'Pokémon GO' data mine: Undocumented changes in new update revealed

A promotional image for "Pokémon GO." Facebook/PokémonGO

Niantic has released a new update for the popular augmented reality mobile game "Pokémon GO," with version 0.59.1 for Android and version 1.29.1 for iOS.

While the patch notes released with the update only included minor text fixes and a random Evolution item, which can be acquired during a PokéStop's seventh-day spin, a group of data miners called The Silph Road has apparently found several undocumented changes in the recent update. The group's latest community thread post states that there have been changes made to the appearance of both the day and night skies, as well as with the Pokédex buttons, which now have different indications for gender categories and new buttons for Shiny Pokémon. This could mean that monsters under the Shiny type can be added to Pokédex soon when caught.

Other undocumented changes are the throw mechanics, a new inactive PokéStop label, and nickname blackouts, which is used to handle banned nicknames better since Niantic has been receiving many reports of trainers giving their Pokémon inappropriate nicknames.  It is also said that the crash reporting system in the application has been improved.

According to Video Games Republic, Niantic has also added something new to the in-game store, which looks like a way for trainers to redeem in-game rewards using passcodes.

In other news, "Pokémon GO" is currently having a Water Festival event to celebrate all water-type Pokémon creatures. Since the new update has built up the hype for Shiny Pokémon, trainers are now excited to catch the Shiny type gold-colored Magikarp, which only shows up in the wild on rare occasions. The Shiny Magikarp will also evolve into a red-colored Gyarados instead of the blue one, according to an article on Forbes. There will be increased spawn rate for water-type Pokémon all throughout the duration of the event, even in places away from bodies of water. However, there are currently no any known tricks as to how to find a shiny Magikarp.

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