Pokemon Go players angered by “greedy” tickets and “gambling” mechanics
The Pokemon CompanyMonetization can be a sore spot for fans of any game, and Pokemon Go players took to social media recently to air their frustrations with how the game gets fans to spend their money.
Whenever a game offers microtransactions, you can be sure that fans will spend a good chunk of time talking about it. Pokemon Go has an in-game store with exclusive content, and it’s a source of lively debate in the community.
Recently, a Pokemon Go player took to r/pokemongo to share their anger about the state of the game. Predictably, it kickstarted an in-depth discussion about monetization and how much is too much when it comes to a free mobile game.
Pokemon Go players divided over paid content and items
Originally appearing in this post, Pokemon Go player jayclomma described themselves as a “hardcore player” and noted how they’d been playing for 6 years.
They shared frustrations about the monetization of Pokemon Go, calling the game a “sham” and describing the player experience as “gambling real money for Shinies”.
The post goes on to talk about how Shinies can be purchased with real money (presumably referencing event tickets that offer increased Shiny Pokemon odds) before noting “and you can get Shinies in any other Pokémon game. For free” as well.
Some Pokemon Go players in the replies agreed, with one person calling it a “gacha game” and another saying “the game has stalled a bit in the last few months” before describing how they felt there had been no decent additions for players in a good while.
One Pokemon Go player shared their experience after using 20 incubators and getting no Shinies or Hundos, even vowing not to buy tickets anymore and saying, ” Good luck getting my money Niantic.”
Other fans in the thread disagreed with the premise of the post, with one person replying, “You can still get Shinies for free. They are not supposed to be easy to get” and another saying, “I get Shinies for free, your problem seems to be that you are spending money”.
There were a handful of players who felt confused by the premise of free Shiny Pokemon in other games, with some pointing out how you have to buy an entire console/handheld and game then grind for hours to pick up a Shiny in titles like Pokemon Scarlet or Violet.
Either way, as monetization methods in Pokemon Go steadily increase, it’s clear that fans are hoping for some other changes to the game to better incentivize the existing players into sticking around.
