Events

The Japanese official Pokémon website has announced that Japanese players will be able to receive redemption codes for both Shiny Zacian in Pokémon Sword and Shiny Zamazenta in Pokémon Shield. Code cards will be distributed starting October 22, 2021, by most stores stocking video games throughout Japan (excluding convenience stores).

The starter Pokémon of the Alola region, Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio, will be appearing more frequently in Max Raid Battles in Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield through October 4, 2021, at 8:59 a.m. JST.

A new online competition has been announced for Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield to celebrate the Halloween season. Registration for the Spooky Cup 2021 competition will begin on September 29, 2021, at 10:00 p.m. PDT, and will remain open until October 14, 2021, at 4:59 p.m. PDT. The competition itself will then take place from October 14, 2021, at 5:00 p.m. until October 17, 2021, at 4:59 p.m. PDT.

The producers of Pokémon Masters EX have announced upcoming events coming to the game alongside the start of the Villain Arc, the newest arc of the mobile title's main story.

The official Pokémon website has announced the participants for the Pokémon Global Exhibition, which will be livestreamed on Twitch.tv/Pokemon on October 30–31, 2021.

Niantic has announced details of the monthly update for October 2021 in Pokémon GO. These events will take place between Friday, October 1, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, November 1, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). Research Breakthrough encounters Yamask can be encountered in Research Breakthrough encounters after completing seven days of Field Research tasks. Pokémon Spotlight Hours Taking place every Tuesday from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, these Pokémon and special bonuses will be featured: October 5: Drifloon will be in the spotlight, and you'll earn twice the XP for evolving Pokémon. October 12: Gastly will be in the spotlight, and you'll earn twice the Stardust for catching Pokémon. October 19: Gothita will be in the spotlight, and you'll earn twice the XP for catching Pokémon. October 26: Murkrow will be in the spotlight, and you'll earn twice the XP for evolving Pokémon. Featured Pokémon in raids The following Pokémon will be appearing in five-star raids in...

Niantic has announced an event will be coming to Pokémon GO to commemorate the premiere of the latest Pokémon animated film, Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle, on Netflix on October 8, 2021. The Rogue Monkey Mythical Pokémon, Zarude will be making its Pokémon GO debut as part of this event, with players able to encounter it by completing limited-time Special Research. Trainers can also look forward to lots of other in-game content inspired by the movie, including the return of Jessie and James to Pokémon GO. The event will take place from October 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. to October 10, 2021, at 8:00 p.m. local time.

The two Meteorite Pokémon, Lunatone and Solrock, will be appearing more frequently in Max Raid Battles in Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield through September 19, 2021, at 4:59 p.m. PDT. Very rarely, Shiny variants of these two Pokémon can also be encountered. To encounter these Pokémon in a Max Raid Battle, you'll need to connect your Nintendo Switch system to the internet through the Y-Comm or by selecting Mystery Gift in the X menu, then selecting Get the Wild Area News. After that, whenever you see a pillar of light shining from a Pokémon Den in the Wild Area, you can walk up to the Pokémon Den and interact with it to start a Max Raid Battle. This event does not affect the Pokémon encountered within Dynamax Adventures.

The official Pokémon GO Chinese language website website has announced the "Kaohsiung Island-wide Battle of the Candy King" Pokémon GO event that will be held exclusively in Taiwan from 21 September 2021 at 8 a.m. to 28 September 2021 at 8 p.m. (UTC+8 Taiwan time).

Niantic has announced details of the Pokémon GO Fashion Week event, which will be taking place from September 21, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. to September 28, 2021, at 8:00 p.m. local time. During the event, trainers can look forward to Pokémon like Butterfree, Sneasel, and Blitzle wearing fashionable costumes for the first time. Costumed Pokémon that starred during last year's Fashion Week event, including Smoochum, Kirlia, Shinx, and Croagunk, will be making a return as well. In celebration of the event, the shop will also be having a first-of-its-kind sale on select avatar items.

Niantic has announced that the Requiem Pokémon, Duskull will be the featured Pokémon in Pokémon GO's October 2021 Community Day event. The event will take place on Saturday, October 9, 2021, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time. Duskull will be appearing more frequently in the wild. The Shiny variant of Duskull can also be encountered. Take a few snapshots for a surprise. When you evolve Dusclops into Dusknoir during, or within two hours after the event, it will learn the Charged Attack Shadow Ball. To help you evolve your Dusclops into Dusknoir, you'll be able to earn up to four Sinnoh Stones by completing free Timed Research during the event. 30 Ultra Balls will be available in the shop at no cost. The event will also feature a 3× Catch Stardust, and Incense and Lure Modules activated during the event will last for three hours. A Community Day-exclusive Special Research story, Nothin' Dull About Duskull, will be available for purchase at US$1.00 (or the equivalent pricing...

