Gaming as a Lifestyle: The Impact of Video Games on Nerd Culture

Video games have become more than just a form of entertainment; they have evolved into a way of life and a defining aspect of nerd culture. With their immersive worlds, engaging narratives, and social connectivity, video games have transformed the way we interact, communicate, and express our passions. In this blog post, we will explore the impact of video games on nerd culture, examining how gaming has shaped the lives of enthusiasts and contributed to the vibrant and diverse landscape of geekdom.

A Gateway to Adventure and Exploration:

Video games offer a unique opportunity for players to embark on virtual adventures and explore fantastical worlds. From epic quests in fantasy realms to intergalactic journeys in science fiction settings, gaming transports players to immersive and interactive environments that ignite their imaginations. The ability to assume the role of a hero, make choices that affect the narrative, and unravel intricate storylines has captivated gamers and drawn them deeper into the gaming lifestyle.

Building Communities and Fostering Social Connections:

Gaming has transcended its solitary origins and become a powerful medium for social interaction. Online multiplayer games, virtual communities, and gaming conventions have fostered connections among gamers, creating vibrant communities that share a common passion. Whether it's teaming up with friends in cooperative gameplay or engaging in competitive matches against players from around the world, gaming has facilitated socialization and friendship-building among individuals who may have never crossed paths otherwise.

The Rise of Esports and Competitive Gaming:

The advent of esports has revolutionized the gaming landscape, transforming it into a professional and highly competitive arena. Esports tournaments, with their massive prize pools and dedicated fan bases, have elevated gaming to the status of a spectator sport. Competitive gaming has become a legitimate career path, with professional gamers gaining recognition, sponsors, and global followings. The rise of esports has not only expanded the gaming community but also helped legitimize gaming as a respected and influential industry.

Inspiration for Creativity and Innovation:

Video games have inspired a new wave of creativity and innovation within nerd culture. Many gamers have become content creators, producing YouTube videos, live streams, and podcasts dedicated to gaming. They share their experiences, provide commentary, and offer tips and tricks to fellow gamers. Gaming has also influenced other creative mediums, with game-inspired art, music, and literature becoming prevalent within nerd culture. The imaginative worlds and characters within games have sparked the creativity of fans and inspired them to express their own ideas and interpretations.

Problem-Solving and Skill Development:

Gaming goes beyond entertainment; it can also contribute to the development of problem-solving skills, strategic thinking, and teamwork. Many games require players to navigate complex puzzles, make quick decisions, and collaborate with others to achieve objectives. Gamers often develop critical thinking, adaptability, and resource management skills that can be transferred to real-world situations. Gaming as a lifestyle has not only provided enjoyment but also honed valuable cognitive and social abilities.

A Platform for Personal Identity and Expression:

Video games offer players the freedom to customize their avatars, choose their play styles, and make decisions that shape the virtual world. This level of personalization and self-expression has empowered gamers to explore their own identities and create characters that reflect their personalities and aspirations. Gaming has provided a platform where individuals can be whoever they want to be, free from societal constraints, fostering a sense of acceptance and inclusivity within nerd culture.

Conclusion:

Video games have had a profound impact on nerd culture, transforming it into a vibrant and dynamic community. Gaming as a lifestyle has expanded the boundaries of entertainment, offering adventure, social connections, creative outlets, and personal growth. As technology continues to advance, we can expect even more immersive and transformative gaming experiences that will further shape the lives of gamers and continue to influence the landscape of nerd culture. So grab your controllers, don your headsets, and embrace gaming as a way of life that brings together people from all walks of life in a shared love for virtual exploration and boundless possibilities.

I ❤ Exiled Kingdoms

Okay, so that is a pretty strong statement in the title. I admit it. Makes a good title though.

I started playing "Exiled Kingdoms" 3 days ago and quickly determined it is an awesome game to play on your cellphone (or tablet) and here I am writing about it because of its sheer awesomeness. However I want to explain some things...

1.  I rarely put game reviews on Nerdovore because quite frankly a lot of games out there are horrible and there is no point talking about games that I hate (unless I have a good reason to talk about it I suppose).
2. I hate trying out new games on my phone and finding out that they are horrible.
3. Or worse, horribly addictive and you eventually get bored of it.
4. Not what I expected - and I end up deleting it because it was not what they advertised.
5. The game is immediately boring.
6. The game is too complicated.
7. And worst of all, they want you to buy things in the game to make it easier to play it.
8. Horrible game maps, or in some cases - no map at all. :(

And I hate spending money on games that I might get bored of later.

So lets talk about Exiled Kingdoms and why I like it so much.

1. The trial version of the game has quite a bit you can do. 15 maps to explore and kill stuff.
2. The full version of the game has 108+ maps to explore and kill stuff, and is only $4.
3. The creators keep adding more maps. So good for them.
4. It is an one time fee of $4. There is nothing else in the game to buy. Everything else you have to earn. There is no store to buy gold or equipment or gems or whatever. One time fee and you can play as much as you want. Want to get really cool armour? Need to earn it.
5. The game has an old school Dungeons and Dragons feel to it.
6. I have not got bored of it. The trial version alone has a lot of stuff to do.
7. I am pleasantly surprised at how good the game is.
8. The game can be quite exciting... just remember to quick-save often, because death is always just around the corner.
9. It is not too complicated, but there is plenty to do within the game.
10. Completely open world - the trial version you are limited to the 15 maps in question, but the full version you can explore anywhere you want.
11. The maps are awesome. The maps have the feel of classic Dungeons and Dragons maps.

There are some things I wish this game could do however.

I kinda wish it was a MMORPG. It currently is not. It is a RPG and you can hire mercenaries to accompany you on the quests.

But honestly, I am okay with it being a solo game because there are benefits to that... like not needing internet all the time to play it.

I have not purchased it yet. Instead I made a 2nd character, a thief/rogue this time and I am going to get the new character up to level 5 before I make the decision as to whether to buy. But for $4... I am leaning towards a yes.

I do wish there was alternative ways to heal up in the game. Healing potions are a bit expensive and going to an inn to rest is annoying. My characters can currently rest and heal up twice in the wilderness, but after those run out you have to be careful getting back to a village to rest at an inn. (I assume playing a cleric makes this aspect easier.)


About Exiled Kingdoms

They have a forum with lots of active users: http://www.exiledkingdoms.com/forum/

Their reviews on Google Play are pretty impressive.

A lot of people, including myself, happen to like the graphics. Too many games make the graphics look childish and cheesy. This game they went for a more realistic look.

Here is a sample of the game play on YouTube:



And here are some more screenshots of game play.

Look at the details of these collapsed ruins? Don't they have a nice D&D feel to them, feel realistic and not childish or ridiculous?

To see what I am talking about let me show an example. See how everything looks like a cartoon in comparison? Anime-esque aesthetics. I find that really annoying when I play games. It just ends up feeling so childish and ridiculous - and gameplay in such games is often designed to be horribly addictive, which is another problem because eventually you grow bored of the game and delete it.

I will give an example of one I have actually played...

Gameplay of SAO Memory Defrag

"Sword Art Online Memory Defrag"

I love the TV show Sword Art Online, and Sword Art Online II. Both awesome.

So I tried the game.

It is a side scrolling game. To do a quest you click a button. It has ZERO maps. There is no open world. You just click and do a side scrolling fight. Feels a bit like a horrible Nintendo game from the 1990s.

A few months ago I played "Sword Art Online Memory Defrag" for about a week and then got bored of it.

