{"id":2054050,"date":"2026-07-21T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2054050"},"modified":"2026-07-21T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T11:00:00","slug":"what-does-the-next-10-years-hold-for-pokemon-go-more-mechanics-better-gyms-and-multi-generational-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2054050","title":{"rendered":"What does the next 10 years hold for Pok\u00e9mon Go? More mechanics, better gyms, and &#8220;multi-generational play&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"features\" data-article-group=\"feature\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/features\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Features<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/pokemon-go\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Pok\u00e9mon Go<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">What does the next 10 years hold for Pok\u00e9mon Go? More mechanics, better gyms, and &#8220;multi-generational play&#8221;<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">&#8220;We&#8217;ve been thinking about the next 10 years of Pok\u00e9mon Go for the past several years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/pogo-10-years.jpg?width=690&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Michael Steranka on top of a phot of NYC during the Pokemon 10 years anniversary, and related art showing a Mega Dragonite\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"pogo-10-years.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"690\" height=\"388\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Eurogamer<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Dom Peppiatt avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/pxl_20220402_110941365.portrait_V04meYj.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1044\" height=\"1130\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Dom Peppiatt avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"pxl_20220402_110941365.portrait_V04meYj.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1044\" height=\"1130\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"features\"><br \/>\n                    Feature<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/dom-peppiatt\">Dom Peppiatt<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Deputy Editorial Director<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"additional_authors\">\n                <span class=\"by\">Additional contributions by<\/span><br \/>\n                  <span class=\"name\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/lottie-lynn\">Lottie Lynn<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-07-21T14:00:00+00:00\">July 21, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-next-10-years-gym-multi-generation-more-mechanics?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          1 comment<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"5001c98f-6ba3-465d-a4db-3693a6ce7190\" data-name=\"Poku00e9mon Go\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Poku00e9mon Go\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Poku00e9mon Go\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Poku00e9mon Go\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Poku00e9mon Go\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Pok\u00e9mon Go\" title=\"Follow Pok\u00e9mon Go\"><br \/>\n  Follow Pok\u00e9mon Go<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/pokemon-go\">Pok\u00e9mon Go<\/a> is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The game, which famously uses GPS and augmented reality to let you discover, catch, and battle virtual monsters in real-world locations, took the world by storm in 2016. Blurring the line between mainstream and niche gaming interest, Pok\u00e9mon Go has retained a lot of popularity in the interceding 10 years since it launched, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-10th-anniversary-mewtwo-times-square\">a recent New York event even managing to take over Times Square<\/a> &#8211; a fate promised in the game&#8217;s initial launch trailer a whole decade ago.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Discover Pok\u00e9mon in the Real World with Pok\u00e9mon GO!\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2sj2iQyBTQs?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/2sj2iQyBTQs\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Discover Pok\u00e9mon in the Real World with Pok\u00e9mon GO!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>The now legendary Pok\u00e9mon Go launch trailer.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2sj2iQyBTQs\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>There have been a few bumps in the road for the game, though, and the last few years have seen some major behind-the-scenes changes. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-will-be-sold-to-monopoly-go-maker-scopely-niantic-confirms\">Following developer Niantic&#8217;s $3.5 billion sale of its gaming portfolio to Scopely<\/a>, the development team officially rebranded as Scopely Explore. Concerned fans <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-fans-launch-campaign-to-protect-games-future-as-concerns-mount-over-sale\">quickly began petitioning the new owners of the beloved app to keep changes minimal<\/a>, with particularly vocal players floating concerns about aggressive monetisation tactics (such as paywalls and pay-to-win mechanics). The new caretakers of the app promised, however, that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-will-not-undergo-any-major-changes-developer-niantic-tells-staff-following-scopely-acquisition\">there would not be any major changes to the game<\/a>, and a Niantic spokesperson quickly came out to say &#8220;[the development team] will be able keep doing what [they&#8217;ve] been doing since the beginning&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>One of the staff that has been at the company a while is Michael Steranka &#8211; now vice president of product at Scopely (previously senior director of product at Pok\u00e9mon Go, a position he held for over eight years). Steranka, then, is a veteran of Pok\u00e9mon Go, and has been with the title through the various changes that have occurred in terms of its ownership and its direction. At New York&#8217;s big anniversary event, our own guides editor Lottie Lynn caught up with Steranka and asked about the past, present, and future of the app &#8211; and how what has come before can shape where Pok\u00e9mon Go may go next.