I have really, really loved this game. It's a good combination of the real world and in game stuff-you have to walk around to get to Pokemon, poke stops, and so on. I really enjoy playing it. There aren't any ads either. But like the title, I've got a few suggestions. For one, I feel like some of the tasks in the research you have to do seem really hard-like catching 250 Pokemon in a day. Sometimes we just don't get that many Pokemon to pop up. So perhaps change that a little? Then there's the appraising of the Pokemon- I feel like in most other Pokemon games, you can train your Pokemon to be really good, but in the game, you catch a Pokemon and they can be 0, 1, 2, 3, or 4 stars, four being perfect. But then you can't change it. I feel like this is especially frustrating when you've caught a raid Pokemon and then they're zero stars, or when you catch a legendary or a rare Pokemon that's just really weak. I'd propose that you add a training option to Pokemon go- I know there's a lot of trainers out there that have so very many Pokemon candies for some, so why not be able to use those for leveling up the attack, HP, and defense of your Pokemon? You could also add quests to be able to do that- kind of like Pokemon buddy evolving tasks. That's mostly it-so thank you so much if you read this. I know you may or may not take this suggestion, but I think it would be really fun and add a lot more to the game. Who knows what'll happen?

What once brought the world together, and remained for a long time as a way to get out of the house (for those who were already capable of doing so), Pokemon Go has become a shameless cash grab that has and continues to drive away longtime fans and newcomers alike. No longer is it possible to do everything in game without spending real money: once, spending money was simply a fast pass, but nothing was entirely hidden behind paywalls. Now, entire events, Pokemon, and items are locked away from those not willing to shell out cash for a company frantically grabbing at every penny they can scrape together before they lose the license to a once phenomenal game. That’s not even getting into the decrease in quality of Pokemon within the game. Dozens upon dozens of people will plan, gather, and yes, pay, to raid a powerful Pokemon and be rewarded with a subpar Pokemon of their own. (And there’s no exaggeration on “dozens and dozens” as certain types of Pokemon raids now require upwards of 40 people to even make a decent attempt to defeat - ostracizing people in rural areas, disabled people, or even just anyone who doesn’t have the sheer amount of time, resources, and people to do these raids. And with less and less people seeing the point in playing, that number continues to grow.) The current state of the game is a crying shame, and a mockery of what it once was, and I can only hope that someday it bounces back.

So there are a lot of these going around now, but I figure I’ll add to it just in case it can help change anything since it seems like the only thing Niantic hears is press or money. I played the beta. I played day 1. I left and came back a few times. I played during the pandemic. I have seen this game evolve over time. Some changes were good, some were bad. The game went from being able to play for fun, to having a pressure to spend money to play, to being required to spend money to play to get things in the game (like shiny mew??). All of this progressed over time until we get here, a point where the game is unplayable unless you pay money or actively avoid 90% of the features that were added and not removed. This game has gone from one that I would happily put money into due to the enjoyment, connectivity, and socialization I got out of it, but now? Now I don’t plan on playing it until a lot of these issues get fixed. It costs then nothing to keep Covid protections in game. It costs them nothing to allow for remote raiding, especially for remote players. It costs them nothing to make the game better in ways that truly matter and have already been done. Instead, they add stickers. Instead, they remove the ability to get legendaries unless you live in an area with a decently sized player base. Instead, they push people out while trying to claim inclusitivity because it doesn’t match their finances.

I'll start with the positives, it's a very immersive game that is rewarding (sometimes) to invest your time in. That being said, it is wildly impractical for the average person. As many others have said, unless you have consistent and close people to play the game with, you're out of luck. Unless you have lots of time on your hands and no other obligations, you're out of luck. I can understand the need for everything not to be so easy that it isn't rewarding, that is a huge problem that videogames have now. There still doesn't need to be price hikes on remote raids, or increased pokemon aggression (and WOW what a bad decision on Niantic's part), or ticket paywalls to get desirable pokemon/items, or any of the other anti-player changes to the game. It becomes less about skill and investment and more about how much free time you have and how much money to spend. I'd rather pay a one-time price to play the game than deal with the nonsensical things that you run into playing this game. It could definitely use more polishing as well, even now with the game having been out for so, so long it still runs terribly. Lag, glitches, and general clunkiness all around don't feel like a well-made game. To wrap it all up, as many others have said, the new TOS are unethical in EVERY WAY. If you haven't downloaded the game yet, don't. If you haven't started playing it, don't. Don't even entertain the idea of supporting this company.