Friday, April 29, 2022

Pokémon Go Event Rollup, 4/29/2022

There are some parallels between the April event rollup for Pokémon Go last year (see below) and the one for this year, which I've decided to make today - one of them being that both are on the same day, evidently. Another one is that there are five events of interest, some of which have further parallels with those of last year and others being completely different. All those details are included in this edition of the event.

As usual, this month starts off with the traditional set of shenanigans, and this year, as I've hinted early on, the focus was on a surprisingly duplex Pokémon. Dubbed as "April Fool's 2-Oh?-2-2", this one-day event on the day of significance (April 1) featured a lot of Ditto. It was featured in the wild through new and old disguises, for which many also appeared more frequently from 5 PM to 8 PM. All these complemented or helped out with an oddly addressed Special Research set available only that day, and a set of Ditto stickers made things even more lively while still being odd. In all, Trainers had their fill of the characteristic purple replicant on that day.

Two days later, from April 3 to 7, different shenanigans came from a group of never-do-wells - Team Go Rocket - in what is called the All-Hands Rocket Retreat. Like a takeover that previously occurred in January of this year, new Shadow Pokémon - of note, some Alolan forms - made their way in across Grunts and Leaders, shady Pokémon appeared as Field Research task rewards, appearances on the overworld and from balloons were increased, and Frustration could be forgotten. The primary highlight, though, was on the rescue of Shadow Latias from Giovanni, as well as the debut of the Salandit species family from 12 km Eggs, gotten of course from TGR Leaders. This latest shenanigan was something that Trainers had to power through.

All things renew in the springtime, and the same applied for the Spring Into Spring event this year from April 12 to 18. This time, the renewal filled in the flower crown forms of the Togepi and Buneary species families, and it also accommodated Ula'ula Island, the next island in line for Alola, along with its Island Guardian of Tapu Bulu in Legendary Raids. In the wild were "youngster" Pokémon, some of which are the species with the flower crowns, while 2 km eggs featured an assortment of "newborn" species. TGR grunts also had an abundance of Exeggcute and Whismur. The flower crown species also pervaded Field Research task rewards, a Collection Challenge, and all sorts of new stickers. Coupled with bonuses that pertain to Eggs, including extended Lucky Eggs, the renewal was quite spectacular.

Things were livened up even further midway through Spring Into Spring with a Limited Research on Exeggcute, with the title of An Egg-Citing Surprise. This one returned to the old framework of Limited Research, with tasks at PokéStops, but what was more important was that during the event hours from 11 AM to 2 PM on on April 16, Exeggcute can be evolved, for the first time ever, temporarily into Alolan Exeggutor with the special move of Draco Meteor. Complementing the event were Grass-type species of various kinds in the wild, as well as an additional doubled XP. Shiny forms are a given for this event, but it seems this chance fell flat for nearly a third of the world (East Asia), which is why tomorrow the event is being rerun there with an additional Timed Research for a few extra encounters. It seems the event needed a reason for renewal as well.

A few days ago, Sustainability Week also came back into action from April 20 to 25. The highlight of this year's edition was the debut of Oranguru and Shiny Cherubi, two interesting species in their own right. Supplementing the event was a Timed Research on Cherubi on the day of this month's main Community Day, involving incentives of Cherubi for each km walked and trees planted if completed; a Collection Challenge was in order with mostly grassy Pokémon, also requiring the use of a Mossy Lure Module, given for free in the Shop. Similar assortments of mostly grassy and earthy Pokémon also appear in the wild and as Field Research task rewards (plus Mega Energy for Venusaur and Abomasnow), while 7 km Eggs featured "precious" species. The action came back, but it itself was also a call to action.

The last event for this month is big - as in "Mega" big. Entitled "A Mega Moment", the event started today and will last until Sunday (May 1). Its purpose is to promote Mega Evolution, but also to promote a rework of it that was just implemented globally today. The key figure in this is Mega Kangaskhan, now appearing in Mega Raids as well as a Mega Raid Day slated for Sunday. In the wild are many Pokémon that can eventually evolve to species that can Mega Evolve, while Field Research allows Mega Energy to be obtained for currently existing Mega forms other than Kangaskhan, and a branched Special Research allows a (re-)exploration of Mega Evolution. The rework will have to be discussed later, but it is well-commemorated with this event.

At least, from the above, the parallels of the events are quite evident, especially under the guise of "renewal". That said, it's a good day to make the event rollup to allow it to compare to that of the previous year, and both of them favorably compare to each other. The renewals were extensive from duplicates to rebirths and super-sizes, and in any case, they're all parallels of their own, just as much as these events.

Two years ago: The State of Cosplay

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