Pokemon GO’s GO Battle League first began in March, and was a hit for the game. Season 6 of GO Battle League begins later today, and developer Niantic has revealed the details that will make this the most unique season the game has seen thus far.
Many Pokemon GO players love being able to have a battle anytime without having to schedule one with a friend or an online stranger, and also love having a track of useful rewards to chase down. The matchmaking kept players of similar skill levels playing together, until later ranks. As average or below-average players approached Rank 10, the difficulty to win battles went up, to the point that Niantic had to add a “play until you win” feature to Pokemon GO to not overly frustrate players who bought a premium battle pass.
The difficulty curve is one of the primary things Niantic is looking to fix this season when Season 6 goes live at 1:00 p.m. PST, starting with the Great League. As was confirmed last week, the GO Battle League will be changing from a 10-tier ranking system to 24 tiers. Niantic is hoping this will add more space for trainers of different skill levels to stretch their legs out a bit more and prevent players from feeling like they’re being punished for reaching higher levels.
A new structure for the Battle League also means a new rewards structure. Ranks 5, 10, 15, and 19 will have unique progression and rewards according to a post on the Pokemon GO website. The rewards will be mystery items, stardust, rare candies, and then Pokemon encounters, respectively. Ranks 16, 17, and 18 will provide encounters with the new starters being added as part of the upcoming addition of the Kalos region to Pokemon GO with Chespin, Fennekin, then Froakie, respectively.
Rank 20 will also net an encounter with, “A surprise Pokemon during the second half of Season 6,” as well as an encounter with whatever legendary Pokemon is available during raids at the time each trainer reaches 20. Pikachu Libre will also be making a return as a reward, but only to those who reach rank 24, along with avatar items and a pose inspired by N from Pokemon Black and White.
Last week, Niantic announced an extension of the temporary bonuses designed to keep people inside during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The bonuses include a continued removal of walking distance requirements for Season 6 and beyond until at least June 2021.
Pokemon GO is available now on Android and iOS devices.
Source: Niantic