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Yeah, I would say we&#8217;ve been thinking about the next 10 years of Pok\u00e9mon Go for the past several years, and we have a lot of fun ideas that we want to bring to life,&#8221; he teases. &#8220;There are three of the focus areas that I&#8217;d like to share, however. Firstly, Pok\u00e9mon Go will always start with community, and so while our community ambassador program has been growing rapidly &#8211; and we&#8217;ve been seeing in-person communities expand quite a lot over time &#8211; we still feel like there&#8217;s more that we can do there, and in particular, we have our eyes set on on the gyms feature in the game.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.3333333333333333\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.3333333333333333\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div 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cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Eurogamer\/Lottie Lynn\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y appears on a huge screen in NY Times Square\" height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y appears on a huge screen in NY Times Square\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\">More events like New York&#8217;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.<\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Steranka notes that gyms have been unchanged in the game for quite a while now. Battling for control over a gym, and placing your prized Pok\u00e9mon within them, is a core part of the game&#8217;s loop &#8211; yet there has been very little iteration to how the mechanic works more-or-less since they were first introduced. &#8220;There&#8217;s untapped potential in gyms, and I think they can bring communities together in a way that you&#8217;ve never experienced before in Pok\u00e9mon Go,&#8221; hints Steranka.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"2\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;So that&#8217;s number one. Number two; we&#8217;re also really focused on bringing more core memories to people, whether that&#8217;s in the form of live events or Unity Raids or upcoming features. We really think that Pok\u00e9mon Go has the unique capability to combine Pok\u00e9mon with places and people &#8211; and all of that together makes the key ingredients for core memories. And so we want to enable more core memories, and we also want to celebrate more core memories in the game over the next 10 years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This feels fairly vague, but we can expect to see more live events and more large activations for Pok\u00e9mon Go in the coming months, I think: we know events like Community Days, City Safaris, GO Fests, GO Tours, and more besides make up a large portion of the Pok\u00e9mon Go calendar. By my count, there are 21 real-life events scheduled for 2026 by Scopely Explore, and I am sure there are more virtual and real-life dates to come, too. I can&#8217;t help but note that Steranka used to be a community manager for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smogon.com\/\">Smogon<\/a>, too: a Pok\u00e9mon website and community specialising in the art of competitive battling in the main series. Here, he drove initiatives to bring more people to the site, and teach more people how to play; clear evidence that he knows just how important community and co-operation are to Pok\u00e9mon as a brand.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">4<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"The Pok\u00e9mon Company\/Eurogamer\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Mewtwo X above the world &apos;Global&apos;.\" height=\"782\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1390\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Mewtwo X above the world &apos;Global&apos;.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg\" height=\"782\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1390\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y on the left, Mega Mewtwo X on the right.\" height=\"540\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y on the left, Mega Mewtwo X on the right.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg\" height=\"540\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Zeraora image from Pok\u00e9mon Go.\" height=\"540\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Zeraora image from Pok\u00e9mon Go.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg\" height=\"540\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\">Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&#8217;s identity.