Niantic has been fairly reticent when it comes to its updates and game system changes. Up until now, trainers have not had any news regarding the supposed release of the shiny status and other features such as trading. However, it seems that the developers have significantly revamped the wild encounter mechanics in the game, which, according to numerous reports, is now unique per trainer.
Pokémon GO: Wild Pokémon IVs, Moves, Stats
Initially surfaced on Twitter and Reddit, numerous trainers have reported that wild Pokémon no longer possess the same stats for every player that encounters them. As of the time of this writing, this conjecture still holds true for the many and it appears that this is an intentional change for the upcoming release of the Shiny feature.
As reported by GO Hub, there are four confirmed stats that are now unique per trainer: IVs, Moves, Weight and Height. It is important to note though, that these stats also take precedence on the trainer's level.
Now, how does the system predetermine the stats of the wild Pokémon that a player encounters? Well, it is still too early to provide conclusive report but based on the observations of track owners, this is how the system is behaving so far:
IVs and Movesets are now based on level. Starting from 1-24, the stats are now different per level. However, 25+ are all the same. CP/Level are still based on level. This stats remain the same as before wherein 1-29 are all different per level while 30+ are all the same. Check out more details here.
Pokémon GO: Shiny Feature Coming Soon
One may wonder what drove the team to make this huge revamp. Many players think that this is a part of the anti-spoofing function, which was mentioned this week. However, for some, it is a clear indication that Niantic is preparing for the launching of the Shiny feature, which is expected to come in the next major update (second quarter).
It is also worth mentioning that with this update, it indirectly affected trackers and even botters. Here are some of the effects of the revamp. Firstly, Trackers (currently) do not work properly in this update. Next, Spoofers won't be able to determine if a Pokémon is 100 percent or 0 percent IV. Lastly, Spoofers won't know if the Pokémon is Shiny or not.
