“Broken” medals have Pokemon Go players demanding change

Much like achievements on the PlayStation or your Xbox, Pokemon Go’s Medals work as trophies that players can use to show off their gaming prowess. From catching thousands of Pokemon to exploring the world and beyond, these can be seriously tough to complete.

Medals can be so difficult to complete in fact, that some players are calling out the most egregious entries, as anyone hoping to actually grab all of these achievements is in for a monumental challenge.

The discussion came up in a Reddit post titled “What Medal is the most broken?” where players discussed their least favorite of the many challenges awaiting serious Pokemon Go players. Naturally, some of these tasks are really, really, tough.

Niantic/The Pokemon Company

Arguing about the difficulty of some of these challenges, the author behind the post commented, “How in the world can a normal player catch 1,000 tiny Rattata?” Before then adding, “Who wants to train 2,000 times? Or spend the dust purifying 1,000 shadow mon?”

One of the biggest issues for fans seems to also be the fact that very rarely do medals actually reward players with anything for these achievements. Some have clothing as prizes, and some do make certain types of catches easier, but rarely does the effort needed feel truly rewarded in the end.

Thankfully, some of the tough challengers work alongside some later-level challenges, as one person describes in relation to “purifying 1,000 shadow monsters”, saying, “I did this one while grinding for the level 49 medal requirements.

Some of the later Pokemon Go level requirements are dauntingly difficult, so there is some solace in knowing that players are also working towards some medals along the way.

Niantic/The Pokemon Company

Another major issue for some players seems to be the medal that tasks Trainers with completing a total trade distance of 1000km, especially as there is no way of remote trading, even when players are Lucky Friends.

One person argues this, saying, “Trading distance medal can be pretty hard if you don’t have anyone to trade with. Also if you’re trading with locals, the distance is most likely a small amount and will take a while to accumulate.”

However, for this particular challenge it seems there is some hope, as one person offers advice adding, “But if you trade seven km egg ‘mons that you got from someone far away with a local ‘mon, you get the distance. I got this medal fairly easily doing this.”

Ultimately, a lot of players seem to think that medals would be much easier to achieve – or at least there’d be a lot more incentive to do so – if the rewards were better.

One deflated fan commented, “I stopped caring about medals as soon as I realized they don’t give XP…this still upsets me because why not and what’s the point then?”

If you want to enjoy some of the latest Pokemon Go gameplay, and perhaps work your way towards some of those tough medals, be sure to check out our guides on the Pokemon Go Shared Skies season, and get ready to catch plenty of Tynamo at the next Community Day.