After hearing YouTuber Poke Daxi talk about how he’s burnt out from playing Pokemon Go, I wanted to address why I haven’t written a column in months.

I stepped away from writing about Pokemon Go after feeling a similar burnout to what Poke Daxi and other content creators are experiencing.

Playing the game, which is supposed to be fun, felt more like a chore.

Even though I continued to play Pokemon Go every day, I haven’t been very motivated to participate in, or write about, the game’s weekly events.

Perhaps that’s a good problem to have during the middle of winter when I’d otherwise endure freezing-cold temperatures and harsh winds striking my face. But we are now less than a month away from the in-person Go Tour event, which is returning to the Rose Bowl Stadium and the nearby Brookside Golf Course in Pasadena, Calif.

An event that should be exciting feels subpar so far this year, and 2026 is supposed to be a major year for Pokemon. The franchise itself will celebrate its 30-year anniversary next month while Pokemon Go celebrates its 10-year anniversary in July.

This year’s Go Tour event features Pokemon from the Kalos region, and although details are still limited, we know that a new concept is being introduced for the in-person experience — Mega Night.

Essentially, once trainers have walked several miles with their phones baking in the warm sun all day, they can pay $20 for a nighttime experience, which takes place from 6 to 8 p.m. Pacific Standard Time at the stadium and golf course.

The featured raid boss Pokemon during Mega Night include Charizard X, Ampharos, Salamence, Sceptile, Altaria and Garchomp — all of which have already been in the game for years.

An official announcement on the Pokemon Go website states that more information will be released closer to the event. It’s possible an announcement could come before this column is published. But as of Jan. 19, we still haven’t heard any Go Tour updates from the company.

If Mega Night doesn’t feature something worthwhile, such as the debut of Mega Mewtwo or Mega Zygarde, a lot of people are going to be disappointed.

I think we could see some of the new mega evolutions that were released with “Pokemon Legends: Z-A” — such as Dragonite, Chesnaught, Delphox or Greninja — debut in Pokemon Go.

But those alone aren’t worth traveling across the country for, or across the globe for some trainers.

So, why should anyone bother going?

For starters, in-person events always provide better experiences than global events. There’s tons of raids at the park, which fill up within seconds and last throughout the entire day, and every Pokestop is almost guaranteed to have a lure module — an item that trainers can use to attract more wild spawns to that particular Pokestop — within seconds of the event starting.

For people like me who enjoy playing Pokemon Go, it’s nearly impossible to have a negative experience at an in-person event — unless it rains or servers crash.

In-person events also provide opportunities to explore new places and meet up with other trainers.

Unlike last year, I’m flying to California with a group of local friends, and I’m excited to experience the frenzy of Pokemon Go Tour with them.

Most of the landmarks I wanted to see in Los Angeles, I saw last year. However, I didn’t have time to experience the Santa Monica Pier, which is highly regarded as one of the best places to play Pokemon Go, alongside New York City and Tokyo, Japan.

Regardless of what final boss Pokemon gets featured during this year’s Go Tour, I’m excited to find out whether the Santa Monica Pier is as good as they say it is.

Mirror Staff Writer Matt Churella is at 814-946-7520 and mchurella@altoonamirror.com