Some tips for Pokemon Go

Pokemon Go has enthralled the hearts of fans, encouraging them to explore their surroundings to capture Pokemon. Here it comes to Hong Kong, and there are some of the most essential tips and tricks needed to understand and better play Pokemon Go.

Lure Module

If a PokeStop is raining pink petals, it means someone has used a Lure Module, which increases the frequency of wild Pokemon appearing near that particular stop. Stay close to a PokeStop if you want to get the most out of its Lure; even better, get between two overlapping PokeStops with Lures on them for a greatly increased rate of wild Pokemon showing up.

Tracking Nearby Pokemon

The graphic in the bottom right area of the screen indicates some of the types of Pokemon nearby, with the number of footsteps indicative of how far away they are from you. To track a Pokemon, tap the bar to bring up the full list, select a specific Pokemon to highlight it, and then start walking. The footsteps will either decrease, or increase until the Pokemon disappears completely. If the number of steps decreases, it means the Pokemon is getting closer. This method can be used to track a Pokemon until it appears.

If you walk in a direction and more steps appear, try turning around and walking in another direction until the Pokemon gets closer. When the Pokemon is down to zero steps, it means it’s very close to you! Simply select it, and wait a few seconds for it to appear. You’ll also notice pulses that emit as you explore the map. They indicate when major changes have occurred in the availability of the area’s Pokemon.

Catching Pokemon

When engaging a Pokemon in battle, throwing the ball at the inner circle when it’s at its smallest is the best way to go. The colour of the inner circle indicates how hard a Pokemon is to capture. Green is the easiest, orange is harder, and red is the hardest to catch. Razz Berries can be fed to the Pokemon to lower the difficulty for the next catch. If the Pokemon breaks free, you’ll have to feed it another Razz Berry to lower it again.

Once a Poke Ball has been thrown, it cannot be picked up again. If a Poke Ball throw hits the inside of the color circle an experience bonus is granted, depending on the size of the circle. You receive 100 XP for Excellent throws (Small), 50 XP for Great (Half), and 10 XP for Nice (Full). You can also spin a Poke Ball around in circles quickly and toss it, which activates a curveball bonus if the throw lands.

Trainer Rank Makes it Easier to Find Rare Pokemon

While it’s thrilling to explore new environments in search of new and rare Pokemon, there’s actually a way to discover the hard-to-find creatures you seek without having to go to far off places. Leveling up your trainer level increases the chance of a rare Pokemon appearing, so the higher your level, the more likely you’ll find both a Pokemon you’ve never encountered before or one with higher CP.

Turn off AR Mode for Easier Capture

While Pokemon Go’s Augmented Reality mode is an attractive feature, it actually makes catching Pokemon more difficult. Turning off AR centers the Pokemon on screen, making it easier to judge the distance you need to throw your Poke Ball to catch it. AR mode can be disabled via the toggle on the top right of the battle screen.

Evolving Pokemon

When a wild Pokemon is caught, it also adds two things to the inventory: Stardust and Candy. Candy is specific to the earliest evolution stage of a Pokemon species. For example, catching a Pidgey gives Pidgey Candy, and catching a Pidgeotto also gives Pidgey Candy. A Pokemon can also be “transferred” (i.e. sold forever) to Professor Willow for one candy.

Pokemon require an amount of their specific Candy type to evolve. The amount of Candy needed varies, but basically if you want to evolve a Pokemon, catch more of it to build up that Candy collection! Candy can also be used to strengthen a Pokemon by raising its Combat Power. This stat dictates how a Pokemon performs in battle. Evolution also raises the CP levels and CP cap of a Pokemon.

Transfer Your Duplicates

While it might not seem like it at first, having duplicate Pokemon can actually help you. Extra Pokemon of the same type can be traded to Professor Willow for candy, which can be used to evolve your Pokemon. To do this, tap a Pokemon that you want to get rid of in the Pokemon screen and hit ‘Transfer’ option at the bottom of the screen. Be wary; make sure you don’t transfer the most powerful version (highest CP) of a given Pokemon type in your rush to get rid of your duplicates.

