Breaking down the experimental tracking feature in PokemonGO!

August 9th, 2016 Cory Thompson Gaming, iOS/Android, Nintendo 0 comments

Despite Niantic’s efforts to work on other parts of the game, a vocal subset of the PokemonGo! playerbase continues to demand increased Pokemon tracking capabilities. Yesterday, as a part of a larger update, a few users were selected to beta test a new tracking system. It seems like San Francisco is a hot zone for the new testing. One such tester is reddit user Anarisis, and he posted a thread breaking down the new feature. I’ve done my best to translate his findings below.

For a video, check Twitter vid by Jackson Palmer.

Interface

In addition to wild Pokémon in your area (now displayed under “sightings”), you will see Pokémon attached to pokéstops in your area.

If you tap one of the Pokémon under “sightings”, this message is displayed.

Pokémon finder

Tapping one of the Pokémon in your tracker will pull up an image showing the pokéstop it is attached to.

Bird’s-eye map

If you press “view”, the map will zoom out and show you a bird’s-eye view of your area, so you can get a sense of where the Pokémon is located.

Tracking icon

A tracking icon is displayed rendered in the game to indicate which pokéstop you should be going to.

Pokéfinder after selection

After you have selected a Pokémon in your tracker, you can reopen the Pokéfinder and press “clear” to deselect the Pokémon.

Range

When you approach a pokéstop with an attached Pokémon, the Pokémon will appear roughly within lure range. Pokémon attached to a pokéstop are indicated by white circles under their model.