'Pokemon Go' took the world by storm when it was released back in July 2016. People fell in love with the idea of venturing out into the real world in search of fantastical creatures of the game. One particular aspect of the game which fans seemed to love was its Gym feature. With the feature two players could let their respective Pokemons’ battle each other, much like in the animated series of the franchise.
However, within days a problem started causing issues for players taking part in the Gym. Some players were employing cheats and bots to dominate in the online matches, which soured the gameplay experience that the Gym was designed for in the first place.
Following reports of such activities, Niantic Labs, the developers, have decided to shut down the Gym feature temporarily.
Pokemon Go Gyms shutting down temporarily
Niantic has revealed that as part of its summer patch plans, it will close down the Gym for some time, after which it would be reopened. All Pokemons currently in the Gym would be returned to their owners prior to the shut down. Many gamers would be waiting that the feature will be back up live as soon as possible so that they can challenge others in the Gym.
The shutdown of Gyms is part of a large update which the developers are planning to launch sometime soon and is expected to bring huge changes gameplay wise. Fans are left wondering what kind of changes this update would bring to the Gym and whether it would be able to restrict cheaters from using overpowered Pokemons and bots in the arena.
Niantic CEO John Hanke revealed that the update was focusing on “improvising gym battles” but did not go on to elaborate what he meant by it or what aspects would be changed.
Theories of what could change in the gyms
The enthusiasts of 'Pokemon Go' have reviewed some of the game codes and have reported seeing some changes which they believe hint at Niantic restricting the deployment of a Pokemon in the gym if its same species is already present.
This can prevent fans from stacking high powered Pokemons, making it almost impossible to take over a gym.
If the developers can keep out the cheaters and only allow verified and honest users into the gym, the fans would be immensely happy. It would likely revitalize the 65 million worldwide players to join in on the gym competitions once again. Niantic has revealed that it is also planning to hold real world 'Pokemon Go' events as well, which include a 20,000 person event in Chicago.
