Pokemon Go players blast “garbage” forced local Raids
The Pokemon CompanyThe Pokemon Go community has taken to social media to criticize local Raids that offer little in guaranteed returns for their efforts.
Raids represent some of the most challenging encounters in the game and usually require a group of around five or more to complete successfully on the highest difficulties. They are particularly desirable for players due to their helpful item rewards and the chance to catch the raid Pokemon after victory.
As things stand, some Raids can be attended remotely, but others require players to be local to the Raid location to participate. This has proved to be controversial among members of the community, and many would like to see local Raids changed.
Now, in a post on Reddit, many have vented their frustrations at the current system and voiced what they would like to see moving forward.
Shadow Lugia has piled the pressure on local Raids
The latest Raid in the rotation allows players to take on and catch the Legendary Shadow Lugia. As a 5-Star Shadow Raid, it is local only and requires a significantly powered team to overcome. One user took to Reddit to express their frustration, saying: “took 2 hours to form a group large enough to do Lugia without struggling”
The difficulty with this is further compounded by the fact that the catch is not a guarantee (unless it drops as a shiny).
Additionally, this problem disproportionately affects rural players with less access to Raid locations and groups large enough to complete them.
Another user agreed, noting: “If a Raid boss is only spawning for one weekend and we’re supposed to play the game by walking, make it possible for us to walk.”
Others were quick to share possible solutions, with one saying: “The solution for limited events like this, where you have Raid in person, you should be able to complete the Raid multiple times at the same gym. In all reality, this is the actual change that rural players and even urban players should be pushing for.”
Whether developer Niantic has any plans to change the current system is unclear, but it’s clear that pushing players toward using the app as they intended is high on the list of priorities.