<\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It stands to reason that the developer is looking at IRL meet-ups as a large part of the game&#8217;s future; you routinely hear stories about couples meeting on such days, or friend groups taking to their local cities in cosplay, or with baked goods, ready to share with other eager Pok\u00e9mon trainers. It&#8217;s heart-warming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vg247.com\/monster-hunter-nowirl-event-5-10-years\">(and something I&#8217;ve seen echoed myself<\/a> with another Scopely Explore property: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/monster-hunter-now\">Monster Hunter Now<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"3\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;And then, lastly, we&#8217;ve really been thinking about what it means to be a multi-generational game,&#8221; concludes Steranka. &#8220;Again, these are all things that we feel are truly unique qualities about Pok\u00e9mon Go, and one of them is the fact that now that it&#8217;s been out for 10 years, we&#8217;re seeing families that grew up with Pok\u00e9mon Go together; playing as a family unit across three generations. And while that&#8217;s been something that has organically happened in the game, we want to actually be more intentional about how we can facilitate multi-generational play.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>I know one parent that has had two kids since becoming a Pok\u00e9mon Go player, and they have struggled to bring their children along for the ride. Currently, they make do with sharing an account, but they have long craved a way to engage in a more genuine, game-level co-operative experience. It seems this is something Steranka and his team are looking into, at least.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s easy to see why Steranka and Scopely Explore want to keep the game alive: during the viral highs of the game&#8217;s 2016 launch, it commanded an eye-watering 32 million players per day. Current estimates place daily active users in the five- to six-million range (not a bad retention rate, by any metric!) with an estimated 40-50 minute daily active play time. This is a loyal, lucrative, and emotionally-invested audience. You simply need to head to any forum or social media site to see Pok\u00e9mon Go players enthusiastically championing mechanics they want to see (or monetisation practices they&#8217;d like to see less of\u2026).<\/p>\n<p>Do Michael Steranka and his team have what it takes to survive another 10 years? The answers here might be light in specifics, but it seems the developers are hopeful, so let&#8217;s see if the players stick around for the changes that are being worked on right now.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/pokemon-go\">Pok\u00e9mon Go<\/a> is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. The game, which famously uses GPS and augmented reality to let you discover, catch, and battle virtual monsters in real-world locations, took the world by storm in 2016. Blurring the line between mainstream and niche gaming interest, Pok\u00e9mon Go has retained a lot of popularity in the interceding 10 years since it launched, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-10th-anniversary-mewtwo-times-square\">a recent New York event even managing to take over Times Square<\/a> &#8211; a fate promised in the game&#8217;s initial launch trailer a whole decade ago.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Discover Pok\u00e9mon in the Real World with Pok\u00e9mon GO!\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2sj2iQyBTQs?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/2sj2iQyBTQs\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Discover Pok\u00e9mon in the Real World with Pok\u00e9mon GO!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>The now legendary Pok\u00e9mon Go launch trailer.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=2sj2iQyBTQs\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>There have been a few bumps in the road for the game, though, and the last few years have seen some major behind-the-scenes changes. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-will-be-sold-to-monopoly-go-maker-scopely-niantic-confirms\">Following developer Niantic&#8217;s $3.5 billion sale of its gaming portfolio to Scopely<\/a>, the development team officially rebranded as Scopely Explore. Concerned fans <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-fans-launch-campaign-to-protect-games-future-as-concerns-mount-over-sale\">quickly began petitioning the new owners of the beloved app to keep changes minimal<\/a>, with particularly vocal players floating concerns about aggressive monetisation tactics (such as paywalls and pay-to-win mechanics). The new caretakers of the app promised, however, that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/pokemon-go-will-not-undergo-any-major-changes-developer-niantic-tells-staff-following-scopely-acquisition\">there would not be any major changes to the game<\/a>, and a Niantic spokesperson quickly came out to say &#8220;[the development team] will be able keep doing what [they&#8217;ve] been doing since the beginning&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>One of the staff that has been at the company a while is Michael Steranka &#8211; now vice president of product at Scopely (previously senior director of product at Pok\u00e9mon Go, a position he held for over eight years). Steranka, then, is a veteran of Pok\u00e9mon Go, and has been with the title through the various changes that have occurred in terms of its ownership and its direction. At New York&#8217;s big anniversary event, our own guides editor Lottie Lynn caught up with Steranka and asked about the past, present, and future of the app &#8211; and how what has come before can shape where Pok\u00e9mon Go may go next.