Big changes for Gigantamax Battles in Pokémon GO.
Niantic have moved fast to make adjustments to Gigantamax Battles in Pokémon GO. The changes come after a huge amount of complaints about how hard last weekends Gigantamax were to take down. Reddit, X and YouTube were awash with complaints, and these have clearly been heard by the games developer.
The next Gigantamax Battles in Pokémon GO kick off on Thursday, October 31. Gigantamax Gengar will be arriving into Pokémon GO. After that, we aren't scheduled to get any other Gigantamax debuts until Toxtricity arrives during Pokémon GO: Wild Area in November.
Pokémon GO Gigantamax Battles to be made easier
The most notable change is that Niantic are reducing the difficulty of future Gigantamax Battles. They say that this is only a "slight" reduction but given the difficulty smaller communities were having any help will be gratefully received.
Niantic have also restated that they do want Gigantamax Battles to be a significant challenge. They hope this causes Trainers to have to work strategically, with some Trainers healing, shielding and attacking in each lobby. That way, they are different to Raids which are usually just about tapping the screen.
What "a slight reduction" means is yet to be seen. However, it is a positive sign that Niantic have been prepared to adjust this feature so quickly after its release.
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Stardust rewards significantly increased
Another change that Trainers will be interested in is to the rewards you get after completing a Gigantamax Battle in Pokémon GO. A big complaint about Dynamax and Gigantamax is that Trainers need to invest and power-up Pokémon that they have done a dozen times over. This is because existing Pokémon cannot Dynamax.
As a result, Trainers are forced to spend Stardust on things like Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise to be able to take on Gigantamax Battles. To combat this, Niantic are increasing the amount of Stardust these Gigantamax Max Battles award. Now, Trainers will earn 25,000 Stardust when they successfully complete a Gigantamax Max Battle.
This is a significant Stardust reward, which can be increased to 37,500 if you have a Star Piece active. The reason for such a substantial pay-out is designed to reflect the amount of investment needed into your new Dynamax Pokémon. Now, you get something back for powering up yet another Charizard.
Catch Rate also getting improved
The final area getting adjustment from Niantic is the catch rate for the Pokémon you encounter after the Battle. Gigantamax Gengar will have a higher catch rate compared to the Kanto starters. Niantic say they will continue to monitor catch rates across other Gigantamax encounters to make sure it is a rewarding experience for players.
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