'Pokémon GO' Spring 2017 Update: Niantic to Bring Cooperative Gameplay Feature?
After a major update last month which added more than 80 Pokémon monsters to catch, "Pokémon GO" enjoyed a resurgence of its popularity with over 65 million people now logging into the game each month.
Developer Niantic, however, already announced that there will be more major updates coming for the game after that first one. Next to arrive is the spring update, which might finally add a co-op gameplay feature into the game.
In its blog post from Friday, April 7, Niantic tells its millions of "Pokémon GO" players that while they wait for spring to arrive, "players can look forward to all new cooperative social gameplay experiences in Pokémon GO that will give Trainers new and exciting reasons to get back into the sunshine."
Enthusiasts speculate that this co-op gameplay might be incorporated in the gyms found in the game since a number of players were dissatisfied with the original feature. Some players felt gyms were getting to be one-sided and repetitive. However, this feature is also the most probable way to bring several players together in one area.
Other than that, speculations also mention a new "raid" feature that will likely be included in the upcoming spring update.
Apparently, players might be notified about a nearby "raid" wherein all "Pokémon GO" enthusiasts in that area can join in and play - which is yet another type of co-op gameplay that could indeed work for the mobile game.
Niantic, however, refused to give more details or a release date for its upcoming "Pokémon GO" spring update.
Their blog post was mainly a thank you note for everyone who kept supporting the game, which eventually won the Best Mobile and Handheld Game award at the British Academy of Film, Television and Arts Games Awards on Thursday, April 6.
Among others, "Pokémon GO" also won Best Game from BBC Radio 1's Teen Awards 2016, Best Mobile Game from GameSpot, and Mobile Game of the Year from SXSW's 2017 Gaming Awards.
