Some various Pokémon GO leaks might have hinted the highly-awaited gym changes as well as a certain new and possibly exciting feature. Similarly, this falls in line with Niantic's plans of introducing more co-op features soon.
Possible New Gym Mechanics Help Notify Players
According to Forbes, the mobile Pokémon title has just received a new patch that does not really seem to fix anything important aside from text and such. However, fans have taken the opportunity to explore the data in the update and found a few noteworthy files. The Pogodev discord managed to dig up some text, which seems to be related to gyms.
These three phases are "(Pokémon name) has fought hard and returned!," "{Pokémon name) defended the Gym!" and "(Pokémon name) lose a battle!" It seems like Niantic is gearing up for a more complex notification system, unlike its current counterpart. With this in mind, the game will actively inform players of their actions and the events that are happening at the gyms they hold.
Meanwhile, there are also a few lines that hint to a hunger mechanic wherein Pokémon will have to be fed if the trainers want to keep their position in a gym. This would be a great way to prevent stagnation, as most players would just leave their high-leveled monsters at the gym. Moreover, it might also prevent spoofers as they would possibly need to visit all the gyms they've conquered just to feed their Pokémon.
Pokémon GO Is Getting A New Co-Op Feature?
Incidentally, Polygon reports that Niantic has some plans of introducing some co-op gameplay in the near future. Furthermore, this feature will supposedly give fans a new reason to "get back into the sunshine." In line with this, the data miners also found a possible new mechanic called "Raids" that might find a way to bring team members together.
It is still unsure as to what this feature will do but it falls in line with Niantic's recent announcement for more co-op experiences. For now, fans will just have to wait for official announcements regarding the gym changes and raids. Pokémon GO is available to download for free on the iOS App Store or Google Play.
