Pokémon Go’s annual summer weekend special event, Pokémon Go Fest, has seen a plethora of exciting new developments added to the mobile game.
Professor Willow is usually present to guide players old and new throughout the latest quests and provide helpful hints about how to progress your Pokémon Go trainer career. This weekend though, with the arrival of Pokémon Go Fest, he seems to have gone missing.
In his place is Rhi, a member of the Alola region’s Ultra Recon Squad. Rhi arrives with a Special Research Quest called Rhi’s Arrival which is free for all players, whilst a second, ‘A Radiant World, is available for Pokémon Go Fest ticket holders.
Trainers don’t have a long time to worry about the sudden disappearance of Professor Willow though, as Rhi soon hands over the task of investigating the game’s Ultra Beasts, which could be responsible for their missing friend and teacher. The Rock/Poison type Ultra Beast Nihilego was the first to enter the game, and has already proven difficult to catch – with some players reporting up to 15 attempts before finally managing to catch it in a Pokéball.
2022’s Pokémon Go Fest also saw its first day filled with a brand new Mythical Pokémon to catch in the form of Shaymin, an adorable little hedgehog with a cute floral twist. Following this a series of quest steps and raid battles followed, with the added bonus of an elevated Shiny encounter rate, as well as the usually region-locked Tropius and Torkoal, and event-exclusive Unown. It’s important to note that you won’t encounter these Pokémon if you haven’t purchased this year’s Pokémon Go Fest ticket, which is available for around £14.
The ticket also offers at least 18 in-person raid passes as well as three remote passes to use to help increase your chances of catching Nihilego as well as the usually incredibly rare Axew and other legendary Pokémon.
The surprise twist of Professor Willow’s disappearance on day two of the event is sure to be resolved throughout the story over the next few months, as a Pokémon Go Fest finale event for ticket holders is scheduled for August. In the meantime, we can expect to become very well acquainted with Rhi as they look to be the trainers’ main quest provider and mentor for the foreseeable future.
In other gaming news, Facepunch has added the game’s biggest gunplay update since launch to the game – something it knows “will be controversial”.
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