Pokémon Go Developer Diary Series: Community Days

Niantic’s position on the pandemic feature of Pokémon Go generated the players a lot of resentment. The studio has launched a number of developers’ diaries with the initial focus on Community Days in an effort to become more open with players of the game.

Presented by Niantic’s product marketing manager, Michael Steranka, the seven-minute video explains what is perhaps the greatest recurrent event in the game and what will come in the long term.

Back in 2017, we started hosting major in-person events for Pokemon Go. But we quickly realised that it wasn’t logistically to have a Go Fest or a Safari Zone in every city around the world. We instead decided to try and flip that model. Why not create a hyper focussed experience in Pokemon Go which communities all around the world could rally behind and host their own live events and meetups for?” he explained.

He also highlighted the reasons for the developer that the Community Day does not run 24 hours. A focused window would improve the probability of players and community members uniting, one of the main foundations of the game.

The Pokemon selected for the community day event has also received several concerns. Steranka said it’s an “ever game for” the developer’s idea for Pokémon Go. Given that the team has to organize several, over a lengthy period of time while selecting a month on one community day is straightforward. It’s not to allow gamers to capture popular Pokemon, but an opportunity to congratulate every player.

Community days

“For just a few hours each month, you can encounter a special Pokémon in the wild. During these hours, there’s a chance to learn a previously unavailable move for that Pokémon or its Evolution, as well as earn some Community Day bonuses. Celebrate what it means to be a part of the Pokémon GO community!” reads the Pokémon GO site.