Pokemon GO is Niantic's AR and location-based mobile title that allows players the chance to catch hundreds of Pokemon from multiple regions. While the game has been out for several years now at this point, there are still new people logging in each day to see what all the fuss is about.
Once players log in and begin their pocket monster-catching journey, they'll start to earn XP toward their level. When players hit level 5, they can finally choose one of the three teams to join: Team Instinct, Team Valor, or Team Mystic.
Which Pokemon GO Team Should You Choose?
To get right into it, it makes no major difference which team players align themselves with in Pokemon GO. There are no team-exclusive Pokemon to catch, and it doesn't change how players progress.
The big thing to keep in mind is that Team Mystic is the most popular team, so that means players might notice more Gyms being controlled by the Blanche-led group. Players can place their Pokemon into teams of the same name to help them survive any incoming attacks from Team Instinct and Team Valor, for example, earning them PokeCoins in the process. Gyms with the same team as you can also be spun to earn rewards, giving players a little boost.
Here's a rundown of the three teams:
Teams | Leader | Values | Mascot |
|---|---|---|---|
Valor | Candela  | Team Valor cares a lot about strength and being the best there is. Their researching ways to make Pokemon stronger than everyone else. | Moltres |
Instinct | Spark  | Team Instinct cares a lot about Pokemon and trainers' intuition and also are focused on learning more about Eggs and the entire hatching process. | Zapdos |
Mystic | Blanche  | Blanche of Team Mystic believes Pokemon are incredibly intelligent, and they focus on why Pokemon evolve. | Articuno |
Another thing to note is that these NPCs will speak to trainers often about an assortment of things, so while the majority of the dialogue will be similar, each of them will have their own personalities injected into the text.
How to Change Teams in Pokemon GO
For Pokemon GO players that would like to switch to a different team, they'll need to buy the Team Medallion from the in-game shop.
This can be purchased once every 365 days and allows players to change teams. However, it does cost 1000 PokeCoins, and these don't come cheap. Players can either purchase 1200 PokeCoins for $9.99 or slowly earn the coins by leaving defender Pokemon at a Gym.
When a Pokemon is hanging in a Gym, players can get one PokeCoin every 10 minutes. However, this will cap out at 50 coins, so folks will have to use multiple gyms to rack up the currency. The PokeCoins will be rewarded to players only when their Pokemon gets knocked out of the Gym .
Once the Medallion is bought, it'll appear in the Items section.
Pokemon GO is free-to-play on Mobile devices.