The graphics were annoying me. Everything was so cutesy.

A lot of the game was geared towards selling cute weapons and armour for the heroes to play... and you had to try and collect all the heroes, which also required money - or a lot of hard work to get just 1 hero with good stats.

Within the game there was...

• No maps.
• Nothing to explore.
• No roleplaying elements.
• Not much of a story because it basically just recapped fights from the TV show.

On the plus side with SAO Memory Defrag, you could team up with other people and do quests... if you really wanted to. But the game was mostly designed for solo questing, so why bother?

Eventually I got bored of SAO. Still love the TV show. Recently rewatched seasons 1 and 2 on Netflix. But I don't see being bored enough that I will log into SAO Memory Defrag again any time soon.

Most likely I will eventually delete it from my phone.

Which brings me back to Exiled Kingdoms.

It has a rich story. Lots of open world to explore. I am going to be very pleased to fork over $4 for a game I can play continually without being expected to ever pay another cent.

And I will finally have found a nice Dungeons and Dragons style game I can play on my cellphone which has all the elements I have been looking for in such a game.

So what if it is not a MMORPG? Perhaps it doesn't need to be. One thing that SAO Memory Defrag has proven, is that even if you do make a game a MMORPG, that doesn't mean it is any good. It could very well be boring.




Other Games I would like to briefly comment on...

Skyrim on PS3 or PS4, awesome!

Witcher 3, my wife is literally playing that game right now in the living room. Awesome.

Dungeons and Dragons Online, a PC game, awesome! (And not childish graphics like WoW either.)

I used to play a Facebook game years ago called Battle Pirates. Typical village building game, but with ships. You build better ships, mine resources, build defenses for your island, and attack other islands and ships. I eventually got bored of it however. It was a huge time waster and was not that enjoyable. Too many pricks in that game and you just get tired of defending your island from pricks.

Clash of Clans is annoying, very much geared towards sucking money from your wallet. Castle Clash however... much better. Almost exactly the same game, but with the benefit that your troops don't disappear after a battle. If they survive the battle, you keep them. Castle Clash also has immortal heroes that go up levels and you can duel them against other players and send them on quests. You can play Castle Clash for hours without getting bored.

Although both CoC and CC are addictive. So you have been warned!

I once recommended Castle Clash to a friend... I never saw him again. I wonder if he is still playing it... I did warn him it was addictive.

Mists of Ravenloft coming to DDO

October 26th 2017.

Okay so there are two big things I am looking forward to right now.

#1. Season Two of Stranger Things on Netflix (which I will be binge watching tomorrow).

#2. Mists of Ravenloft being released on Dungeons and Dragons Online on December 5th.

So I have no doubt that Stranger Things Season 2 will be amazing, mindblowing, and I shall watch it again and again. (There is a tiny chance I will be disappointed and downcast as a result.)

But with Mists of Ravenloft I am looking forward to playing DDO again - I took a break from playing it from May to October, so I am happy to start playing again. This is something I do with DDO, which is hugely addictive, and I find it helps keep things balanced in my life. I will take long hiatuses from the game and not play it during an extended period of time.

During the past 15 months roughly I have been spending a lot of my "gaming time" playing Pokemon Go, but with winter coming and me disliking the idea of spending another winter outside playing Pokemon, this year I have decided to not play Pokemon and instead focus on playing various games indoors... where it is warm and cozy.

Games like...

• Skyrim (and Skyrim Expanded Edition)
• Oblivion
• The Crew
• Dungeons and Dragons Online

Part of this is fueled by the fact that I no longer have much time for pen and paper games (traditional D&D with dice, paper, etc) now that I have a baby boy and not much gaming time.

Thus what little gaming time I do have, I need to be using it in different ways.

So no more Pokemon Go during the Winter.

No more pen and paper D&D for me. Or at least not as often as before.

Hello, Dungeons and Dragons Online...

Now to be clear, I have been waiting for Ravenloft to be added to DDO for years. I made numerous suggestions years ago that various classic D&D modules should be added to the game, and it appears the producers of the game are finally listening.

They came out with a series of quests in Eveningstar - and the classic quest Haunted Halls of Eveningstar (aka HHoE).
After that success they came out with Temple of Elemental Evil (ToEE).

And now, finally... Ravenloft. The first big expansion of the game since Eveningstar.

Yours for $39.99.

Sigh.

As is usual, each expansion costs more than the original game. (DDO is currently free to play, but a lot of the more fun and interesting quests you need to buy access to.)

But whatever. It is Ravenloft. I am so paying for it when it comes out.

My only disappointment is that they didn't release it before Halloween. Instead we have to wait for December 5th.

Historical Context

Decades ago there was a computer game released by SSI called Ravenloft: Strahd's Possession. Followed by the sequel, Stone Prophet. Stone Prophet was my favourite of the two, but the beauty of the two games was that they were both awesome, and you could play characters through to the end of Ravenloft - and then use the same characters in Stone Prophet.

My one beef with those two games is that monsters never respawn. Both games could have been so much better with respawning monsters in the wilderness areas.

The new Ravenloft expansion will of course have a wilderness area - which I am going to have a lot of fun exploring.

What to do In Between Pokemon Go Events

By now many of us Pokemon Go players have figured out there are really two ways of playing Pokemon Go.

1. The vanilla experience, the time period between events.
2. The events experience, the times when there is a Pokemon Go event happening.

The recent Adventure Week rock event and the Grass Event before that got me thinking that about what players should be doing during the time periods that are in-between the events. Here is what I do:

#1. Fill in your Pokedex

I hunt specific Pokemon to fill out my Pokedex, usually by going to locations where specific kinds of Pokemon are more likely to appear. So for example if I am hunting water Pokemon, I am hanging around the lakeshore, ponds, rivers, etc. See Pokemon Go Spawn Locations in Toronto for more details.

So for example right now I am hunting Houndours, so I can evolve one and get the evolved version Houndoom. My Pokedex is currently at 222 and I would like to reach 235 before July 1st. To accomplish that I need to be finding spawn nests for certain types of Gen 2 Pokemon (I already have all of the Gen 1 Pokemon that are available in Toronto), and to find those 13 missing Pokemon I need to be spending the time during June to fine them.

#2. Hunt the Ten Biggest Pokemon

Or their lesser evolved counterparts. Your primary goal here is to get big Pokemon that make for good gym defenders. These includes hunting for:

1. Larvitars (Tyranitar Rock/Dark, max CP 3670)
2. Dratinis (Dragonite, Dragon/Flying, max CP 3581)
3. Snorlax (Normal, max CP 3355)
4. Rhydon (Ground/Rock, max CP 3300)
5. Magikarp (Gyarados, Water/Flying, max CP 3281)
6. Chansey (Blissey, Normal, max CP 3219)
7. Eevees (Five different evolutions, Water, Dark, Electric, Fire or Psychic, max CP 3157)
8. Phanpy (Donphan, Ground, max CP 3022)
9. Heracross (Bug/Fighting, max CP 2938)
10. Geodude (Golem, Rock/Ground, max CP 2916)

 Hunting the biggest pokemon are just straight up useful for protecting gyms, which brings me to my next topic.

#3. Hunt Pokemon that are Good Gym Attackers

Being big isn't necessarily good for taking down enemy gyms / bumping up your own gym. In those situations it is better to have several good pokemon of each the 18 types. Certain types are very good at taking down other types. Water beats fire, ice beats dragon, grass beats ground, steel beats rock, fairy beats dark, etc.

