Pokemon Go took over the massive Hall H at Comic-Con today, a venue upgrade thanks to the unbelievable successthe app has seen so far. John Hanke, CEO of Niantic, took the stage to discuss the game and what we can expect for the future.
While we didn’t get any concrete updates on Mewtwo, the Legendary Birds and the game’s other missing Pokemon, we did learn a lot about Niantic’s current focus, plus which features might be headed to the game once it’s available worldwide and servers are stable.
Team Leaders
The leaders of Team Mystic, Team Valor, and Team Instinct have been revealed! Niantic showed off Blanche, Candela, and Spark, the leaders of each respective team.
We don’t know exactly how these three trainers will communicate with the player just yet, but Hanke suggested they’ll give the player advice and will be popping up in a number of ways.
The leaders weren’t quite ready for the launch of the game, but hopefully we’ll find out more soon.
Big new features are being considered
Get ready to expand your Pokedex! Trading and more Pokemon are coming to Pokemon Go. Niantic says they expect to support Pokemon Go for months and years, and teased that there “are probably some Pokemon that will find their way into our universe” even beyond the current original set of 150.
Hanke also praised the idea of trading in the core Pokemon games as “a great social thing” and said it’s something Niantic is working on bringing to Pokemon Go. The team is also looking into customizing Pokestops, such as acquiring an object that will change the Pokestop’s functionality, and maybe even Pokemon Centers.
During a Q&A, the idea of breeding in the game also came up, which Hanke called a “great suggestion” that has been discussed among the team, though it hasn’t been confirmed as an upcoming feature.
While these features would be nice, Hanke stressed that players shouldn’t get excited just yet, as the current focus is ensuring server stability and making sure Pokemon Go is available worldwide.
Hanke said that only one tenth of the team’s ideas when the app first started development are currently in the game.
Some Easter Eggs haven't been found
There are still secrets hidden inside of Pokemon Go! In reference to the Eevee naming trick to make sure you get the right evolution, Hanke hinted that there may be other Easter Eggs hidden within Pokemon Go.
“There might be some other Easter eggs buried in there yet to be discovered,” he teased.
Why Pokemon Go uses AR instead of VR
With so much buzz about VR lately, some may wonder why Pokemon Go focused so heavily on Augmented Reality rather than going down the headset route.
Hanke said VR “scares him a little bit” in that players close themselves off for those experiences, and we still don’t know what the consequences are for doing that. AR, on the other hand, has “a huge amount of potential” to make things more fun.
He added that, as a parent, he’s concerned about the time his children spend in front of a screen, and VR takes away from the face-to-face time he can spend with them.
Bugs are still being squashed
With server troubles abound, Hanke assured players that server stability is Niantic’s “top priority,” even before other features are added. There is a “laundry list” of things the team still wants to fix.
Hanke acknowledged the “three step” bug -- in which the game’s Nearby menu shows all Pokemon as three steps away -- and confirmed that the team is aware of it. He also assured fans that Niantic is exploring ways to prevent players from exploiting certain features, such as players who poach gyms immediately after they’ve been won.
“Your point is acknowledged. We should help you out. Thanks for pointing out that challenge,” Hanke promised one fan regarding poaching.
Pokemon Go has taken the world by storm, and Hanke described it as a “joyful, exciting, fun” experience to get together with other players. He described Niantic’s games as “a Comic-Con that’s happening in your neighborhood all the time” and said that while video games are traditionally played at home, now the technology can move around with us.
Hanke acknowledged the social and physical repurcussions of the app, talking about the huge physiological and mental benefits of walking around and meeting other players, though he did note Niantic didn’t want to advertise the game as a fitness app.
He said that connecting with people, going outside, and exploring are the actions that are going to help get us through the period we’re going through as a society -- “so share it.”
For much, much more on Pokemon Go, be sure to visit our Pokemon Go wiki guide, and find all of the news straight from Comic-Con in IGN’s San Diego Comic-Con 2016 hub.
Andrew is IGN's executive editor of news and is afraid he's going to seriously injure his feet from walking so much to hatch Pokemon. You can find him rambling about Persona and cute animals on Twitter.
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