The birthday celebrations for Pokemon GO don’t seem to stop! Over the last few months, we’ve seen in-game events, gym remodeling, the introduction of raid battles and now you can find Pikachus wearing Ash Ketchum’s hat running around the place. But PGO‘s developers, Niantic, are not over celebrating yet! On July 22, there will be the first live Pokemon GO event, and it is happening in Grant Park, Chicago, Ill.
Happy Birthday, Pokemon GO!
This event isn’t just going to be a chance to meet other players, but it is going to be one serious party! There are going to be many activities and promotions going on, so everyone attending it is bound to have a good time. The event is already sold out, but it has been confirmed that there will be more events over the coming months both in the U.S. and in Europe.
More Pokemon During the Event!
Is there any Pokemon that you’ve always wanted to catch but you’ve never found? During the event, there will be an increase in Pokemon sightings, and there will also be chances to catch Pokemon that have never been seen before in the area! Hopefully, there will be a big ole boost to region-specific sightings and, who knows, maybe some other region-specific Pokemon might make an appearance!
Maybe lots more starter Pokemon?
Grant Park and the World at Pokemon GO Fest
During the celebrations on July 22, there will be a huge event taking place called the Play Together Worldwide challenge. While folks in Chicago will be running around catching Pokemon they’ve never seen before, players from across the globe will also be able to join in the fun and get some neat rewards, too!
The challenge will consist of three phases:
Phase 1: Catch Challenge
During the course of the day, there will be three challenge windows in which players attending the bash in Grant Park will have to catch as many Pokemon of one type as they can find. Each type of Pokemon will give players everywhere a bonus.
- Fire-type Pokemon will give an increase in Candies
- Water-type Pokemon will give an XP bonus
- Leaf-type Pokemon will give more Stardust
- Electric-type Pokemon will shorten the distance required to hatch eggs
- Rock-type Pokemon will decrease the distance needed for your buddy to find candies
- Normal-type Pokemon will boost wild encounter rates
While that is going on, players around the world will be catching as many Pokemon as they can find. Depending on the amount they catch, the duration of the bonuses earned during the park section of the challenge will be increased for everyone. Getting to the “Gold” duration bonus will unlock Phase 2 of the challenge.
I’d welcome a decrease in egg hatching distance with these guys!
Phase 2: Mystery Challenge
Yep, that’s not cryptic! It really is a mystery. If players around the world reach the gold reward on Phase 1, a mystery challenge will be announced in Grant Park. If this phase is completed, the challenge will progress to Phase 3.
Phase 3: Global Reward
To reward everyone for all their hard work during the challenge and for the guys in Grant Park completing Phase 2 of PGO‘s live event, there will be a major global reward unlocked, and we can only speculate as to what that would be!
Come on, legendary Pokemon!!!!
Team Lounges at Pokemon GO Fest
You’ll be able to relax and meet up with other members of Team Valor, Team Instinct, or Team Mystic in separate team lounges. Maybe you could come up with some strategies for taking down gyms at the event or form some private Pokemon GO raid groups.
Special Pokestops at Pokemon GO Fest
Pokemon GO wouldn’t be Pokemon GO if there weren’t any pokestops, so it makes sense that for the event there were some special pokestops in the park for topping off your supplies. These special pokestops will create a walking course around the park and will drop special 2km eggs that can only be found in Grant Park.
Not Grant Park but maybe it will look a bit like this?
Other things you need to check out at Pokemon GO Fest
As well as the above, there will be the following:
- Pokemon at the event for photo opportunities
- Pokemon game merch
- Promo code giveaways from Sprint and Boost Mobile
- Pokemon GO in-game medals
There you have it! All that you have to look forward to at Pokemon GO Fest in Chicago this year! If you are feeling sad because you are in another part of the world and can’t make it to the event, don’t fret! Niantic has announced a series of events happening across Europe between now and September.
These events will give players similar opportunities as those in the Grant Park event but specific details have not been released. Here is what we do know:
July 22 – July 23: Pokemon GO will be at the Big Heritage Festival in Chester, United Kingdom.
August 5th: Fisketorvet in Copenhagen, Denmark, and Centrum Cerny Most in Prague, Czech Republic.
August 12th: Stadshart Amstelveen in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Mall of Scandinavia in Stockholm, Sweden.
September 16th: Centro in Oberhausen, Germany, Les Quatre Temps in Paris, France, and La Maquinista in Barcelona, Spain.
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We will let you know of any updates and announcements for these events as information is released, so make sure you check back with us if any of them interest you!
In the meantime, make sure you check out our other Pokemon GO guides and make sure you come back to GameSkinny for all other Pokemon GO news and developments!