Thus since the biggest Pokemon out there are things like Tyranitar (rock/dark) it is useful to have some big fairies or big steel Pokemon to take down the Tyranitars. Fairy attacks are also good versus dragons, so they are also good versus Dragonites. Ice attacks are also great against Dragons, so the fairy/ice Pokemon Jynx is actually surprisingly good at defeating Dragonites. If you get a really good Jynx, you should definitely keep it for the purposes of defeating Dragonites.

Since Dragonites fly, electric Pokemon are also good against them and other types of flying Pokemon like Gyarados.

Fighting Pokemon are good for taking down Snorlaxes, so finding a big Heracross with fighting attacks should also be on your To Do List. While a Heracross does make a good defender, it is arguably best kept as an attacker instead.

#4. Attack Gyms and Defend Them - Get Coins!

Now that you hopefully have some good defenders and a variety of good attackers, you should spend your time taking down gyms and replacing them with your team. Or alternatively, boosting up your team's gyms to level 10 and then defending them.

Your end goal in attacking gyms is to gain coins, so I usually try to time when I go on a series of Gym Attacks so I can attack multiple gyms, place my defenders, and then collect my coins immediately. If I wait too long someone might come along and try to take down any gyms I captured and then I would need to repeat the process to get the amount of coins I was hoping for.

Once you have the coins they are best used to increase your inventory space / Pokemon storage. Otherwise I stockpile my coins until sales that are worthwhile. (The recent sale on Pokeballs was useless to me, as I don't believe on wasting coins or money on Pokeballs that can be gained for free just by walking.)

#5. Stock Up on Pokeballs

I frequently dump healing lesser healing potions, revives and nanab berries to make more room for Pokeballs. I will generally keep the hyper/max potions and the max revives, but even then I usually end up with lots of them.

Nanab berries are annoying to me. I rarely use them because I usually just time my throwing of the Pokeball in the first place. I only keep a few on me in case I run into a particularly annoying Pokemon who keeps dodging or headbutting the ball, but otherwise I routinely dump Nanabs whenever I have more than 10 of them. If I really want more space for Pokeballs I will sometimes reduce my Nanabs to 5 because I so rarely need them.

Pokeballs, Razz/Pinap berries are the truly valuable things to have as you NEED them to catch Pokemon, increase your chances of catching them, or double the candy you get when trying to catch a particularly rare Pokemon. eg. If I see a Larvitar, that is a good time to use an Ultra Ball and a Pinap so I get double the candy and improve my chances of catching it. Combined with a curve ball and excellent aim/timing, that Larvitar is usually as good as caught.

Evolution items are nice to have when it comes time to use them (preferably during a double XP event) but otherwise I don't worry about them. If they start taking up too much space eventually I might dump a few, but at present they have not become an inventory nuisance.

#6. Inventory Maintenance / Waiting for Next Event

Whether you are getting rid of Pokemon you don't need or making sure you keep a full inventory with lots of Pokeballs, you should try to do this regularly.

When doing this I also stockpile candy, stockpile Pokemon ready to be evolved, and get ready for the next double XP event - like the Easter Eggstravaganza event that was in April. I evolved almost 400 Pokemon during the Easter Eggstravaganza that I had been stockpiling, just so when I did evolve them I could use Lucky Eggs in combo with the Double XP to get 4 times the XP.

I also record how much candy I have stockpiled of the various types, and calculate how many Pokemon I will be able to evolve whenever the next event comes around - this way I know to keep big / good stats Pokemon around instead of dumping them, thus keeping the correct number I will need for whenever a double XP event finally happens.

I have a hunch there will be another double XP event sometime in June or July.

Events seem to be happening at a rate of 1 or 2 per month, with Big Events usually accompanied by bigger incentives to get out there and play, but that doesn't mean you should not be out there playing and accomplishing your goals within the game during the downtimes between events. The events add interest to the game and allow you to focus on catching specific types of Pokemon, to hatch more eggs, to get double XP, etc - but there are certain goals like gaining coins, filling in your Pokedex, etc that can be accomplished without any need for an event to currently be happening.

Happy Hunting!

Pokemon Go - Pet Peeves concerning Whiners and Cheaters

So I haven't posted about Pokemon Go for awhile, not since November (last post was about Pokemon Spawn Locations in Toronto, which keeps shifting every few weeks).

Above: Example of a map used for hacking the game.

#1. Map Cheaters

One of the things I have noticed (and has been annoying me for awhile) is people who complain and whine about the game, and the things that they complain about is how Niantic (the makers of Pokemon Go) keep cracking down on cheating.

A common way for cheaters to cheat is by using 3rd party GPS apps / websites to see where various rare Pokemon are located, how much time they will be there, etc.

Various in-game features made it easy for people to hack the game and cheat that way, so over time Niantic changed those features to make cheating less likely.

eg. A recent change in April 2017 is that Pokemon no longer have their stats predetermined when they appear, and instead now have random stats at the moment a player first clicks on them.

Thus 3rd party GPS apps can no longer tell what the particular stats of a particular Pokemon is until someone clicks on it. It is just random now. This hasn't stopped people from cheating however, as they continue to use the GPS apps to locate rare Pokemon.

Thus, the only people complaining about those changes are the people who are cheating in the first place.

Other less common ways of cheating include GPS location spoofing (so you don't have to walk, it just does it for you).

#2. Quitters and Whiners

Another thing that annoys me is the people who quit playing the game because they thought it was:

• Too much exercise.
• Too cold outside during the winter.
• Events are too few and too far in-between.
• Whining about how Legendaries still have not been released.
• Not at popular as it once was.
• General Whining, Etc.

At which point I should point out the following:

1. Pokemon Go is effectively a competitive sport. You are SUPPOSED to exercise to play the game.
2. I played outside during the Winter, I was simply smart about and wore thermal underwear and multiple layers.
3. Events are supposed to rare and special. Duh.
4. They will be released eventually, during an event.
5. The people who quit playing are probably also the people who never spent a cent playing the actual game, so those quitters don't really effect Niantic's profits, do they?
6. Sheesh, these people complain about everything. You cannot make them happy.

The #5 point is really important because I think these players who quit really just could not handle it. Many of them, this is just a hunch, probably could not stand all the walking that is involved - and thus quitters don't just quit for 1 reason, they quit for multiple reasons, of which #1 is probably a common complaint that many of these lazy quitters just don't want to admit to.

After all, nobody ever wants to admit that they are lazy.

Speaking for myself, I did not quit - I just kept playing despite the weather, whether there was an event on or no event, and I stockpiled my candy between events so that when the recent Easter Egg Event did happen, I used up a lot of my stockpiled candy to evolve approx. 400 Pokemon and gain approx. 800,000 XP from getting 2,000 XP per evolution.

So I am sitting happy with the results of my efforts and I am now stockpiling candy for the next event that involves Double XP, which according to rumour will be sometime during the summer and involve the release of Generation I Legendaries.

I have a hunch candies might be handy whenever they release Legendaries, so it is also good to start stockpiling for that purpose. If it turns out I am wrong, oh well, just use them during a double XP event instead.

#3. Unspoken Ceasefires

Often what happens with Pokegyms these days is that they will become a level 10 blue gym or level 10 red gym, and it will just stay there for weeks or even months, meanwhile other "enemy gyms" are set up only a short distance away and do the exact same thing.

I am personally okay with this ceasefire. I really don't mind logging in once every 21 hours and collecting my coins.

