‘Pokemon GO’ dev explains ‘Ingress’ use, release details and Pokemon events; Hoopa event ending before Christmas

For hardcore Pokemon fans, “Pokemon GO” may be considered as one of the best upcoming titles in the franchise. The ability that it gives players alone, which is to allow players to capture virtual Pokemon in the real world, holds the original appeal that the franchise offers.

Thanks to the partnership between Niantic Labs and The Pokemon Company, fans’ dreams of catching Pokemon in the same way that the franchise’s characters do offer a great way to really play Pokemon and be a Pokemon trainer. This was made possible by the technology from Niantic Labs, which has created a location-based title Ingress, currently available for Android devices.

Speaking with VentureBeat, Niantic Labs revealed that “Pokemon GO” takes the same location-based gameplay so that players can actually go outside in the real world and catch Pokemon. The game was borne via talks with the developer. According to Niantic Labs, even during the time of the late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, the goal was to evolve Nintendo and its games with the times. These included the Pokemon franchise.

Even The Pokemon Company’s Tsunekazu Ishihara and even his wife had reportedly been very interested in “Ingress.” As such, the partnership and marriage of the mobile technology with the Pokemon brand had been smooth even at the beginning.

Apart from “Ingress,” the April Fools’ activity that Google had for Pokemon also made it easier for the “Pokemon GO” game to come to fruition. Following an Ingress event in Japan, talks about what would be “Pokemon GO” were already in full force.

Talking about how “Pokemon GO” will be designed and used in the real world, Niantic Labs stated that the team is looking to ensure that there is more to catching Pokemon than just stepping outside and finding one. It appears that there will be different events or Pokemon that are in a particular location. That way, travellers and even those from an obscure location can actually find something great and anchor their portals.

“If we’re going to build a game that works with location, it has to be fun for people anywhere to play, in small towns as well as San Francisco,” said Niantic Labs’ John Hanke to VentureBeat. “We wanted it to work globally.”

For players of “Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire,” the Hoopa event will be ending this week in the U.S. Specifically, players have until Dec. 23 to ensure that they get the Hoopa at participating McDonald’s restaurants all over the U.S.

All that players need to do to get the Hoopa is to go to select McDonald’s restaurants with their respective 3DS devices. They would need to connect to the Nintendo Zone Wi-Fi, load up the Mystery Gift via Internet and receive the Hoopa.

This is not the only event listed by Serebii for the Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire event. Currently, a new Pikachu event has been announced for Japan. This event will supposedly be part of the Pokemon With You campaign, which will run in Fukushima. It can also be obtained in the Pokemon Center Tohoku from Jan. 2 to 11, 2016. This is a special Pikachu in that it is at Level 99 and has a Souvenir Ribbon. Its moves include the Play Nice, Happy Hour and the Hold Hands & Flash. It also holds the Rare Candy item.