Pokemon Go Tour: Kanto will dominate February as the inaugural event gives trainers a chance to stock up on Gen 1 pocket monsters and shiny versions that haven’t been released yet.
The opportunity to catch a shiny Snorlax, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Spearow and Fearow will push players to brave the winter elements. If you haven’t gotten a ticket yet, try to get one before 11:59 p.m. PST Feb. 3. If you buy one before then, you’ll get the February’s Community Day Special Research quest for free.
Beyond that, Niantic has a few other events going on. Here are the highlights for February.
(This post will be updated as more information comes along.)
IMPORTANT RAIDS
The legendary beast raids for the first part of the month are a decent draw. Raikou, which is available from 10 a.m. Jan. 31 to 10 a.m. Feb. 4, is the most useful of the bunch. Latias and Latios will come to raids from 10 a.m. Feb. 9 to 8 a.m. Feb. 20. Out of the two, players will find Latios more useful in both raids and Go Battle League.
The bigger and more important raids go from 9 a.m. Feb. 20 to 8 a.m. March 1. That’s when the legendary birds Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres appear in raids. Those are the beloved symbols for the three teams — Mystic, Instinct and Valor — in “Pokemon Go.” Although those are good pocket monsters, the flagship raid is normal Mewtwo, which hasn’t been seen in raids since fall 2019. One of the best Pokemon in the game returns with the likely opportunity to be shiny. Players should save their remote and premium raid passes for this. Even if players don’t get a shiny version, they can at least stock up on Mewtwo candy and XL candy to make their existing psychic Pokemon better.
For those looking for Mega Energy, players will find Mega Venusaur, Mega Ampharos and Mega Houndoom will be in raids until 10 a.m. Feb. 9. That changes from 10 a.m. Feb. 9 to 9 a.m. Feb. 20 with the addition of Mega Pidgeot, Mega Ampharos and a special surprise Pokemon. I’m guessing it’s going to be either a red or pink Pokemon such as Audino or Slowbro because of another event. To finish off the month, the original starters Mega Venusaur, Mega Charizard X and Y and Mega Blastoise will appear from Feb. 20 to March 1.
LUNAR NEW YEAR AND VALENTINE’S DAY EVENTS
Red is the color of the month for two reasons. One is the Lunar New Year event, which celebrates the Year of the Ox. Players can expect more red Pokemon. My best guess is that players will find more chances to get the likes of Darumaka or pocket monsters based on Zodiac signs such as Dratini (dragon), Ekans (snake) and Ponyta (horse). Niantic may change it up again with the advent of new Pokemon.
Valentine’s Day in “Pokemon Go” will be celebrated from 1 p.m. Feb. 14 to 8 p.m. Feb. 18. Niantic says some new Pokemon will make their debut. Exclusive avatar items will also be on the way. Previously, pink Pokemon such as Luvdisc and Chansey are more abundant for the event. Both can be shiny and those shiny forms are desirable.
A HO-HUM COMMMUNITY DAY
Coming off Machop Community Day, Niantic threw a curveball to fans with Roselia being the star of February’s Community Day. The Thorn Pokemon already had a shiny debut with players having the opportunity to get multiple shiny versions of the pocket monster. Roselia’s evolution, Roserade, isn’t a great PvP Pokemon but it does excel in raids. What’s interesting is that the Community Day gives players two exclusive moves — Charged Attack Weather Ball (Fire-type) and Fast Attack Bullet Seed — if Roselia reaches its final evolution. Because Roserade needs a Sinnoh Stone and 100 candy to evolve, players should expect plenty of opportunities to get the item in the lead-up and actual event.
The moveset could make the pocket monster more powerful against certain raids.
NEW SHADOW POKEMON COMING
The first week of February is led by the return of Team Go Rocket. From 10 a.m. Feb. 2 to 10 a.m. Feb. 7, players should see more Team Go Rocket Grunts with new shadow Pokemon. This also means that the Team Go Rocket leaders — Arlo, Sierra and Cliff — will also have new shadow shiny pocket monsters. Shadows are some of the most powerful creatures in “Pokemon Go” and new versions will definitely upset the meta. It also means that shiny shadow Hypno, Growlithe and and Omanyte are going away.
The new shadow Pokemon include Swinub, Nosepass, Aron, Spheal, Lileep, Anorith and more, according to Niantic. Of this set, Swinub and Nosepass have the potential be powerful. My best advice is to keep good shadow Pokemon until players can TM away Frustration.
In addition, Qwilfish, Larvitar, Corphish, Absol, Skorupi, Sandile, Scraggy, Pawniard, Vullaby and Deino will be hatching from Strange Eggs. Some of those aren’t exactly the best Pokemon.
HIGHLIGHT THESE SPOTLIGHT HOURS
If you’re looking for shinies, this is the month for you. All four 6 p.m. spotlight hours feature Pokemon that can be shiny. That’s led by the following:
Feb. 9 — When the shiny version of Miltank was revealed, it immediately shot up to be one of the most desirable variants out there. The blue cow stands out in a gym or as a buddy and will draw oohs and aahs from friends. If players don’t get one during the Johto week celebration, they have a chance now. The big bonus is that players earn twice the Stardust for catching Pokemon. That’s even better.
Feb. 16 — Luvdisc is another hard-to-get shiny. It’s also one of the most beautiful with its gold coloring. Players will have a chance at this Pokemon but the bonus us also worth it. The double experience points for catching will help players trying to reach level 50.
Feb. 23 — I know Pikachu has been featured in plenty of events, but this event could be notable because it is held close to the 25th anniversary of the franchise. Expect Niantic and The Pokemon Company to do something special.
A WORTHWHILE SPECIAL RESEARCH
Players can encounter Snorlax from 1 p.m. Feb. 1 to 1 p.m. March 1. This special research means more after the Pokemon Go Tour: Kanto on Feb. 20 because conceivably the creature could be shiny.