Pokemon Go fans slam new “underwhelming” NPC Mateo
NianticPokemon Go fans aren’t happy with Mateo, the new NPC added to the game, due to how underwhelming his contribution actually is.
Niantic recently teased a brand-new NPC for Pokemon Go in the trailer for the Timeless Travels season. This character resembled the burly Hiker Pokemon trainers who have been present in the series since the days of Pokemon Red & Blue, where they terrorized the kids trying to get through Mt. Moon.
It has now been revealed that the new character is Mateo, and fans initially liked his appearance and the fact that he’s connected to the new Routes mechanic in the game.
Unfortunately, the details of Mateo’s role has been revealed on the Pokemon Go website, and it seems that his contribution to the game isn’t as exciting as fans originally anticipated.
NianticMateo’s role in Pokemon Go is “underwhelming”
A new post on The Silph Road Reddit page has announced Mateo’s introduction to the game, but the fans aren’t enthusiastic about his presence. This is because his mechanic is a Wonder Trade version of the Gifts system.
“I don’t want postcards. I want you to trade Pokemon with me Mr. NPC so I can clear this trade field research task while I’m playing alone,” one user writes, while another says, “It would’ve been the perfect opportunity for a Wonder Trade-esque mechanic in Go. Very disappointing it’s only for gifts.”
Mateo’s role in Pokemon Go is to let players trade Gifts, but that’s incredibly easy to do without assistance. There are tons of public lists for Pokemon Go players who want to add strangers to their Friend List if they want Gifts for Research Tasks.
Fans hoped Mateo would also offer Pokemon trades, which would be a much more exciting mechanic, as this is more difficult to pull off in Pokemon Go. It would also add a major incentive to follow Routes. Unfortunately, Mateo will only sometimes give Gifts instead.
Mateo may be given more functionality in future updates, as he has only just arrived in the game and he might need some tweaking first. Until then, fans will just have to sigh whenever they see his friendly face at the end of a Route and wonder what could have been.