Pokemon Go is having its usage slip a lot. What started out as the biggest mobile game ever in July of 2016 is being played by a loyal but dwindling base of players. When the company releases new events or promotions activity does still climb showing that there is still a big population paying attention to what is going on in the game and is even willing to return when something new is going on. Having a population passively following the game is a very good thing but it also means that the initial game needs more to get them back full time.
It seems clear that the developer of Pokemon Go Niantic is planning on adding more Pokemon to the game. That will definetly add interest for a time, but I really think if they want to gain longer term momentum they need to do even more.
The Problems with Pokemon Go!
Collect them all then What?
The biggest problem with Pokemon Go is that there is only one real end game and that is collecting all of the Pokemon. In the other games collecting all of the Pokemon was one goal and completing the main quest of the story was another. Even if a player collected all of the Pokemon the player would still want to play through the main story. The Main Story quests also occupied the players time making it harder to collect the Pokemon. The reality is that game required the player to play through the quests to move to new regions where the other Pokemon were available thus the two needed to be done in lockstep. The other added aspect of the Main Quest is that it required the player to have Battle Pokemon these being powerful Pokemon in a variety of types. Without a strong team of Battling ready Pokemon the player would defeated at gyms or in other quests and go no further.
Gym battles in Pokemon Go are unrewarding
Pokemon Go does have gym battles. However gym battles rarely earn the average player much in coins. The gyms tend to be owned by a small group of hardcore players who immediately take down others who go onto their turf. The problem with that is that a game shouldn't demand its players to play 24/7. The beauty of Pokemon Go's initial release was that it attracted this huge swathe of people of many age ranges and the reality is that some of those people are in school, or even work. The way gyms work is that they are too tedius and non rewarding for most players to worry about. Unfortunately this is about half of the game of Pokemon Go.
The other problem with Gym battles is that they are more straight forward than the NPC battles in the other games. In other gyms you would face a trainer who could switch out Pokemon like you could and even use items on the Pokemon during the battle. None of that depth exists in Pokemon Go gym battles.
The Fix?
I actually think the fix for Pokemon Go is really really simple. Just bring in some of the aspects of the other Pokemon Games into Pokemon Go. These aspects would add both content and depth. The tops aspects I want to see brought into the game include the following:
NPCs
NPCs - I want Non Playable Characters to spawn on the map or appear in Pokemon Gyms or PokeStops. I want these characters to do the following things:
1) Offer up a quest - start a mini game - I need to collect 10 Pidgeys can you help me?
2) Challenge the Player to a battle - This would be a new way to battle and the battles could be at the level of the player instead of at the level of the overall community. These types of battles would be much better for new or moderate players instead of the intensely competitive gyms.
3) Trade and sell items
4) Provide information and gossip about the local area. Wouldnt it be fun if the gym losing control was broadcast out by a bunch of NPCs that would make taking down a gym even more meaningful.
NPCs would add a ton of depth to the game and also enhance all of the aspects of the game that currently exist. They are my number 1 want for the game.
Here is a mock up of how this might work by Jetsdude:
http://imgur.com/gallery/QRLw7
Badges
What if each gym was of a certain type. Maybe element or a color or maybe part of regions. Rocky Mountain Blue, West Coast Red etc If you go to the gym and take it down then you earn part of a badge. If you take down gyms of each color from a region you earn the full badge. So to get a City or a regions Badge you would need to take down three gyms in that city each one representing a different color. So to get the Denver badge you would need to take down a Denver Red, Denver Blue, Denver Yellow gym. Then you would earn your Denver badge. Think about how cool badges would be then and how fun it would be to road trip around the.......WORLD and collect different regional badges. You could even do Medals for players who collect groups of badges like the Route 66 Medal, The Jim Muir Trail Medal or something like that. This would create a whole added reason to go to the gyms which there is not now.
Dungeons
![Image result for pokemon dungeon]()
Dungeons in my mind would be like a gym that you can't take over. Instead of going there and facing other people's Pokemon you enter it and begin battling computer controlled Pokemon. You could even have bosses in the Dungeons. One really cool thing would be if you could battle through a dungeon cooperatively with other players in your area with you. Once again this would add a new layer to the battling system of Pokemon Go. What do you get for beating a Dungeon or a Dungeon Boss? Obviously cool items!