Some people however see this unspoken ceasefire as a problem, and go out of their way to disrupt the status quo. It takes about 30-40 minutes to solo take down a gym.

Thus when I look around my neighbourhood at the gyms, I really don't care about the status of those gyms as long as my gyms are well protected and I am continuously gaining coins from them every 21 hours. I am quite happy with ceasefires.

What annoys me is when my gyms (effectively "my territory") get taken down and I have to go recapture them and reclaim my position protecting them. However this rarely happens these days.

So What Am I Worried About?

Not a lot actually. Obviously I would still like to see the following:

• Player Vs Player Combat (PVP) - just so I can play against family members/etc.
• More Things To Do in the Game - like going on quests perhaps.
• Tiered Gyms - so that less experienced players can still collect coins, as the more experienced players currently dominate the gyms and make that aspect of the game pointless for low level players.
• Legendaries, eventually - I am in no rush to get this.

A few weeks ago I finally got all of the 1st Generation Pokemon (ignoring regionals, Dodrio was tricky to finally get) so my current goal is to finish getting all of the 2nd Generation. So getting the Legendaries in a hurry is not a big deal to me as I still haven't got all the 2nd Gens that are available.

Otherwise I am stockpiling candy for the next Double XP event, stockpiling coins (for the next sale) and leveling up my biggest Dragons and Tyrants. I am quite happy and content with the way things are going.

And I should note, I am not by any means a "pro player". I play less than an hour per day usually. Sometimes more if I am downtown or have spare time to go for a walk I might play for several hours, but most days it is a more of a "get a few pokestops, catch a few pokemon and then just go home" kind of day.

I currently have 4.33 million XP (level 33, 58.2% of the way to level 34) and have a long way to go to reach level 40 (20 million XP).

I have been playing for 9 months, so at the current rate of XP (481,000 per month) it would take me another 2 years and 8.5 months to reach level 40.

Reach means my son would be born, will two years old and will be celebrating his 3rd Christmas by then. And I can pretty much guarantee that I won't have as much time to play this game after he is born - so expect a delay on that ever happening.

It is after all, just a game. There are other things more precious in life.

Pokemon Spawn Locations in Toronto

POKEMON GO TIPS - November 24th 2016.

Pokemon tend to spawn in what are known as Poke Nests. These nests are often connected somehow to the geography or building that the pokemon are nearby.

Examples:

Water Pokemon tend to spawn near water: Rivers, lakes, dams, etc.

Fire Pokemon tend to spawn near farmland, but can also be found in inner cities.

Earth/Rock Pokemon tend to spawn on hiking trails near rock formations, caves, etc.

Spawning however is a bit random. Nests are where certain types of more rare Pokemon will spawn frequently. Unfortunately nests also change over time. For example I know of several nests.

#1. Queens Park, Toronto - The D shaped section of the park south of the legislature has 12 Pokestops within a 5 minute circular walk.

Currently it is spawning Onix and Scyther. (Not so long ago it was an Exeggcute nest.)

#2. Edward Gardens and Sunnybrook Park - By itself Edward Gardens has 25 Pokestops and you can basically just walk in circles around the place.


Currently both of these are nests for Exeggcutes, and to a lesser extent Eevees.

#3. E. T. Seton Park

It used to be a Kabuto nest. I have a feeling it is spawning something else now. If you know what the nest is currently spawning please post in the comments below.

#4. Roundhouse Park - Between Ripley's Aquarium and the Steamwhistle Brewery.

This used to be a Ponyta nest. I have no idea what it is currently a nest for, but I am hoping it is Fire type Pokemon. Also lots of common water Pokemon closer to the aquarium.

Otherwise use the handy guide below to try and find new spawn locations and nests.

Do you know of a current Pokemon Nest somewhere in Toronto?

If so please post in the comments below:

• Location of the Nest.
• Type(s) of Pokemon in the Nest.
• Month Date Year of the last time you were at the Nest.

This way when the Nests change, we can simply delete old comments from an older date and leave the new ones which are current, this way we focus on the new nest locations.

How to Hatch Rare Pokemon Eggs in Pokemon Go

When you collect eggs while playing Pokemon Go you cannot tell what the egg will hatch into when you finally succeed in walking 2 KM, 5 KM or 10 KM. Or can you?

Pokemon Egg Hatching Chart

I have a theory and I have been testing it out. It goes like this:

Depending on where you are on the map, your egg is more likely to hatch into the same thing that normally spawns in the area you are in, provided the egg is the correct rarity.

So for example if you are hatching a 5 KM egg in an area that regularly spawns Squirtles, Psyducks and Lapras, then you will have a higher chance than normal of getting a Psyduck.

The reason?

Squirtles, Psyducks and Lapras (and other water Pokemon) typically spawn near water, and some areas tend to get very specific types of Pokemon.

When you hatch an egg while walking in that area, my theory is that the game automatically checks where you are to determine what types of spawns are available in that area, determines the result randomly, and then gives you whatever Pokemon matches the egg's rarity.

So for example lets say you are in an area that sometimes spawns Zubats, Magikarp and Squirtles.

If you are lucky, you might get a Squirtle or a Magikarp. If you are not lucky, you will get a Zubat.

In more mundane areas you will likely get something more mundane:

Examples

2 KM -  Caterpie, Weedle, Pidgey, Rattata, Spearow, Zubat.

5 KM - Nidoran, Meowth, Bellsprout.

10 KM - Jynx, Eevee.

Now that doesn't mean that you will automatically get boring Pokemon just because you live in a boring part of town. Rather it simply means you will have higher than normal odds of hatching something boring, and be less likely to hatch something very rare.

So how do you try to control this?

I am going to use Ponyta as an example.

I know from experience that if I go to a specific part of Toronto, the Roundhouse Park south of the CN Tower, that it is a good place to catch Ponytas. If I wanted to hatch a Ponyta on purpose I should in theory go to the same place, finish walking the last of a 5 KM egg (or better yet, multiple 5 KM eggs in Egg Incubators), and my odds of getting a Ponyta would be increased.

Another example:

Close to my home is a parking lot which tends to spawn a lot of Growlithes. If I wanted to deliberately hatch one, I would want to go hang out in the parking lot while finishing hatching a 5 KM egg.

Thus attempting to control this is easy. Figure out what locations tend to spawn what, then go there and hatch some eggs there. Looking for a Scyther? Go to a place that has them and start walking so you can hatch the correct size of egg. If you are really lucky you might catch a spawn Scyther AND hatch a Scyther while there.

How did I develop this theory?

I first noticed this phenomenon when I was down near the Toronto harbour front looking for Dratinis and Dragonites. The area I was in was also spawning a lot of Magikarp, and lo and behold I hatched a Magikarp.

The coincidental nature of hatching a Magikarp in an area that spawned lots of Magikarp caused me to think about whether WHERE I am makes a different to what actually hatches.

Since then I have hatched numerous things and started keeping track of where I was when I hatched that thing:

I hatched a Psyduck when walking near a river, hatched a Seel in an area that spawns Seels regularly, hatched a Horsea in an area that spawns Horseas regularly, hatched an Eevee in an area known for Eevees.

Even when I hatched a boring Pokemon, that boring one is still something normal that tends to spawn in the area I was walking in.

After awhile you become pretty confident that while there is some randomness to what you hatch, the WHERE you are when you hatch the egg does certainly seem to matter.

So what about hatch rates?

Some people have tried keeping track of hatch rates of Pokemon eggs and what things tend to hatch.

