Pokémon GO just keeps rolling out the updates! Hot on the heels of the big Friends feature release, Niantic Labs have added an extra bonus to trading your Mons: Lucky Pokémon.
Previously, when you traded Pokémon with your friends, all you got was some extra candy. Now, there’s a chance that the newest entry to your Pokedex could be a Lucky Pokémon.
Lucky Pokémon are distinguishable by their sparkly background when you look at them in your storage bank. Not to be confused with Shiny Pokémon, which have a different colouring entirely. Lucky Pokémon will need less Stardust when you want to power them up, meaning that if you’ve got the candies, these guys will get to their max CP much faster than your regular catches and hatches. Considering that Trading costs you Stardust in the first place, this will go a small way to balance out your Stardust requirements.
Note, not all traded Pokémon will become lucky, there’s just a chance of it happening. However, that chance is higher the longer you’ve had the Pokémon in storage for. Luckily this isn’t the only addition. Giving Gifts to your friends now earns you XP and Gifts from friends that you open might have Stardust as well.
At the time of writing, The Silph Road has confirmed on Reddit that the update isn’t fully live yet, and will only be available once everyone has updated. Despite the fact that Trainers, myself included, received a push notification for the announcement. I checked and I didn’t get XP for sending gifts, but it won’t be long before the update is live for everyone.
Trainers,
Professor Willow has made an important new discovery about Pokémon! His findings suggest that Pokémon can take on a new trait when they are traded. The trait’s origin is a mystery, and you can experience it soon in Pokémon GO!
According to his research, there is a chance that Pokémon, when traded, can become sparkly Lucky Pokémon. It seems that Lucky Pokémon require less Stardust to power up, which means they can reach a higher CP much faster than other Pokémon. Plus, a Lucky Pokémon can be detected by the Pokédex, so you can keep track of them!
The longer the Pokémon spends inside a Trainer’s Pokémon storage, the higher the chance of them becoming Lucky Pokémon when they are traded. Whether or not being in storage causes Pokémon to become Lucky Pokémon remains a mystery, but be sure to stay posted for more results from the professor’s research.
With the discovery of Lucky Pokémon, Gifts also can include special new surprises. Trainers who send Gifts to friends will now receive XP for doing so and Gifts also have a chance of containing Stardust!
It’s time to begin a new journey with Lucky Pokémon! Share a photo of your new find with #LuckyPokemon on your preferred social media channels. Stay safe, and happy exploring!