Pokémon Go maker Niantic has announced a set of changes to Remote Raid gameplay, in a bid to rebalance a lockdown-era feature it says has grown to overly dominate the app’s economy and game balance.
Beginning next Thursday, 6th April, players will be limited to a cap of five Remote Raids per day (though this cap may change and increase for certain events). The cost of Remote Raid passes will also increase from 100 to 195 coins, or from 300 to 525 for a pack of three (though with a possibility to receive one free as part of the game’s weekly rewards). To counteract some of this, a discounted three-pack of in-person raid passes will be added to the game’s shop, while the endgame XL Candy resource will be made more abundant from in-person raids.
These are changes designed to nudge players away from Remote Raids, and seem likely to spark a strong reaction from some of Pokémon Go’s many fans – in particular, those who previously campaigned against the disappearance of the app’s many lockdown-era bonuses which made the game easier to play. Again, these changes seem to place the reality of how some fans want to play Pokémon Go in opposition to the vision set out by its creator Niantic. So, why was Niantic so sure these changes were necessary? And if this is the stick, where exactly is the carrot?
In advance of these changes being made public, Niantic invited me to speak with its veteran developer Ed Wu, the company’s Pokémon Go VP, to talk over the decision in detail via an extensive Zoom chat. In it, we discuss the reasoning for these changes – why, in Niantic’s eyes, remote raids have become too convenient a “shortcut” – and how many people will likely be affected, as well as why this is all happening now. In addition, Wu looks to the future, teasing the carrot still to come of new features designed to entertain Trainers on their local streets this summer. Finally, we finish up with a more general chat about features players are hoping to see on the horizon – including Shadow Raids, and the eventual introduction of Pokémon god Arceus.
“It’s a big and meaningful change to a huge part of the game… so as you might imagine for a change of this magnitude, we’ve of course examined many possible alternatives,” Wu begins. “After thinking very carefully about this, what we’re doing is relatively simple. Generally speaking, the goal is to keep Remote Raids as a part of Pokémon Go, but to do so in a sustainable way. The change is necessary for the long term health of the overall game, and our principles of getting folks outside and exploring the world together.