The problem with hatch rates is that if my theory is correct, then the hatch rates will vary from person to person depending on where they live, where they tend to go for walks, and what areas they tend to be in. A person who lives near the beach and goes for long walks on the beach will probably have much higher hatch rates for various kinds of water Pokemon.

So how do you hatch something really rare?

There are 3 types of Pokemon not found in North America:

• Mr Mime, only available in Europe.
• Kangashkan, only available in Australia / New Zealand.
• Farfetch'd, only available in Asia.

But it is still possible to hatch a Farfetch'd or Kangashkan using 5 KM eggs. Or Mr Mime using a 10 KM egg.

But your chances of doing so are REDUCED because you are not in the areas that spawn them. This makes hatching a rare Pokemon that isn't from your region almost impossible. You could hatch 100 eggs and still not get the rares you are looking for.

There is also the issue of the Six Not Currently Available Pokemon.

• Mew
• Mewtwo
• Ditto
• Articuno
• Zapdos
• Moltres

Supposedly they don't currently exist in the game. I say "supposedly" because nobody has managed to find them, hatch them or evolve them. Or at least not yet. I don't think these 6 can be hatched. But I do think it is possible they do exist and that there is a way to evolve 5 of them.

You may have noticed that Articuno looks like a Pidgey / Pidgeot and that Zapdos / Moltres look like a Spearow / Fearow. I do not think that it is a coincidence. I think there is two options:

Option 1. They do exist in the game, but you have to rename a Pidgey to the correct name in order to evolve it into an Articuno. Likewise, Zapdos and Moltres are available, but you have to rename a Spearow to the correct names in order to evolve them. Same goes with Mew and Mewtwo (evolved from Meowth).

Option 2. The official story is they have not been released yet and may be released during a future event.

Don't know. Either is possible.

10 More Ways for Niantic to Improve Pokemon Go (Part II)

See also my previous post titled:

10 Ways for Niantic to Improve Pokemon Go (Part I)

#11. Ways to Increase Search Radius.

When searching for Pokemon circles radiate around your avatar, showing your Search Radius. But what if there were ways to temporarily increase your search radius?

This topic came up when I was outside a hospital looking for Pokemon and there was a young patient in a wheelchair outside looking for Pokemon. His usual method was to find a Pokestop and drop a Lure Module, as the game is not "wheel chair friendly" in any way or form.

Seeing the Lure I decided to hang out with him and we got to talking about ways to improve the game.

For him the Search Radius was a major hindrance because of his lack of mobility. He could go places in his wheelchair, but the woods, any place with lots of stairs, and other locations where it is difficult to maneuver in his wheel chair were super tricky.

At times he would see Pokemon in his Sightings box, and move to get closer to them, but often would be just out of range to get near them in his wheelchair. We speculated that it would be an improvement to the game if there was an option to boost the search radius (by 50% or even double it) so that people can search for Pokemon for a boosted radius. Even a temporary boost that lasts 30 minutes might be worth it to players.

#12. The Inequality of the Prices in the Pokemon Shop.

Each Pokecoin is basically worth 1 penny. Buying Pokecoins have varying prices, but 1 penny per coin is roughly accurate. Any extra cost of buying Pokecoins I basically consider to be a transaction fee.

The problem however is what items are actually worth. Let me elaborate:

1 Egg Incubator will hatch 3 eggs and costs 150 Pokecoins. That means it costs 50 cents per Pokemon hatched. It also requires you to walk 6, 15 or 30 km to hatch the eggs, depending on the size of eggs you are hatching. Thus egg incubators are really expensive and not worth buying presently.

But in contrast if you buy Incense it costs 80 cents and will garner you 6 Pokemon, assuming you catch them, which you likely will. That is 13.33 cents per Pokemon caught. It will also cause you to lose 6 or more Pokeballs to catch them all. However, considering the price difference between Egg Incubators and Incense, then Incense is definitely a cost savings.

Lure Modules cost $1 (100 Pokecoins). They will also get you 6 Pokemon the same way Incense does, but the difference is that other people nearby also benefit. Thus Lure modules are even better as a cost savings if you make a habit of playing the game with friends all the time. But if you are a Lone Wolf style player then Lure Modules are not worth it when you consider Incense is cheaper.

Pokeballs cost 5 cents each. 20 balls for 100 Pokecoins. Or 4 cents each if you buy 200 balls for 800 Pokecoins. But at 4 or 5 cents per ball it would make more logical sense to just go for a walk and hit a few Pokestops instead. 10 Pokestops should garner 33+ items, which will be about 60% balls. Paying for Pokeballs is for lazy suckers.

The only things really worth paying for are the following:

• Bag Upgrades - Because it is the gift that keeps on giving. Cap out your storage too often and later run out of balls, and you realize more storage is the key to having more balls and catching more Pokemon.
• Pokemon Storage Upgrades - Because extra storage for more Pokemon is also handy.
• Lucky Eggs - Used for Powerleveling by evolving 65+ Pokemon all at once.

Going back to Egg Incubators they should properly be priced at 50 cents each, making them 16.66 cents per Pokemon hatched. That makes way more sense price wise, and at least makes it comparable to Incense.

#13. The Evolution of Pokemon Sightings and Distance.

In the graphic below it shows how Pokemon Sightings originally worked, showing the approximate distance using footsteps. Then it was changed so people couldn't tell how far away they were. And then changed again so that it made it look like they were hiding in the tall grass.

In the previous 10 Ways for Niantic to Improve Pokemon Go I mentioned how they should add directional arrows for North, South, East and West. In this one I would also recommend bringing back the footprints.

Bringing back the footprints plus adding the directional arrows would suffice to make 3rd party radar apps obsolete. People would have a rough idea of the direction and possible distance to the Pokemon they are looking for, but they would still need to search for them and make the effort of walking / searching. The vagueness of the distance / direction ensures that players still have to wander around to attempt to find Pokemon.

#14. Disappearing Acts? Three Strikes System.

You find a Pokemon, you begin the process of tossing balls at it to catch it and... Poof! It disappears. Really annoying. In my opinion you should always get at least 3 tosses at a Pokemon BEFORE it disappears.

Getting only 1 or 2 balls at it and both failing and then the Pokemon goes Poof makes the game really annoying and frustrating.

Having a 3 throw minimum would allow people to have a better chance of actually catch a Pokemon before it pulls its disappearing act. Unfortunately this means the disappearing act would still happen, but having the 3 throw minimum at least gives players a better chance of success with less annoyances.

#15. Winter is Coming. Winter events?

One of the downfalls of this game is that eventually it is going to start snowing. Here in Toronto, Canada, we can expect the first snowfall sometime in November. So how will Canadians play Pokemon Go during the winter?

Well, for me, I have snowshoes and I happen to like snowshoeing, skiing and various winter activities. But not everyone is into those activities and will likely end up hibernating during the winter... Which means they might stop playing Pokemon Go during the winter. And people who stop playing might never play again when Spring comes.

Unless they can be coaxed outside by some form of Winter Pokemon Go Event...

Releasing new Ice Pokemon, or having a horde of Ice based Pokemon across the landscape might encourage people to go outside and play more. Or both. A virtual ice-storm of Ice Pokemon might be enough to coax players outside and keep playing. Plus a storm of them implies that people might be able to just sit at home and collect Ice Pokemon regardless of where they are, but would need to go outside if they want to get more items (or end up having to buy balls, which is wasteful for them, but really profitable for Niantic).

#16. Spyglass.

