Niantic has had it through the roof with those who use third-party apps to help them become better Pokémon trainers. With the recent Pokémon GO update confirming that you’ll have more interaction with other trainers than ever before, you’ll also have more access to other trainer’s information as well.
And tucked away in the inventories of those caught using third-party apps will be a permanent memorabilia of their digressions. Niantic revealed the news in a reddit post.
With the announcement of Raid Battles and the new battle features, we are staying true on our commitment to ensuring that Pokémon GO continues to be a fun and fair experience for all Trainers. Starting today, Pokémon caught using third-party services that circumvent normal gameplay will appear marked with a slash in the inventory and may not behave as expected.
We are humbled by the excitement for all the new features we announced yesterday. This is one small part of our continued commitment to maintaining the integrity of our community and delivering an amazing Pokémon GO experience.
Pokémon GO has come a long way
I used to consider third-party apps as a legitimate way to make up for the game’s deficiencies back when it felt like more of a shot in the dark. Decisions to remove key features and make the game more random killed the experience for a lot of gamers, and third-party apps were the only way to fix them.
Nowadays, many of those issues have been addressed, and it’s easier than ever to find the Pokémon you’re looking for. It’s not perfect, but it’s gotten to the point where using an outside app is overkill and not justifiable anymore.