How to Choose What Your Eevee Evolves Into

When you evolve Eevee, you have a 1:3 chance of evolving it into either a Jolteon, Flareon, or a Vaporeon. However, it’s possible to use a trick that evolves it into the evolution of your choosing. Simply rename the Eevee one of the names below to receive the corresponding evolution.

• Sparky: Jolteon
• Pyro: Flareon
• Rainer: Vaporeon

This trick is a reference to the Eevee brothers from episode 40 of the Pokemon animated series.

How to Get Pikachu Early

While Pikachu is an iconic Pokemon, it’s surprisingly difficult to find it in Pokemon Go. However, there’s a trick that allows you to obtain a Pikachu as your starter. To do so, start a new game and get to the point where Professor Willow allows you to catch Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur as your starting Pokemon. Instead of catching any of these, walk away (in real life) until your phone vibrates and the starters reappear. Repeat this process multiple times until a Pikachu spawns in place of the three starters.

How to Hatch an Egg

As you encounter PokeStops, you’ll often be rewarded with Pokemon Eggs. These eggs contain a random Pokemon with more Candy and Stardust than what you’d normally get if you caught it in the wild. Pokemon eggs can be found on the second tab of your Pokemon roster page; you’ll notice each egg lists a specific walking distance that must be travelled before it hatches. To start the process of hatching an egg, simply choose one, select ‘Start Incubation,’ and choose which Incubator you wish to use. Then all you need to do is to start walking the required distance while the app is open to hatch the egg. It’s worth noting that an Incubator can only house one egg at a time, so if you want to incubate more than one, you’ll need additional Incubators, which can be bought at the Shop or gained through leveling up.

If you want to accelerate the process, riding a bike in real life is a great way to quickly rack up the required kilometers. Be wary; driving your car does not have the same effect, as any speed beyond 15 mph isn’t tracked by the app.

How Gyms Work

When you reach level five, Professor Willow introduces you to gyms and the option to choose your affiliation–Instinct, Mystic, or Valor. There is one of three scenarios that may appear when you are close enough and can tap on a Pokemon Gym. Either the Gym is unclaimed (white), owned by a rival team, or owned by your own chosen team.

If you interact with a gym representing your team, you can either train your Pokemon for XP by battling others or store them there for bonus Poke Coins and Stardust, which can be claimed once every 21 hours. However, when you encounter an opposing team’s gym, you can only do battle with its Pokemon. If you defeat its entire roster, you’ll take a large amount of Prestige Points away from that gym. High-level gyms with a large amount of Prestige Points may need to be defeated multiple times before they can be claimed.

The Gym Is Unclaimed

If the Gym is white, it means it is unclaimed. Go and get it! You can then choose which Pokemon you’d like to leave to guard it. You’ll want something strong, as other trainers will challenge it. If a trainer from a rival faction defeats it, they will be able to claim the Gym for themselves. Be wary that if you want to continue battling other Gyms, it’s a good idea not to leave your only strong Pokemon in a Gym.

Store Pokemon at Your Team’s Gyms

Aside from battling, your team’s gyms gives you the option to store your Pokemon, which adds it to the roster that defends the location from opposing trainers. You can only store one Pokemon at a single gym, but you can defend up to ten gyms. This feature provides you with 10 Poke Coins and 500 Stardust per stored Pokemon every 21 hours. To redeem these rewards, simply tap the shield icon that appears at the top right of the Shop section.

Keep in mind; the Pokemon you store at a gym will be tied to that location, and cannot be used or recalled until it’s beaten. If it is defeated while defending a gym, it will be returned to you damaged, and in need of healing.

How to Save Battery Power

As you’ve noticed from playing Pokemon Go, it quickly drains your battery. To prolong your battery life, we recommend buying a battery pack for your phone. However, if that’s not an option, you can also turn on the app’s Battery Save mode, which you can switch on in the settings screen. However, this mode just fades your screen to black when not in use, though it may be helpful if you’re just walking to hatch eggs.