Similar to the Camera in the game, this is effectively a telescope that would allow players to search for Pokegyms and Pokestops that are much further away. It does not show the locations of Pokemon at all, all it does is allow players to search nearby regions to see how many Pokestops and Pokegyms are in that direction. This way players can look, see what is there, and then decide whether they want to go for a 1 or 2 hour walk and explore a new region they have never explored before.

This would be both useful and encourage people to go for longer walks and explore.

#17. Rewards and Medals, Upper Limits.

Take Collector for example. Once you capture 2000 Pokemon you have got the 30, 500 and 2000 Rewards. There is nothing beyond that. Nothing for capture 10,000 Pokemon.

Kanto at least makes some sense currently, as there are only 142 Pokemon available in a geographic region. You would have to explore around the world or hatch eggs to get more than that. But eventually when they release more types of Pokemon, 200 Kanto should be a reward.

Scientist stops at 200 Evolves. Backpacker at 2000 Pokestops. Jogger 1000 km. Breeder 500 eggs hatched. Etc.

But what if they changed the Upper Limits on these so people could catch 10,000, 50,000, 100,000 if they so wanted to? And keep getting the rewards and medals for each stage?

#18. Exploration Bonuses?

If you go to a new place and get Pokestops that you've never been to before, perhaps there should be a bonus for that?

Yes, you could just find a park that has 10 or more Pokestops and then walk around in circles, getting all of them. And then go to the same park all the time whenever you need more items. That is convenient.

But maybe there should be bonuses and rewards for how many UNIQUE Pokestops you visit. Wherein each individual one counts. This would encourage people to travel more, visit places they have never been to before (or revisit places they have never played Pokemon Go before).

So for example if you go on a trip to Montreal or Boston or San Diego, maybe there should be bonuses for visiting new places. And maybe an extra bonus for visiting other continents.

#19. Raising the Level Limit of 40 to 50.

Currently there is a level limit of 40. But at some point in the games future they should raise the cap to 50... or... allow people to "Reincarnate" and start over at level 1. At present I have met a few people who have reached the cap and have simply started a 2nd account, working on getting the 2nd account up to 40 as well. So clearly some people are ready for a higher level cap.

#20. Other Things You Can Do In the Game...

This is a blank option really. There are many other things that could be added this game. Here are a few ideas.

• Pokemon Quests - Specific quests people can do, gaining new types of unusual items.
• Pokemon Home - Build a home for your Pokemon to live in and customize it, by collecting items during quests.
• Pokemon Marathons - Rewards for how many km you walk in a single day. Most people would probably accomplish this on a bicycle, but hey, more power to them. Nobody is going to bother trying to do this in a car however, at 10.5 kmph, that would be pretty slow and boring.
• Pokemon Stadiums - Where players can compete in Battle Royales against other players. (For logistical reasons it would make sense to only have 1 or 2 stadiums in a whole city, and have them located in parks which can accommodate large numbers of players.)

Still to come... Part III of 10 Ways for Niantic to Improve Pokemon Go. Subscribe to Nerdovore to find out what other ways the game could be improved.

Got ideas on how to improve Pokemon Go? Post your comments below.



WEIRD FACT

Did you know that Pokemon Go is actually boosting the economy? It is getting people outside exercising and the increased foot traffic is putting them next to mom n pop style businesses and the increase in random customers boosts the local economy for restaurants, stores, etc. It isn't very good for personal trainers or books about fad diets, as it basically proves that people don't need a personal trainer or a fad diet to lose weight, but it is certainly benefiting everyone else.

Pokestop Item Drop Rates

This is a wee bit of useful data for Pokemon Go players. The following was determined by a Reddit user who visited 3,200 Pokestops and recorded the results. They assembled this data after unlocking all of the available items.

Types of Drops

• Poke Ball – 57.6%
• Great Ball – 11.1%
• Potion – 7.6%
• Razz Berry – 7.5%
• Revive – 7.4%
• Super Potion – 3.1%
• Ultra Ball – 2.9%
• Hyper Potion – 1.5%
• Max Potion – 0.8%
• Max Revive – 0.08%

Notes

• At lower levels the drop rates are different, depending on what items are available to be dropped.
• Presumably the numbers above are not completely accurate. They are probably reasonably close however thanks to that 3,200 Pokestop sample size.

According to a different source the drop rates are more precise numbers:

• Balls 65% (with an internal ratio of 80% regular, 15% great, 5% ultra)
• Potions 22% (59% regular, 23.5% super, 11.75% ultra, 5.75% max)
• Berries 7.5%
• Revives 5.5% (99% regular, 1% max)

It is unclear what the sample size of this secondary source is, but their numbers are pretty close to the ones further above. It also appears they may have rounded numbers up/down, or maybe this info was leaked from Niantic itself? Unclear.

What is the average number of items dropped?

We know 3 is the minimum, and I have seen Pokestops drop as many as 10 items at once. But what is the average? 3.5? 3.75? Inquiring minds would like to know. (According to one Reddit user the maximum is 9, but I have personally seen 10 items dropped on multiple occasions so the upper limit is definitely 10. Unless someone out there has seen 11 or 12...)

Before you ask, no, there was no egg in that drop of 10 items. It was 10 regular items, just balls and potions. (Eggs often drop as a bonus after a player has recently finished hatching an egg.)

I have a hunch the average number of items dropped from Pokestops might actually depend on the player's level. Meaning higher level players are more likely to get 4+ items dropped. I have no proof of this thus far, as it would require creating a new account and recording the results of every Pokestop visited while leveling all the way to 40, and then comparing drop rates according to level... and frankly I cannot be bothered. But if someone out there has no life and wants to attempt this, please feel free to do so and share your results.

Useful Tip: The 10th Pokestop goes Critical

If you hit 10 different unique Pokestops in a row, the 10th Pokestop will drop 6 or more items, and give 100 XP instead of 50 XP. Effectively they get double items, minimum 6 and maximum 10.

Thus if a person is hitting the same 9 Pokestops all the time, they will never get that unique bonus. This in turn would skew their average number of drops to be lower. A different person who is farming 10 different Pokestops would be getting the bonus every 10 Pokestops, and this would give them a higher average number (approx. 10% higher comparatively).

So what is all this useful for?

Well when it comes to farming items from nearby Pokestops it is useful to know what things you can expect to drop and how many Pokestops you will probably have to hit on average to fill up your inventory with Pokeballs and other items.

It also gives you an idea that if you are filling up your inventory and you want more balls, and consequently want to dump potions in favour of having more balls, that you will have a better idea of how many potions will accidentally get when trying to get balls.

The Future!

According to Niantic they are planning to add things to Pokestops in the future so that players can use Pokestops for more than just farming items. Some of the ideas being tossed out include:

• Players may be able to customize their local Pokestop.
• Some Pokestops might be more valuable / useful than others.

Niantic is also planning to introduce PokeCenters, where players will be able to heal their Pokemon without having to use a potion. These apparently will be rare. PokeCenters may also be used for:

• Trading Pokemon.
• Breeding Pokemon. (Niantic has currently stated they are not currently working on breeding, but this may be something added in the future.)
• Unknown other options.

The future of Pokemon Go is bright, but with all things concerning this game it will likely involve a lot of walking.

Pokemon Go Walking Distances for Evolving Buddy Pokemon

If you are like me then you really only use the Buddy system on Pokemon Go for evolving your Pokemon at a faster rate, especially if it means filling in a blank on your Pokedex.

