New social features coming soon to Pokémon GO

Niantic has announced new social features to help bring people together to enjoy Pokémon GO, new bonuses for participating in local raid battles, and changes to items in the in-game shop. These new features have been tested over time and will be available in Pokémon GO sometime in the next few months.

Since early May, Mega Energy and Rare Candy XL are available as rewards for completing local raid battles, making it easier to evolve and strengthen Pokémon. Starting on May 23rd, the shop’s 1 PokéCoin Event Box will no longer include Remote Raid Passes and will instead feature a rotating array of items.

In order to encourage players to get back to playing Pokémon GO together in person, Niantic has also promised to work on solutions such as tools for community leaders to organize local events and faster approval for new Gyms.