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Yeah, I would say we&#8217;ve been thinking about the next 10 years of Pok\u00e9mon Go for the past several years, and we have a lot of fun ideas that we want to bring to life,&#8221; he teases. &#8220;There are three of the focus areas that I&#8217;d like to share, however. Firstly, Pok\u00e9mon Go will always start with community, and so while our community ambassador program has been growing rapidly &#8211; and we&#8217;ve been seeing in-person communities expand quite a lot over time &#8211; we still feel like there&#8217;s more that we can do there, and in particular, we have our eyes set on on the gyms feature in the game.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.3333333333333333\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.3333333333333333\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">8<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_66.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_88.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_16.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_10.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1792\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_29.jpg\" height=\"1792\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"828\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_48.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_61.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Eurogamer\/Lottie Lynn\" data-caption=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg\" title=\"More events like New York&apos;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y appears on a huge screen in NY Times Square\" height=\"3024\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y appears on a huge screen in NY Times Square\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Times_Square_69.jpg\" height=\"3024\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"4032\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\">More events like New York&#8217;s 10th anniversary festival are likely on the cards.<\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Steranka notes that gyms have been unchanged in the game for quite a while now. Battling for control over a gym, and placing your prized Pok\u00e9mon within them, is a core part of the game&#8217;s loop &#8211; yet there has been very little iteration to how the mechanic works more-or-less since they were first introduced. &#8220;There&#8217;s untapped potential in gyms, and I think they can bring communities together in a way that you&#8217;ve never experienced before in Pok\u00e9mon Go,&#8221; hints Steranka.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"2\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;So that&#8217;s number one. Number two; we&#8217;re also really focused on bringing more core memories to people, whether that&#8217;s in the form of live events or Unity Raids or upcoming features. We really think that Pok\u00e9mon Go has the unique capability to combine Pok\u00e9mon with places and people &#8211; and all of that together makes the key ingredients for core memories. And so we want to enable more core memories, and we also want to celebrate more core memories in the game over the next 10 years.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>This feels fairly vague, but we can expect to see more live events and more large activations for Pok\u00e9mon Go in the coming months, I think: we know events like Community Days, City Safaris, GO Fests, GO Tours, and more besides make up a large portion of the Pok\u00e9mon Go calendar. By my count, there are 21 real-life events scheduled for 2026 by Scopely Explore, and I am sure there are more virtual and real-life dates to come, too. I can&#8217;t help but note that Steranka used to be a community manager for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smogon.com\/\">Smogon<\/a>, too: a Pok\u00e9mon website and community specialising in the art of competitive battling in the main series. Here, he drove initiatives to bring more people to the site, and teach more people how to play; clear evidence that he knows just how important community and co-operation are to Pok\u00e9mon as a brand.<\/p>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"image_wrapper\">\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" data-autosize=\"bounds_lossy\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<span class=\"loading spinner large\"><\/span><\/p>\n<nav class=\"pagination--hoverable\">\n<div class=\"previous\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Previous\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"next\">\n<button class=\"button pagination-button\"><br \/>\n<span aria-label=\"Next\" class=\"icon\" role=\"img\" style=\")\"><\/span><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<div class=\"details_overlay\">\n<div class=\"counter\">\n<span class=\"current\">1<\/span> <span class=\"of\">of<\/span> <span class=\"max\">4<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"details\">\n<div class=\"button-wrapper\">\n<button aria-label=\"Toggle information\" class=\"toggle button outline\"><\/button><br \/>\n<button aria-label=\"Close fullscreen gallery\" class=\"close button\"><\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"thumbnails-wrapper overflow-shadow-x\">\n<div class=\"thumbnails\">\n<button class=\"thumbnail active\" data-attribution=\"The Pok\u00e9mon Company\/Eurogamer\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Bouffant, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Mewtwo, and Bouffalant can be seen in key artwork for Pok\u00e9mon GO Fest Global 2026.