Pokemon GO finally introduced Team Rocket GO into the mobile AR game earlier this fall with some exciting opportunities to battle grunts at Pokestops and catch Shadow Pokemon. The new mechanics were very popular, but to keep the thrill alive, Niantic has decided to only occasionally let Team Rocket GO loose in the game during select events. From the look of the latest datamine, the bad guys and girls may be returning yet again with some a new Special Research line.
Special Research is used to deliver a longer series of connected quests in Pokemon GO. Usually there is a story that runs through sets of three quests and a big encounter reward at the end of the chain (usually a Legendary Pokemon). Dataminers seem to have uncovered details about an upcoming Team Rocket GO themed Special Research chain that will likely end with the chance to capture a Shadow Legendary Pokemon.
Special Research is available to all Pokemon GO players, but can usually only be completed once. That means players won't be able to replay the entire chain quest for additional rewards after completion. The Team Rocket Special Research isn't live in the game yet, but the dataminers did reveal some potential spoilers for how things will play out. Consider this your SPOILER ALERT if you do not want to know any more details about the upcoming Special Research...
As always, keep in mind that datamined information is not live in the game yet and is subject to change before implementation.
Defeat Team GO Rocket Leader Arlo {0} times
Defeat Team GO Rocket Leader Cliff {0} times
Defeat Team GO Rocket Leader Sierra {0} times
Defeat {0} Team GO Rocket Grunts
Defeat {0} Team GO Rocket Grunts
Defeat the Team GO Rocket Boss
Find the Team GO Rocket Boss
Battle the Team GO Rocket Boss
Catch {0} Shadow Pokémon
Purify {0} Shadow Pokémon
Catch a Legendary Shadow Pokémon
Win {0} raids
Spin {0} PokéStops
Spin a PokéStop {0} days in a row
Use {0} supereffective Charged Attacks in Gym Battles
Win {0} Great League Trainer Battles
When the Special Research goes live, it will be very exciting to find out which Legendary Pokemon have the potential to be Shadow Pokemon. It seems very likely that Lugia will return to play this role, but it's possible that there will be multiple options. For now, we'll just have to wait and see... For now, speculating about Shadow Legendaries should help move the meta conversation away from debating which Unova Pokemon are the best.
Be sure to check back in the coming days for more Pokemon GO news, updates, and strategy guides. Until then, good luck out there, trainers!
Pokemon GO is currently available in select regions on Android and iOS devices.
Source: Pokemon GO Hub