Pokémon Go updates: all the news and rumors for what's coming next

Pokémon Go: the world's first augmented reality app to become a household name. Niantic's mobile AR game is still going strong two years after it first released, with a constant drip of events and updates keeping budding trainers glued to their phones and pounding the streets.

And while it hasn't managed to top the peak of its popularity in 2016, it's still going strong and finding plenty of new ways to improve its player experience.

So what's the latest news for Pokémon Go? As you'd expect, brand new features are being added all the time and community events are still going strong. Plus we have some more themed events and brand new Pokémon being introduced at regular intervals. 

But without further ado, here's our guide to all the latest Pokémon Go news and updates.

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Pokémon Go news and Pokémon Go updates

• What's new? Some new events from March have been announced

Research Breakthrough Encounter

The starring Pokémon for March's Research Breakthroughs has been announced: it's Ferroseed. This Grass/Steel-type and its bonus stardust will be available from March 1 through to April 1. 

Thundurus comes to Raids

Thundurus, the Electric/Flying-type Pokémon, is making its Pokémon Go debut and will appear in five-star Raids from March 2. 

Legendary Raid Weekends

Speaking of Raids, each weekend in March will bring a new Legendary Pokémon to Raids as well as the chance to catch a Shiny version of that Pokémon. 

• March 6 to March 9: Darkrai
• March 13 to March 16: Giratina
• March 20 to March 23: Cobalion
• March 27 to March 30: Lugia

Pokémon Go Battle League

Niantic has rolled out the long-awaited Pokémon Go Battle League to trainers of Level 10 and above.

At the moment, the League is in Preseason, the time before competitive play really begins. Niantic is using this as a kind of testing period in which they can "optimize and balance" the new feature as well as decide on things like season lengths and ranks. 

Trainer Battles within the GO Battle League will rotate between three leagues and players will be able to rank against fellow Trainers, earning rewards for ranking.

For preseason, the GO Battle League is beginning with the Great League, which will be followed by the Ultra League then the Master League. Even though preseason isn't competitive, players can still rank but it will be partially reset when Season 1 properly starts. Rewards for battling and winning can also be earned during preseason.

Entering the Battle League isn't possible until a player has walked 5km (although in preseason this requirement is waived). They'll then unlock five online matches up to three times a day by doing this. Players can earn Stardust depending on rank and number of battles won as well as items like Rare Candies and TMS as well as the chance to get exclusive Pokémon encounters. 

Other rewards will include Pikachu Libre and exclusive avatar items inspired by it.

Niantic has also announced that it's turning Premium Raid Passes into Premium Battle Passes. The pass will have a double function, allowing players to enter Raid Battles or the premium track in the Go Battle League. Winning using the Premium Battle Pass could yield better rewards and will lower the number of wins needed to earn a Pokémon encounter.

The Great League is currently underway and will rotate to the Ultra League on Monday, February 10, before going into the Master League on Monday 24 February. Things will go back around to the Great League on March 9. Niantic has promised more details on when Season 1 of the Go Battle League will officially begin soon. 

What's the next Pokémon Go Event?

Team GO Rocket Takeover

From March 6 to March 9, Team Rocket will be up to no good in Pokémon Go. During this period Poison- and Dark-type Pokémon will be appearing more often in the wild and it's believed that Absol will be one of the Pokémon appearing more often. 

On March 7 specifically, Team GO Rocket will be doing a global take-over. As part of this, Rocket Grunts will be attempting to seize more PokéStops while Sierra, Cliff, Arlo and Giovanni will be more active and more commonly encountered. 

During the take-over, players will be able to use Charged TMs to change the exclusive attack of a Shadow Pokémon to another attack and defeating Grunts and Leaders will earn twice the usual Stardust. 

Mysterious Weekend Event

From March 20 to March 23 there will be a special weekend event in Pokémon Go. During the event, Normal-, Fire-, Water-, Electric-, and Ice-type Pokémon will appear more often in the wild. Karrablast and Shelmet will also be hatching more from 5 km Eggs and one to four-star Raid Battles across the weekend will feature Bug or Steel-type Pokémon.

Bonuses during the event will double catch and double hatch Stardust. 

Live Events

Niantic has announced that Pokémon Go Live Events will be coming to Taiwan, the US and the UK this year. The first event in Taiwan which celebrated the Lantern Festival has passed, while the others are still to come and will be ticketed at a cost of $12/£12 for General Admission and $18/£18 for Early Admission. 

• March 27 - 29: Safari Zone St. Louis, Missouri, US
• April 17 - 19: Safari Zone Liverpool, UK
• May 8 - 10: Safari Zone Philadelphia, US

When's the next Pokémon Go Community Day?

• What date is the next Community Day? February 22
• Who's the starring Pokémon? Rhyhorn

The votes are in and Niantic has confirmed that Rhyhorn is going to be the starring Pokémon for February's community day with the special attack Rock Wrecker. 

Then, the Community Day will take place on February 22, running from 11am to 2pm on the Northern Hemisphere and 3pm to 6pm on the Southern Hemisphere. 

Pokémon Go update: what's next?

Now that Go Battle League has arrived in Pokémon Go, Niantic has ticked another big promised feature off its list. At the moment, we're not sure what's next for the game aside from, naturally, new Pokémon being added. We'll update here when the roadmap becomes more clear.

• Check out the best and weirdest Pokémon Go stories so far

Pokémon Go Plus deals

Want to buy yourself a Pokémon Go Plus wearable? Check some of today's best deals down below.

(Image credits: Niantic/Pokémon Company)

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