I currently have 117 Pokemon in my Pokedex out of the 142 that are available locally. But I have the necessary Pokemon that I can evolve 18 more if I am willing and have the time to put in the kilometers walking and cycling. That would eventually bring my total to 135, thus I would only need 7 more rare Pokemon to complete my collection of 142.

Note - It is also possible to get some more hatching eggs. But that is a topic for another post.

The chart below is mostly for my own usage. But feel free to use it.

TIPS

Evolving rare Pokemon takes a long time since they take 5 km to get a candy, and often require large numbers of candy. Instead I have been focused on common and uncommon Pokemon that are close to evolving and I only need to do 50 km or less to finish the job.

Not sure which Pokemon to Evolve? Determine their stats first and use a labeling system so you know which ones are the best. Then evolve your best Pokemon which are close to being ready to evolve.

Wait before you evolve! For two reasons:

1. Get a better quality Pokemon that has better stats. That way you are not wasting candy evolving a Pokemon that doesn't deserve it. Patience is better than "Evolving Regret".
2. Wait until you have 60 to 70 Pokemon that are ready to evolve. Then use a Lucky Egg to get double XP for all those Pokemon. You are looking at 60,000 to 70,000 XP instead of 30,000 to 35,000 XP.

Double your chances when walking. Don't just pick a Pokemon you want to evolve, go visit places where that type of Pokemon is likely to appear. For example if you are trying to evolve a Magikarp then you should be taking long walks near a river or a lake, to increase your chances of finding more Magikarp.

When at home try to keep the app on with the "Sightings" box open while doing other activities (such as blogging, chatting on facebook, etc) and if one of the Pokemon you are looking for appears in the Sightings box, run outside and catch it. This way you walk more km, but you also catch those Pokemon more often when they randomly appear near your home.

If you are just looking to use your Buddy to get more XP, then consider the following: Any pokemon you evolve gives you 500 xp, regardless of the type. Thus if you are just trying to get more XP, then focus on the really easy to evolve Pokemons: Pidgeys, Weedles and Caterpies.

If your focus is more on gym combat, then evolve the Pokemon with the best stats that you feel will be best in combat. Once evolved, then keep walking to train your Pokemon until it is capped out. This way you get a really awesome combatant with the best possible stats you can find.

Do not evolve your buddy if you are still collecting candy using it. All current progress will be lost if you evolve it. That means if you were 0.3 km away from getting another candy, you should go walk 300 meters, get your candy and THEN evolve your buddy.

NOTES

I only list Pokemon that can be evolved here. Pokemon that cannot be evolved or have been fully evolved are not included in this chart.

I have organized the chart by rarity (common, uncommon, rare), types and tiers, and then alphabetically last.

kmpC = kilometers per Candy

#C = Number of Candy required to Evolve

#km~#C = The number of kilometers needed to get the full amount of Candy needed to evolve.

Pokemon	kmpC	#C	#km~#C
COMMON POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1, Tier 1
Caterpie	1	12	12
Pidgey	1	12	12
Weedle	1	12	12
Geodude	1	25	25
Rattata	1	25	25
Clefairy	1	50	50
Jigglypuff	1	50	50
Kakuna	1	50	50
Pikachu	1	50	50
Spearow	1	50	50
Zubat	1	50	50
Magikarp	1	400	400
COMMON POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1, Tier 2
Graveler	1	100	100
Metapod	1	50	50
Pidgeotto	1	50	50
Pokemon	kmpC	#C	#km~#C
UNCOMMON POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1 / Tier 1
Abra	3	25	75
Bellsprout	3	25	75
Bulbasaur	3	25	75
Charmander	3	25	75
Gastly	3	25	75
Machop	3	25	75
Nidoran♀	3	25	75
Nidoran♂	3	25	75
Oddish	3	25	75
Poliwag	3	25	75
Squirtle	3	25	75
UNCOMMON POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 2
Cubone	3	50	150
Diglett	3	50	150
Doduo	3	50	150
Drowzee	3	50	150
Ekans	3	50	150
Exeggcute	3	50	150
Goldeen	3	50	150
Grimer	3	50	150
Growlithe	3	50	150
Horsea	3	50	150
Koffing	3	50	150
Krabby	3	50	150
Magnemite	3	50	150
Mankey	3	50	150
Meowth	3	50	150
Paras	3	50	150
Ponyta	3	50	150
Psyduck	3	50	150
Rhyhorn	3	50	150
Sandshrew	3	50	150
Seel	3	50	150
Shellder	3	50	150
Slowpoke	3	50	150
Staryu	3	50	150
Tentacool	3	50	150
Venonat	3	50	150
Voltorb	3	50	150
Vulpix	3	50	150
UNCOMMON POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1 / Tier 2
Charmeleon	3	100	300
Gloom	3	100	300
Haunter	3	100	300
Ivysaur	3	100	300
Kadabra	3	100	300
Machoke	3	100	300
Nidorina	3	100	300
Nidorino	3	100	300
Poliwhirl	3	100	300
Wartortle	3	100	300
Weepinbell	3	100	300
Pokemon	kmpC	#C	#km~#C
RARE POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1 / Tier 1
Dratini	5	25	125
Eevee	5	25	125
RARE POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 2
Kabuto	5	50	250
Omanyte	5	50	250
RARE POKE-EVOLVERS, Type 1 / Tier 2
Dragonair	5	100	500

Pokemon Go XP Chart, XP for Actions, Leveling XP + Level Rewards

Since people might be looking for two different things I have decided to split this post into two parts. Part 1 is how much XP you gain for specific actions. Part 2 is how much XP you need to level up and what rewards you gain for leveling up.


Part 1

Want to know how much XP you gain for completing actions while playing Pokemon Go? Use the chart below.

Action	XP	Description
Capture Pokémon	100	Capture any Pokémon.
Capture 100th Pokémon	100	Awarded for capturing 100 of a single species of Pokémon.
Capture a New Pokémon	500	Capture any Pokémon you have not caught before.
Defeat Pokémon at Gym	100	XP is gained for each Pokémon defeated at enemy Gym.
Defeat Every Pokémon at a Gym	50	Awarded for defeating every defending Pokémon at a Gym.
Defeat Pokémon Training	10-100	Awarded for each Pokémon defeated while training. Formula for XP is 50 x Enemy CP / Your CP. Caps at 100, minimum 10.
Evolve a Pokémon	500	Evolve any Pokémon.
Hatch a 2 km Egg	200	Hatch an Egg (2 km).
Hatch a 5 km Egg	500	Hatch an Egg (5 km).
Hatch a 10 km Egg	1000	Hatch an Egg (10 km).
Pokéstop Collection	50	Awarded for Collecting gear at a Pokéstop.
Throw Bonus, Curveball	10	Awarded for capturing a Pokémon with a curve ball.
Throw Bonus, Nice	10	Awarded for capturing a Pokémon with a nice throw.
Throw Bonus, Great	50	Awarded for capturing a Pokémon with a great throw.
Throw Bonus, Excellent	100	Awarded for capturing a Pokémon with an excellent throw.

Part 2

Want to know how much XP you need to level up at various levels while playing Pokemon Go? Use the charts below. The chart below also shows when you unlock items and what item rewards you get when you go up levels.

Levels 1 to 20

Levels 21 to 40

10 Ways for Niantic to Improve Pokemon Go (Part I)

It is the game almost everyone is playing, but there are some things which could be improved. This is just the first 10 things we could think of. I will be posting more ways the game could be improved in the future, so please subscribe if you want to see Parts 2 or more.