The Pokémon Company International has announced that the twenty-third animated Pokémon movie, Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle, will premiere on Netflix around the world (with the exception of Japan, China, and Korea) on October 8, 2021.

Niantic has announced new dates and details for several previously planned Pokémon GO Safari Zone events originally scheduled for 2020 that were delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Pokémon Company International has announced the Draft the World Pokémon TCG Tournament, an event spotlighting some of the best players in the world, and showcasing the best decks from the 2014–2019 Pokémon World Championships. This competition, which is part of the 25 years of Pokémon celebration, will take place on September 18 and 19, 2021, starting at 9 a.m. PDT each day. It will be streamed live on the official Pokémon Twitch channel.

Niantic has announced details for this year's Psychic Spectacular event. It will feature two Pokémon, Inkay, the Revolving Pokémon, and Malamar, the Overturning Pokémon, making their Pokémon GO debuts. The event will take place from September 8, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. to September 13, 2021, at 8:00 p.m. local time. Something's got Psychic-type Pokémon all worked up, and they're appearing more often in the wild. We might learn more about Hoopa. Psychic-type Pokémon like Abra, Drowzee, Gothita, Solosis, and more will be appearing more frequently in the wild. Elgyem and Inkay might also appear occasionally. Staryu, Chimecho, Bronzor, Espurr, and Inkay will be appearing in one-star raids. Alolan Raichu, Wobbuffet, Medicham, and Metagross will be appearing in three-star raids. Lugia will continue to appear in five-star raids and Mega Slowbro will continue to appear in Mega Raids. Evolve Inkay into Malamar by turning your mobile device upside-down, similar to how it evolve in Pokémon X...

Niantic has announced the Season of Mischief, which will feature the Mischief Pokémon, Hoopa, will be coming to Pokémon GO beginning September 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time and will last to December 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time. Starting on September 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time, there will be a season-long Special Research story, which gives you access to different sets of tasks. The Special Research story will focus on discovering more about Hoopa and the strange occurrences happening throughout the Season. If you complete this Season's Special Research story, you'll gain access to a special event at the end of the Season that might have something to do with Hoopa. On September 1, 2021, the Special Research will start. From Sunday, September 5, 2021, at 11:00 a.m. local time, after completing some tasks, you can encounter Hoopa. An event will take place on September 5, 2021, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time, where various strange phenomena will be...

Niantic has announced details of the monthly update for September 2021 in Pokémon GO. These events will take place between Wednesday, September 1, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Friday, October 1, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). Research Breakthrough encounters Ditto can be encountered in Research Breakthrough encounters after completing seven days of Field Research tasks. Shiny Ditto can be encountered for the first time outside of Special Researches. Pokémon Spotlight Hours Taking place every Tuesday from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. local time, these Pokémon and special bonuses will be featured: September 7, 2021: Spoink will be in the spotlight, and you’ll earn twice the Stardust for catching Pokémon. September 14, 2021: Baltoy will be in the spotlight, and you’ll earn twice the XP for catching Pokémon. September 21, 2021: Skitty will be in the spotlight, and you’ll earn twice the Candy for catching Pokémon. September 28, 2021: Alolan Meowth will be in the spotlight, and you’ll earn twice...

Niantic has announced that the Sea Otter Pokémon, Oshawott will be the featured Pokémon in September 2021's Community Day. The event will take place on Saturday, July 3, 2021, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time.

Niantic has announced that in the Ultra Unlock Part 3: Sword and Shield event being held now in Pokémon GO, Falinks was to appear in three-star raids until September 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time. However, due to a bug causing Falinks to appear distorted during raids, it has been removed from raids. To replace Falinks, Machamp will be appearing in three-star raids from August 20, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. to August 26, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time. Gengar will then be appearing in three-star raids from August 26, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. to September 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time.

Cool Pokémon that lives in the summer will be appearing more frequently in Max Raid Battles in Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield through August 8, 2021, at 4:59 p.m. PDT. These Pokémon include Seaking, Pinsir, Heracross, Ninjask, Fan Rotom, and Vanilluxe. Very rarely, a Shiny Vanilluxe may also be encountered. To encounter these Pokémon in a Max Raid Battle, you'll need to connect your Nintendo Switch system to the internet through the Y-Comm or by selecting Mystery Gift in the X menu, then selecting Get the Wild Area News. After that, whenever you see a pillar of light shining from a Pokémon Den, you can walk up to the Pokémon Den and interact with it to start a Max Raid Battle. This event does not affect the Pokémon encountered within Dynamax Adventures.