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Screenshot-2026-07-11-101752.png\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1920\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Mewtwo X above the world &apos;Global&apos;.\" height=\"782\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1390\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Mewtwo X above the world &apos;Global&apos;.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon-Go-Fest-2026-Habitat-Hours-Header.jpg\" height=\"782\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1390\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y on the left, Mega Mewtwo X on the right.\" height=\"540\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Mega Mewtwo Y on the left, Mega Mewtwo X on the right.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_2.jpg\" height=\"540\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"thumbnail\" data-attribution=\"Niantic\" data-caption=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg\" title=\"Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&apos;s identity.\"><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Zeraora image from Pok\u00e9mon Go.\" height=\"540\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Zeraora image from Pok\u00e9mon Go.\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"Pokemon_Go_Fest_2026_Global_1.jpg\" height=\"540\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"960\"><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fullscreen_info\">\n<div class=\"caption\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nCaption          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"attribution\">\n<span class=\"label\"><br \/>\nAttribution          <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"text\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"inline-gallery-caption\">Virtual and in-person events have become essential to Pok\u00e9mon Go&#8217;s identity.<\/div>\n<div class=\"advert_container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It stands to reason that the developer is looking at IRL meet-ups as a large part of the game&#8217;s future; you routinely hear stories about couples meeting on such days, or friend groups taking to their local cities in cosplay, or with baked goods, ready to share with other eager Pok\u00e9mon trainers. It&#8217;s heart-warming <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vg247.com\/monster-hunter-nowirl-event-5-10-years\">(and something I&#8217;ve seen echoed myself<\/a> with another Scopely Explore property: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/monster-hunter-now\">Monster Hunter Now<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"3\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;And then, lastly, we&#8217;ve really been thinking about what it means to be a multi-generational game,&#8221; concludes Steranka. &#8220;Again, these are all things that we feel are truly unique qualities about Pok\u00e9mon Go, and one of them is the fact that now that it&#8217;s been out for 10 years, we&#8217;re seeing families that grew up with Pok\u00e9mon Go together; playing as a family unit across three generations. And while that&#8217;s been something that has organically happened in the game, we want to actually be more intentional about how we can facilitate multi-generational play.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>I know one parent that has had two kids since becoming a Pok\u00e9mon Go player, and they have struggled to bring their children along for the ride. Currently, they make do with sharing an account, but they have long craved a way to engage in a more genuine, game-level co-operative experience. It seems this is something Steranka and his team are looking into, at least.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s easy to see why Steranka and Scopely Explore want to keep the game alive: during the viral highs of the game&#8217;s 2016 launch, it commanded an eye-watering 32 million players per day. Current estimates place daily active users in the five- to six-million range (not a bad retention rate, by any metric!) with an estimated 40-50 minute daily active play time. This is a loyal, lucrative, and emotionally-invested audience. You simply need to head to any forum or social media site to see Pok\u00e9mon Go players enthusiastically championing mechanics they want to see (or monetisation practices they&#8217;d like to see less of\u2026).<\/p>\n<p>Do Michael Steranka and his team have what it takes to survive another 10 years? The answers here might be light in specifics, but it seems the developers are hopeful, so let&#8217;s see if the players stick around for the changes that are being worked on right now.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home Features Pok\u00e9mon Go What does the next 10 years hold for Pok\u00e9mon Go? More mechanics, better gyms, and &#8220;multi-generational play&#8221; &#8220;We&#8217;ve been thinking about the next 10 years of Pok\u00e9mon Go for the past several years.&#8221; Image credit: Eurogamer Feature by Dom Peppiatt Deputy Editorial Director Additional contributions by Lottie Lynn Published on July [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-2054050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2054050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2054050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2054050\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2054050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2054050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2054050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}