What ideas do you have for sprucing up Pokemon Go? Do you like the ideas we have listed here? Let us know in the comment section below!
Shop for Pokemon toys and merchandise!
Toylab is a proud member of Amazon's Affiliate program and is happy to bring you these recommended great deals from Amazon! We also have a Pokemon Toy Store below:
The Poke fun has just begun...Also See!
Toylab Pokedex - More Pokemon GO! Tips
want to learn more about Pokemon Go? We have compiled an array of articles and videos on how to beat and catch specific Pokemon as well as other tricks in our Toylab Pokedex. Want to catch them all? Then this is the place for you!
Click Here to enter the Toylab Pokedex
![]()
Gym battles in Pokemon Go are unrewarding
Pokemon Go does have gym battles. However gym battles rarely earn the average player much in coins. The gyms tend to be owned by a small group of hardcore players who immediately take down others who go onto their turf. The problem with that is that a game shouldn't demand its players to play 24/7. The beauty of Pokemon Go's initial release was that it attracted this huge swathe of people of many age ranges and the reality is that some of those people are in school, or even work. The way gyms work is that they are too tedius and non rewarding for most players to worry about. Unfortunately this is about half of the game of Pokemon Go.
The other problem with Gym battles is that they are more straight forward than the NPC battles in the other games. In other gyms you would face a trainer who could switch out Pokemon like you could and even use items on the Pokemon during the battle. None of that depth exists in Pokemon Go gym battles.
The Fix?
I actually think the fix for Pokemon Go is really really simple. Just bring in some of the aspects of the other Pokemon Games into Pokemon Go. These aspects would add both content and depth. The tops aspects I want to see brought into the game include the following:
NPCs
 |
| Pokemon Go mockup by Jetsdude see link below for more |
NPCs - I want Non Playable Characters to spawn on the map or appear in Pokemon Gyms or PokeStops. I want these characters to do the following things:
1) Offer up a quest - start a mini game - I need to collect 10 Pidgeys can you help me?
2) Challenge the Player to a battle - This would be a new way to battle and the battles could be at the level of the player instead of at the level of the overall community. These types of battles would be much better for new or moderate players instead of the intensely competitive gyms.
3) Trade and sell items
4) Provide information and gossip about the local area. Wouldnt it be fun if the gym losing control was broadcast out by a bunch of NPCs that would make taking down a gym even more meaningful.
NPCs would add a ton of depth to the game and also enhance all of the aspects of the game that currently exist. They are my number 1 want for the game.
Here is a mock up of how this might work by Jetsdude:
http://imgur.com/gallery/QRLw7
Badges
What if each gym was of a certain type. Maybe element or a color or maybe part of regions. Rocky Mountain Blue, West Coast Red etc If you go to the gym and take it down then you earn part of a badge. If you take down gyms of each color from a region you earn the full badge. So to get a City or a regions Badge you would need to take down three gyms in that city each one representing a different color. So to get the Denver badge you would need to take down a Denver Red, Denver Blue, Denver Yellow gym. Then you would earn your Denver badge. Think about how cool badges would be then and how fun it would be to road trip around the.......WORLD and collect different regional badges. You could even do Medals for players who collect groups of badges like the Route 66 Medal, The Jim Muir Trail Medal or something like that. This would create a whole added reason to go to the gyms which there is not now.
Dungeons
Dungeons in my mind would be like a gym that you can't take over. Instead of going there and facing other people's Pokemon you enter it and begin battling computer controlled Pokemon. You could even have bosses in the Dungeons. One really cool thing would be if you could battle through a dungeon cooperatively with other players in your area with you. Once again this would add a new layer to the battling system of Pokemon Go. What do you get for beating a Dungeon or a Dungeon Boss? Obviously cool items!
What ideas do you have for sprucing up Pokemon Go? Do you like the ideas we have listed here? Let us know in the comment section below!
Shop for Pokemon toys and merchandise!
Toylab is a proud member of Amazon's Affiliate program and is happy to bring you these recommended great deals from Amazon! We also have a Pokemon Toy Store below:
The Poke fun has just begun...Also See!
want to learn more about Pokemon Go? We have compiled an array of articles and videos on how to beat and catch specific Pokemon as well as other tricks in our Toylab Pokedex. Want to catch them all? Then this is the place for you!
Click Here to enter the Toylab Pokedex
