How to Use the New Pokémon Go Trading Feature
Even though you probably gave up playing Pokémon Go a while ago, thousands of people still “catch them all” in cities across the US. And you may soon see a slight increase in player numbers where you live, because developer Niantic (finally) adds Pokémon to trade with the game just two years after its release.
Starting this week, you can add friends to Pokémon Go, follow their activity in the news feed, and most importantly, exchange Pokémon and some items with nearby players. However, there are several limitations.
At the moment, only those who are level 30 and above can access social features in Pokémon Go, although it seems that the barrier to entry has been decreasing over time (previously the required level was 40, then 38).
The friends feature is available to everyone , but Niantic notes that coaches need to reach level 10 before they can trade.
There are other rules to keep in mind when it comes to rarer Pokémon. Some Pokémon require a special deal (for example, rare shiny creatures like Gold Magikarp or legendary ones like Mewtwo), which costs players a lot of stardust and can only be completed with Great Friend or Best Friend (a player with whom you have participated in many battles in the gym. or raids nearby). While regular trade can cost 100 stardust, special trade can cost 1,000,000. The higher your friendship level with other people, the cheaper your trade costs will be.
Then there are the smallest details: the traditionally sold Pokémon remains at the same level as when it was shipped. In Pokémon Go, as shown in the Pikachu example below, a Pokémon can come out on the other side with less HP , Combat Power ( CP ), or both. The game will provide you with a number of stats to give you an idea of what your must-have creature will look like after trading. However, there is no way to get a better Pokemon than you invested – all you can hope for is one that does not lose any stats when it goes into your collection.
The fact that gifts are the only items that can be traded with friends is also a downside. You also need to be close to a friend in real life, which means you shouldn’t expect to trade online with a friend on the other side of the world (unless you fake your location ).