PokéNews (March 24): Pokémon anime series / Pokémon GO

24 March 202024 March 2020 Lite_Agent Game Freak, Niantic, Pokémon (anime series - 2019), Pokémon GO, Pokémon no Uchi Atsumaru?!, Pokémon Sword and Shield, The Pokémon Company

Today’s Pokémon news: latest video for the Pokémon anime series, but also…

Pokémon GO
Pokémon Sword and Shield
Pokémon merchandise
Pokémon no Uchi Atsumaru?

Pokémon anime series

Here’s the preview for the next episode of the Pokémon anime series, which airs on Sunday (March 29th) in Japan:

Pokémon GO

Landorus

Niantic have announced that Landorus is coming soon to GO Battle League and five-star raids. It will be available from March 31st to April 21st, and will come with the following features:

For a limited time, Landorus will be coming to the GO Battle League as rare reward encounters, starting at rank 4!
Landorus will make its debut in five-star raids.

Source: Niantic

Misc. changes

Due to the current Coronavirus pandemic, Niantic have made the following changes to the game:

3× Stardust and XP for your first Pokémon catch of the day: Be sure to activate a Star Piece and Lucky Egg to maximize your rewards.
Changes to Gifts: The number of Gifts you can open daily will now increase to 30, and the number of Gifts you can carry in your inventory will increase to 20. Gifts will also contain more Poké Balls. We appreciate your patience as we continue to prioritize updates that make gameplay more accessible and enjoyable at this time.
Rotating 1 PokéCoin bundles in the shop! New 1 PokéCoin bundles will be available in the shop each week as one-time purchases. The contents of these bundles change weekly, so be sure to get what is available each week. Right now, a new 1 PokéCoin bundle is available for you that contains the following.
- Poké Balls × 100

NB: the bundle is available until March 30th. On that day, the Incense and Poké Ball bundles will both be removed, and replaced by a 1 PokéCoin bundle.

Source: Niantic

Today View

Niantic have announced a new feature for Pokémon GO, called Today View. It will be located in the same area as your Field Research and Special Research tabs, and will allow you to view all ongoing events and bonuses, your daily streaks, and more.

There’s 4 sections:

Events: The topmost section will show you what events are currently running in the game. If there are multiple overlapping events, then there will be separate cards showcasing each one. (Note that events won’t be visible when the Today View first launches, but they will appear later.)
Pokémon in Gyms: Keep tabs on all the Pokémon you have in Gyms. You’ll also be able to see how long your Pokémon have been defending their Gyms, how much motivation your Pokémon have left, which Pokémon have returned that day, and how many PokéCoins you’ve earned through defending Gyms.
Streaks: Track your Daily PokéStop Spin and Daily Pokémon Catch Streaks, and never break another one again!
Upcoming: Check out what events are coming up at the bottom of the page. Tap to learn more from the in-game News!

Unfortunately, Niantic didn’t say when this new feature will be launched.

Source: Niantic

Go Battle League

Niantic have announced some more changes to the Go Battle League, due to the current Coronavirus pandemic:

From now until Monday, April 13, 2020—We are removing the walking and PokéCoin requirements to unlock sets of battles in the GO Battle League. If you’re currently in the middle of walking to earn a set, this change will take effect starting with your next set.
From now until Friday, May 1, 2020—For Trainer Battles with friends, we’ve lowered the Friendship level requirement so you can send battle invites to Trainers who are your Good Friends or Great Friends. Originally, you could only send battle invites to Ultra Friends and Best Friends.

Source: Niantic

Lugia Raids

Niantic have announced that the Lugia Raid Week and Lugia Raid Hour have both been cancelled. Also, starting today and until March 31st, players can encounter Cobalion as a GO Battle League reward.

Source: Niantic (Twitter)

Pokémon Sword and Shield

Heads up for players who took part in the latest Online Competition for Pokémon Sword and Shield: Extreme Speed! Single Battles!!. The participation prize (50BP) is now available for you to claim: simply head to the Mystery Gift menu, and select Get Battle Stadium Rewards. Do note that you first need to check your ranking at the Battle Stadium before you can get your present.

Source: Serebii