Pokémon GO Halloween Event Features New Pokémon!

The Pokémon GO Halloween event launched today. Along with candy and gift boxes, it’s debuting some Gen III Pokémon from the Hoenn region!

First of all, I have to air a petty grievance: I’m not a fan of Niantic’s timing. The update for the Pokémon GO Halloween event hit yesterday like most of the updates have – suddenly and while I’m not on a Wi-Fi network to download them. I’m getting tired of suddenly not being able to kill time sniping Pidgies in my doctor’s office because of a surprise download. Can’t they send a push notification out that a download is imminent, or are those just to rub it in that my beloved Houndoom got his tail kicked out of a gym?

Aside from that annoyance, this update was fairly interesting. Last year’s Pokémon GO Halloween celebration just had extra candy and ghost types, but this year is a little more involved. We get double candy for hatching, catching, and transferring Pokémon.  Though Niantic didn’t specify, the bonus also applies to walking. (First hand experience – I took a surprise walk to double check.) Last year we got quadruple candy, but there are admittedly more perks overall this time around. The extra candy adds up, especially for people who are trying to fill out their Pokédex before the bulk of Gen III hits.

Speaking of Gen III, the Ghost types – including Sableye, Duskull, and Banette – are already out in force. Other Ghost types got a boost in number. Like last year, it’s a major boost: ghost types are everywhere right now. A pair of Ghastlies have been periodically respawning at the foot of my driveway since the launch. I saw a Pikachu with a witch hat on, too, but no dice on the capture.

There are some super nifty Pokémon GO Halloween boxes in the shop. When I say Super Nifty, I mean it. Niantic seems to have learned from the “not really a deal” boxes offered in the last event. One example: The lowest price Special Box has 6x premium raid passes, 5x incense, and 10x Pinap Berries for 480 coins. Buying just the incense and raid passes would cost about 1K in coins, or just under $10.

Here’s what you’ll find in the other two boxes:

Great Box: 3x premium raid passes, 4x super incubators, 7x incense, and 10x razz berries

Ultra Box: 6x Lucky Eggs, 6x premium raid passes, 6x super incubators, and 12x incense

So if you’re still playing, or if you’re looking for an excuse to get some walking in before gorging on candy, fire up the app. If you’re not sure, watch yesterday’s trailer which will tell you…well, actually less than I have, but it is pretty. The Pokémon GO Halloween event runs until November 2nd at 4pm EST.

Will you be heading out on a spooky Pokéwalk? Which Pokémon are you finally going to evolve with this double candy situation? Let us know in the comments section below!

Author: Khai

Khai is a writer, anthropologist, and games enthusiast. She is co-editor (alongside Alex DeCampi) of and contributor to “True War Stories”, a comic anthology published by Z2 Comics. When she’s not writing or creating games, Khai likes to run more tabletop RPGs than one person should reasonably juggle.

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