#1. Allow people to have their Pokemon PVP fights against their Friends.

A Peer Vs Peer (PVP) is something that is hugely lacking currently in the game, which would allow players to play against their friends and even gain a small amount of XP while doing it. Even if it was only worth 5 XP per combat, players would still enjoy the challenge of playing against their friends.

#2. A Sorting / Organizing Button.

Sometimes you can spend hours going through all your Pokemon and the current system of ranking Pokemon by CP is a bit dull. What would be nice is if you could sort all your Pokemon quickly and easily by the touch of a button into categories:

Type: Bug, Dark, Dragon, Electric, Fairy, Fighting, Fire, Flying, Grass, Ground, Ice, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Rock, Steel, Water. eg. If you only wanted to look at your Fire Pokemon and compare them, you could.
HP: Sort your Pokemon by how many hit points they have.
Size: XL, Normal Size, or XS.

Currently you can really only sort your Pokemon by clicking "Favorite". Being able to sort your Pokemon using a button in one of the corners would be handy.

UPDATE!

You can now sort your Pokemon! In the bottom right corner when viewing your Pokemon there is an icon that used to be only a Glossary of what means what. CP = Combat Power, etc. With this update you can now sort Pokemon according to:

Recently Viewed
Favorites (the old standard)
Number
Hit Points
Name
Combat Power

There still is no options for organizing by Size or Type, but this is still useful.

#3. Sight Filter.

If you are running low on Pokeballs you might not want to be throwing them at Zubats and other common Pokemon every time you see them. Or maybe they just despise Drowzees (which I consider to be the Donald Trump of Pokemon...). Having a filter so you can decide "Hey, maybe I don't want to even see Zubats and Drowzees!" would be handy to the people for a variety of reasons.

#4. Directional Sighting.

Note - I am not talking about those 3rd party apps that allow people to see what Pokemon are nearby on a map. I consider those to be cheating.

Directional Radar would be a tiny adjustment to the Sightings box which would allow players to have a vague idea of what direction a particular Pokemon is in. Simple directions like North, South, East, West by adding an arrow below the Pokemon that was sighted.

This simple adjustment would make those 3rd party apps obsolete. It would also come with the added benefit of people learning what directions North, South, East, West are, and it would not tell people every detail like Northwest, Southeast, etc.

#5. Transfer Queue Option.

You know when you are playing the game a lot and you start running low on space for more Pokemon? You spot a Pokemon, want to capture it, but your backpack is full? A Transfer Queue would allow Pokemon Go to automatically transfer the lowest CP Pokemon who is not favourited.

You can turn the option on and you can turn it off. But basically it would allow people to end automatically dumping what would usually be drowzees, zubat, caterpies, etc whenever their backpack is too full.

I would even be willing to PAY to have this option. 200 Pokecoins sounds reasonable just to have the option of being to do this.

Or alternatively a question that pops up which asks "Would you like to transfer your lowest CP Pokemon?" whenever your backpack is full. That would also be handy.

#6. Other Teams.

More teams are coming in the future, that much I am certain. A simple look at the different Eevee evolutions makes me confident that the next team introduced to the game will be a Dark team, coinciding with the release of 50 more Pokemon and Umbreon.

The existing 3 teams: Mystic, Valor and Instinct are all designed to match the colours of the Eeveelutions. So it makes sense that the next stage would be Dark and involve Umbreon.

 I am guessing that won't happen until June 2017 however. My prediction at present is that Niantic will release 50 new Pokemon per year, often coinciding with various updates to the game and more Teams for players to choose from.

The question however is, will people have to make a new account to join the Dark team? Or will players be given the option to switch teams when the Dark team appears? I am guessing it will be something different entirely...

For example they might decide to make the Dark team only available as an option to players who have captured a certain number of Dark Pokemon. This would mean that only the people who catch a large number of Dark Pokemon will be given the option of joining the Dark team. The timespan for joining the team might even be limited, meaning players have a time limit during which they have to catch X number of Dark Pokemon or else they will not be given the option of joining the team. Which brings me to the following...

#7. Dark Pokemon.

If you have been paying attention, you will have noticed that there currently are no Dark Pokemon at all in the game. None. Zero. Zip. Nada.

There are some Pokemon which have Dark type attacks, but there are currently no Dark Pokemon in the game. I expect, in combination with #6 above, that Dark Pokemon may end up being part of an event that will have players outside getting a lot of exercise trying to catch as many Dark Pokemon they can in an effort to become part of an "elite" Dark team.

Such an event will also draw new players to the game, and get old players re-interested in the game.

#8. Add more things and options to the Shop.

For example you can buy 1 Egg Incubator for 150 Pokecoins. But what if you could buy 8 Egg Incubators for 950 Pokecoins (instead of 1,200 for buying 8 currently). Or 25 Egg Incubators for 2,350 Pokecoins (normally 3,750 for buying 25 currently).

For reference I am using the current price ratios for Lucky Eggs to give me an idea of roughly how much this should cost players.

Thus players could, if they wanted to, buy 8 Egg Incubators and then have 9 of them (including the unlimited one) all hatching eggs at the same time.

It would be incredibly expensive to be hatching eggs that way all the time. Cheaper in my opinion to just buy a bicycle and go for long rides.

Other things the Shop should sell:

• Great Balls
• Ultra Balls
• Razz Berries
• 25 Lure Modules (at present you can only buy a max of 8 at once).
• Revives
• Potions, Healing
• Potions, Buffs*

#9. Buff Potions.

Think of this as an energy drink for your Pokemon. It allows you to temporarily boost the CP of your Pokemon for 30 minutes. Each potion boosts a Pokemon's CP and improves their HP the appropriate amount. I am thinking there should be 4 kinds of Buff Potions.

Buff Potion - Boosts your Pokemon's CP by 20%.
Super Potion - Boosts your Pokemon's CP by 50%.
Hyper Potion - Boosts your Pokemon's CP by 200%.
Max Buff Potion - Boosts your Pokemon's CP by 500%.

Imagine for example a lowly Pidgey drinking a Hyper Potion and then beating up Pokemon that are twice its size.

Buff potions should be able to be found at Pokestops, but they should also be purchasable from the Shop too.

#10. Pokemon Combat Tricks Quests.

At present the combat system in Pokemon Go is extremely simple. Most of the time you just tap the screen repeatedly and hope you win. If you are smart, you also press down for a special attack or swipe to the side when you see a big attack coming and you manage to dodge it.

But what if you could add a 4th option by swiping up or down? The 4th option might be a special type of attack which might stun or trip their enemy, or maybe a special dodge that triggers automatically when the enemy next tries to use their big attack, or it might even be a special attack which does a huge amount of damage but can only be used once per combat.

And what if this 4th option was something you had to teach your Pokemon by completing a series of tasks / quests?

For example:

• Having the Pokemon fight in 100 gym battles.
• Having the Pokemon train 100 times.
• Having the Pokemon protect 25 gyms (not all at once, but this might take a month to accomplish).
• Walk 100 km while the Pokemon is in Teaching Mode.
• All of the above.

This particular Pokemon would obviously be your favourite (or one of several favourites) and you would evolve it, upgrade it regularly, etc.

Going on Quests to teach your Pokemon a new combat trick would be a whole new challenge and level of gameplay. It should still involve walking around from place to place, which is part of the whole Pokemon Go experience. Players should not be able to just buy the trick. They have to earn it.

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