Niantic Labs announced that a new update is now live for its augmented reality game "Pokémon GO."
In the announcement posted on the developer's blog site, Niantic Labs has revealed that with the new update, "Pokémon GO" will now go to version 0.41.2 for Android and 1.11.2 for iOS devices. Meanwhile, although the new update is just one of the continuous patches that are being released, the new version also features some major improvements and changes in the gameplay and design for "Pokémon GO."
With the new update, players will now have access to catch bonus rewards. The catch bonus feature adds to the overall percentage for Pokémon catching within a vicinity. The rewards depend on the stats and medals of a particular type of Pokémon that the trainer focused on. For example, having a Kindler medal in the player stats adds catch bonus for fire-type Pokémon like Vulpix, Charmander, and Ponyta.
Aside from catch bonus rewards, the new update also brings changes to the gym training battles in "Pokémon GO." Since the update is already released, players can now bring up to six Pokémon to battle in friendly gyms. However, there is also a new auto-balance update for gym training battles. The six Pokémon will be matched to those whose CP are similar to the other Pokémon set. This means that even if the trainer picks the top Pokémon in the list, there are high chances that the auto balance feature when in gym training will lower the Pokémon levels to match the six Pokémon of the other trainer.
Meanwhile, even if the new update brings some adjustments to the gameplay, it is still considered as a minor update for "Pokémon GO." The major game patch is expected early next year. When the major updates roll out, it is expected that the gameplay and design will add content from the roster of games with second-generation Pokémon.
