Pokemon Go seems to have quietly removed this fan favorite feature
NianticPokemon Go fans believe that Niantic has removed a fan-favorite feature that was once the best way to catch some of the game’s most sought-after Legendary Pokemon.
From 2018 until 2020, Pokemon Go players could participate in a unique feature called EX Raids. These raids differed from their regular counterparts as they required special invites earned by winning active raid battles at EX Raid Gyms.
Trainers lucky enough to receive an invite could then head over to the EX Raid at a given time to fight and catch a powerful opponent. This included the likes of Deoxys, Mewtwo, and Regigigas, all of whom were otherwise near impossible to encounter.
However, EX Raids slowed down a few years back and now look to be removed entirely with a key item no longer available.
Pokemon Go fans believe EX Raid Passes are gone forever
Noticing the removal of a once fan-favorite feature, PoGOCentral posted on X/Twitter, “And to round off todays incredible drama, ex raid tickets have been removed from the game.”
The content creator then elaborated further on what this means, “They haven’t been around since March 2020, but the memories of them will live on. genuine sense of community when they happened (yep, even the midweek lunchtime ones).”
It’s worth noting that Niantic has yet to say anything about the potential removal of EX Raid Passes. Although the item has disappeared according to data miners, it’s unknown if this is because they are seen as no longer necessary or if this is something else entirely.
One passionate fan paid tribute to EX Raid Passes, “Those were the days. Getting an invite made me feel like I made it for real. These were the real elite raids. We had to coordinate in order to successfully take the boss down. Real teamwork. In person community was thriving back then.”
Some admitted to missing in-person raid events like EX Raids while others believe the “replacement of this feature sucked,” showing clear disdain for the later Elite Raids.
While the future of EX Raids remains unclear we do know that Niantic removed Pokemon GO’s Shared AR Buddy Experience feature in Update 293.0, although most fans didn’t seem overly concerned.