Mega Evolution has finally arrived in Pokemon Go. The expected feature is now live in Niantic’s Pokémon mobile game, giving players the chance to add certain pocket monsters even further than before.
Since its introduction in Pokemon X and Y, Mega Evolution has been a feature of almost every Pokemon game from the mainline, though it functions a little differently in Pokemon Go. Here’s an overview of how Mega Evolution works in the mobile game and how you can use Pokemon Mega Evolve in Pokemon Go.
What is mega evolution?
With Mega Evolution, selected Pokemon can create and take on a new, temporary form. In mainline Pokemon games, Mega Evolution can only be activated during battle, and a Pokemon must hold its corresponding Mega Stone in order to undergo the transformation.
Once a Pokemon has Mega Evolved, its appearance will change and it will get a major stat boost. Mega-Evolved Pokemon also often get a new Ability and types; For example, Charizard becomes a Fire / Dragon type as the Mega evolves to Mega Charizard X.
How can your Pokemon Mega evolve?
As mentioned earlier, Mega Evolution works a little differently in Pokemon Go than in mainline Pokemon games. Instead of a Mega Stone, you need to collect a new resource with the name Mega Energy to Mega Evolve your Pokemon. You get Mega Energy by participating Mega Raid Battles, who have a Mega-Evolved Pokemon as the Raid boss. The faster your team can defeat the Mega Raid, the more Mega Energy you get as a reward. (You can read more about Mega Raid Battles below.)
Once you have collected enough Mega Energy, you can evolve the corresponding Pokemon. Unlike in mainline games, Pokemon Mega Evolved will stay in Pokemon Go for a limited time, even outside of battle. As such, you can track your Mega-Evolved Pokemon that you follow on the map when you set it as Buddy. You can also take Snapshots and use them in battle against Team Go Rocket, other players and Raid bosses.
After you Mega Evolve a Pokemon for the first time, its Mega Energy requirement will decrease, allowing your Mega Evolve to do it much faster in the future. It will also be logged into your Mega Pokedex so you can easily track which Pokemon your Mega Evolved has.
There are a few limitations to keep in mind regarding Mega Evolutions. First, Mega-Evolved Pokemon can’t be allowed to defend a Gym. Moreover, only one Pokemon can play Mega Evolve at a time; if you Mega Evolve a second, the first will return to its original state. Finally, Clone Pokemon and Shadow Pokemon that are not yet pure can not Mega Evolve.
Mega Evolution benefits
Pokemon that receive Mega Evolve receive a major stat boost, making them much more powerful in battle, but the benefits of Mega Evolution extend to other players as well. If you bring a Mega-Evolved Pokemon into a Raid, every other player’s Pokemon will also receive a stat boost. In addition, Pokemon attacks that are the same type as the Mega-Evolved Pokemon will get an extra boost, adding a new cooperative ripple to Raid Battles.
Mega Raids
Coinciding with the advent of Mega Evolution, Niantic introduces a new level of Raid Battles to Pokemon Go: Mega Raids. Initially, the only bosses you will encounter in these Raids are the Mega-Evolved forms of Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise. If you manage to defeat the boss, you get the corresponding Mega Energy from that Pokemon; defeat Mega Blastoise, for example, and you will collect Blastoise Mega Energy, which you can then use to Mega Evolve your own Blastoise if you have collected enough.
Mega Raids are roughly comparable to legendary five-star raids in terms of difficulty, by Niantic’s estimates, so they pose a huge challenge and you have to work with other players. Like standard Raids, however, you can remotely participate in Mega Raids if you have a Remote Raid Pass. The faster you defeat the Mega Raid boss, the more Mega Energy everyone will earn, and you will have the chance to capture the boss in his standard, non-Mega-evolved form after the battle.
Mega Evolution Special Research
In addition to Mega Raids, Niantic has introduced a new special research line called “A Mega Discovery” after the game. Complete the command line to learn more about Mega Evolution and earn various rewards, including Beedrill Mega Energy, which you can use to upgrade your Beedrill to Mega Evolve.
Which Pokemon can Mega evolve?
At first, only four Pokemon Mega Evolves in Pokemon Go could: Venusaur, Charizard, Blastoise, and Beedrill. Much more than that, however, are capable Mega Evolving in the mainline series, and Niantic says it will gradually introduce additional Mega-Evolved forms to give every single moment in the spotlight.
It’s unclear when more Mega Evolutions will arrive in Pokemon Go, but below you can see the full list of Pokemon that have Mega-Evolved forms in the mainline series:
- Venusaur
- Charizard
- Blastoise
- Beedrill
- Pidgeot
- Alakazam
- Slowbro
- Gengar
- Kangaskhan
- Pinsir
- Gyarados
- Aerodactyl
- Mewtwo
- Ampharos
- Steelix
- Scizor
- Heracross
- Houndoom
- Tyranitar
- Sceptile
- Blaziken
- Swampert
- Gardevoir
- Sableye
- Mawile
- Aggron
- Medicham
- Manectric
- Sharpedo
- Camerupt
- Altaria
- Banette
- Absol
- Glalie
- Salaminsje
- Metagross
- Latias
- Latios
- Rayquaza
- Lopunny
- Garchomp
- Lucario
- Abomasnow
- Gallade
- Audino
- Diancie
Mega Evolution events
To celebrate the arrival of Mega Evolutions, Niantic is holding three Mega Evolution themed events in September. The first runs from September 1-7 and challenges players to complete as many Mega Raids as they can. Then, of September 11-17, players will be instructed to use Mega-Evolved Pokemon in field battles against Team Go Rocket members and Raid bosses. The last event runs from September 22-28 and has players build their friendship level with their Mega-Evolved Pokemon.
GameSpot may receive a commission from retailers.
