Pokémon Go players will soon be able to start hunting for an all-new Legendary creature, it would seem.
Over on the mobile game’s dedicated blog, developer Niantic confirms that an ongoing three-part event, Ultra Unlock, is scheduled to conclude next month with a surprise. As of writing, the first chapter in this saga, Part 1: Time, is now live and tasks Trainers with seeking out five-star raids to battle the fearsome Dialga. This is accompanied by increased spawn rates for Pokémon originally found in the Sinnoh region such as Cranidos and Shieldon. As is typical for these types of events, Shiny variants for both have a chance of showing up between now and August 3rd.
The following week will mark the commencement of Part 2: Space, which follows a largely identical format, only with a different batch of Pocket Monsters to catch. Palkia will replace Dialga in five-star raids while Heatmor and Durant will become considerably more common out in the wild. This stage of the limited-time affair will come to a close on August 17th, with the third and final installment due to kick off on August 20th.
What this will entail, however, we don’t know, as Niantic is being deliberately coy with the details, even going so far as to refrain from revealing what will replace Palkia in endgame content. Chances are, that whatever hides behind the curtain is yet another Legendary waiting to be mercilessly clocked around the head with Poké Balls, but what? Based on its appearance during this year’s Go Fest, many believe the mystery ‘Mon to be Hoopa which, up until now, has been unobtainable in-game.
The psychic/ghost-type was first introduced in Gen VI’s X & Y and is considered to be of Mythical rarity, one step above Legendary tier. Should these assumptions prove true, Pokémon Go players should start stocking up on supplies now, as they’ll only have until August 31st to get their hands on the lucrative catch.