Niantic has made it possible to encounter Team Rocket again, and this time, Pokemon Go Trainers can battle Jessie and James. The famous Pocket Monster duo can be found flying around the map in their very own Meowth Balloon and offer a challenge separate to battling Giovanni. Niantic has confirmed that Jessie and James will only be around for a certain amount of time and will be found flying around the map at random.
A message from Niantic adds: “Team GO Rocket has assigned Shadow Pokémon to protect Jessie and James as they seek to create more Shadow Pokémon.
“Check the map to see whether Jessie and James’s Meowth balloon is flying by. When the Meowth balloon appears, tap it to battle Jessie and James.”
Niantic has also confirmed that this week’s GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Battle Timed Research will focus entirely on taking down Team GO Rocket.
This means more Team Rocket encounters and more changes to battle Jessie and James during the weekend.
The event is still scheduled to kick off later this week, on Friday, July 10, 2020, at 8am, but will now include the following additions:
- Poison-type and Dark-type Pokémon are appearing in the wild, in Eggs, and in raids.
- Team GO Rocket balloons are appearing more often.
- The Meowth balloon seems to be appearing at a higher rate.
- Suicune has been turned into a Shadow Pokémon. Defeat Giovanni to save it! Complete the GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Battle Timed Research to receive a Super Rocket Radar that will help you track Giovanni down.
As mentioned above, this weekend will allow gamers to encounter Giovanni using Battle Timed Research.
More information on finding and taking down the Team Rocket boss can be found below:
Giovanni Special Research is only assigned to Trainers who have completed A Troubling Situation Special Research, and usually involves running into Cliff, Sierra, or Arlo.
Each time you Battle and defeat a Team GO Rocket Grunt, they’ll drop a Mysterious Component. Collect 6 Mysterious Components to craft a Rocket Radar.
The good news is that after earning your first Rocket Radar, Rocket Radars will be available for purchase from the in-game Shop using PokéCoins.
And that might make the process a little easier for some Trainers, depending on their PokeCoin balances.
This unlocks the next stage as the Rocket Radar reveals the locations of nearby Leader Hideouts.
Leader Hideouts look just like regular PokéStops until you’re in range, at which point you’ll see a Team GO Rocket Leader standing next to the associated PokéStop.
If you lose, you can re-engage in Battle until the Leader Hideout disappears from the map but Trainers should know that your Rocket Radar will be consumed after defeating the,
Finding Giovanni means completing special research tasks, which involve defeating Grunts, defeating Leaders, and completing other Team GO Rocket-related objectives.
You’ll earn a Super Rocket Radar as a reward for completing one of the research steps but it won’t immediately lead you to Giovanni.
Instead, it displays locations of decoy Grunts disguised as Giovanni and Giovanni’s actual Hideout, meaning checking out all the locales.
Pokemon Go Trainers can battle Giovanni once a month using the latest Special Research drops.