Pokemon Go players slam Niantic for “garbage” Party Up! event

The latest Pokemon Go Timed Research event has players criticizing Niantic for pushing the game’s controversial party feature.

One of Pokemon Go‘s newest features is Party Play, which adds co-op to the AR game. Introduced in mid-October 2023, Party Play lets players work together to complete challenges and get a boost during Raids.

To encourage more players to try out the new mode, Pokemon Go’s current event is Party Up!, which features Timed Research and rewards for doing things like spinning PokeStops and winning Raids while in a Party.

However, reactions to the event are definitely not what Niantic was hoping for, with many players angered by both the focus of Party Up! and its lackluster rewards.

Pokemon Go players are ignoring Party Up! Timed Research

With Party Play still being a fairly new mechanic, it’s not a surprise that Niantic would want to highlight it outside of the initial Welcome Party special research. Still, those tasks were criticized for being an introvert’s “worst nightmare” and inaccessible to those who don’t have friends who play Pokemon Go, something that Party Up! also suffers from.

Beyond that, Party Play overall has been slammed for bugs and underwhelming rewards.

As Reddit user MHW_Guild_Hunter shared, they have made absolutely zero progress on the Party Up! event. Given the comments on their post, they are far from alone.

What an eventful week this was, right? 😓
byu/MHW_Guild_Hunter inpokemongo

“I hope somebody working at niantic make a graphic to show at some boss how much people didn’t play in that event,” said one commenter.

“There is nothing interesting about party play. You literally just do the same gameplay as normal, maybe with slight direction to use more berries etc,” said another user, who also called the event’s tasks “garbage.”

Others worried Party Up! is a sign that more Pokemon Go content will be made exclusive to Parties as a way to encourage more players to try them.

Even those who don’t mind Party Play have expressed frustration with the Timed Research event. As one player put it, “I finished it, the prize was a wurmple with a hat… felt so cheated.” That’s not even the only way to get the costumed Wurmple, as it’s been available in previous events and can currently be obtained though Field Research as well.

Party Play is far from the only recent Pokemon Go addition that has faced criticism. The past few months have also introduced PokeStop Showcases and Routes, all of which have also been called “half-baked” by fans who would prefer Niantic focus on polishing one feature rather than trying to rush out all three.

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