Pokemon GO Brings Special Pikachu Variant Back for a Limited Time, But There’s a Catch

Niantic is bringing back a special variant of Pikachu in Pokemon GO for a short period of time, albeit with a major caveat, as the returning event in question will only be available in a few countries worldwide. The hit mixed reality mobile game is notorious for its frequent implementation of region-exclusive events and offers, but despite drawing criticism from fans, Pokemon GO developer Niantic is showing no signs of stopping the practice anytime soon.

One of the many aspects of Pokemon GO that keeps players coming back are the in-game events that Niantic announces on a consistent basis, many of which involve the addition of new Pokemon types. Just recently, for instance, the developer hosted a promotion in the United States that added, among other things, a new, hat-wearing Pikachu variant to Pokemon GO that’s directly modeled after the Captain Pikachu mascot from the Pokemon Horizons TV series. What makes this Pikachu type especially unique outside of its cosmetic appearance, though, is that it brandishes an attack named Volt Tackle, a Generation 3 move that was previously not available in Pokemon GO. Although the event that this Pokemon was obtainable from ended a few months ago, Niantic is actually bringing the Pikachu back, but with a big catch this time.

As revealed in a news post on the official Pokemon GO website, the “Pikachu wearing Cap’s hat” is making its return to the massively successful mobile game, albeit only in Indonesia and India. In order to commemorate the Pokemon Horizons anime’s recent launch in these two regions, Niantic is hosting a month-long event that’ll last from June 15 to July 14, 2024. Like with the Pokemon GO Horizons Series Celebration that took place in the U.S. earlier this year, players will be able to capture their very own Captain’s Cap Pikachu by completing Field Research Tasks. Additionally, they’ll have the opportunity to experience surprise encounters with characters and other Pokemon from the TV series whenever they take snapshots in-game.

This Pokemon Go Horizons Series Celebration Event Won’t Be Available Worldwide

Unfortunately for U.S. residents who missed out on claiming this Captain’s Cap Pikachu earlier this year, it won’t be possible for them to circumvent the region-lock for this event without traveling to Indonesia or India themselves. As such, the number of players that can take advantage of this Pokemon Horizons celebration is rather limited. This is especially disappointing for those who wanted a second chance at capturing the Shiny variant of the Captain’s Cap Pikachu in Pokemon GO, as it’s especially rare.

Although most players won’t be able to take advantage of this celebration event, there are still many different Pikachu types to capture in Pokemon GO. Some fans have expressed frustration over how often Niantic releases new variants of the electric mouse Pokemon, but it’s clear that the mascot character is still a fan favorite among many Pokemon GO enthusiasts.

Pokémon GO

After a test run via an April Fools’ joke on Google Maps, Pokemon GO was released to the public in the summer of 2016. The AR mobile app saw unparalleled success and continues to be one of the largest mobile games in the world, pulling in billions for developer Niantic.

Released

July 6, 2016

Genre(s)

Augmented Reality

Multiplayer

Online Multiplayer

Engine

Unity

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