sword

and Shield's release, with images circulating around the internet showcasing unreleased images of Pokemon, including new Gigantamax forms, taken directly from the official strategy guide. The Pokemon Company's lawyers claim that the leaks had caused "irreparable injury" to Pokemon and that the company "is entitled to damages in an amount to be proven at trial."

Every Alternate Evolution in Pokemon Sword and Shield

According to the legal document detailing the case, 18 images were leaked from the strategy guide and shared in Discord, before being circulated to 4chan, Reddit, and eventually the rest of the internet. In all, "[The Pokemon Company] identified over 300 URLs on dozens of platforms that linked to websites containing the leaked Strategy Guide pictures."

It also mentions the leaks are responsible for "reducing the fan interest and engagement The Pokemon Company and its partners generate by keeping key elements of the games secret" which players would eventually obtain by purchasing the games and said strategy guide.

Tips: 24 Things Pokemon Sword and Shield Doesn't Tell You

The Pokemon Company are seeking financial reimbursement from the individuals responsible for "all losses caused by [their] wrongful conduct" as well as any legal punishment that the court deems appropriate.

It's very clear that The Pokemon Company and Nintendo take these actions very seriously, with Nintendo recently pursuing websites uploading illegal ROMs of their games. While one might argue whether or not these leaks affected sales of Pokemon Sword and Shield, or the subsequent strategy guide, The Pokemon Company want to make an example out of those who distribute information without their consent, at the very least.

For more on Pokemon Sword and Shield, check out our list of the best Pokemon, as well as where to find every Pokemon in the Galar region to complete your PokeDex. If you're still collecting your way through the games, check out IGN's massive Pokemon Sword and Shield wiki guides.

Matthew Adler is a News and Features writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @matthewadler and watch him on Twitch.