Pokemon Go fans should be more grateful

Exclusive, invite-only Mewtwo event in NYC leaves sour taste for some fans

Pokemon Go did something that was widely considered a slap in the face to most of its player base, made up for it and then somehow still managed to upset some people.

On July 8, Mewtwo vanished from its container at the Pokemon Center in Shibuya, Japan, and speculation started to brew about what this could mean for Pokemon Go. Then a select group of trainers -- sponsored content creators and community ambassadors -- were invited to attend an exclusive in-person event the following day in Manhattan but had yet to learn of any specifics.

On July 9, Pokemon Go celebrated its 10th anniversary by renting out the Father Duffy Square portion of New York City's Times Square and recreated the game's original trailer that depicted a group of trainers racing into Times Square to battle Mewtwo together in 2016.

Trainers in attendance were given free raid passes to participate in a rotation of raid battles that coincided with each year of the game. Then, about 8:30 p.m., all the screens in Times Square went dark and a two-minute countdown for a Mega Mewtwo Y unity raid began, with images of people's Pokemon appearing on the screens as the battle unfolded.

There were two unity raids in total, with the second one leading to an encounter with a Mewtwo that was guaranteed to have maxed-out stats and a special Times Square location card background.

This called the integrity of the game into question since, for the first time ever, the creators of Pokemon Go showed they could just hand deliver a 100% IV Mewtwo to select people, while the rest of the world wasn't able to take part and had to disheartenedly watch the situation unfold live across multiple streaming platforms.

This surprise, invite-only event transpired during the Road of Legends event, which was a weeklong leadup to the global Go Fest weekend that took place July 11 and 12 -- during which thousands of people were spending hundreds of dollars trying to secure a 100% IV through random number generation.

In a June 27 column, I stated I wasn't going to spend money on remote raids for Mewtwo and advised people considering spending hundreds of dollars to save their money because patience would pay off in the long run -- and it did, as it always does in Pokemon Go.

One of my best friends, Alex of the New Jersey-based Twitch streamers Grant and Alex, secured a shiny 100% IV Mewtwo during that infamous raid in Times Square, and I was genuinely happy for her and not bitter or envious, though I understood why most of the player base felt the way they did that night.

By giving select people a guaranteed 100% IV Mewtwo, rather than just a chance at the hundo, Scopely Explore gave trainers the ammunition to voice their displeasure at them -- and they did just that in about every social media post the company made since then.

However, on Aug. 12, Scopely listened and decided to give all trainers worldwide a free master ball -- an item that catches any Pokemon without fail -- and an encounter with a 100% IV Mewtwo with a 10th anniversary special background through timed research, which people can still obtain this weekend until it expires at 11:59 p.m. local time Sunday.

Trainers who were at the Times Square event were given a Mewtwo with different stats and different rewards -- not a second Mewtwo with perfect stats guaranteed. Pokemon Go also noted that Mewtwo with a Times Square background will return at some point in the future, meaning other trainers will have a chance to catch it.

For me, this was my third 100% IV Mewtwo -- technically my fourth because I plan to use a silver bottle cap on a shiny that I caught with my friend, Alexa, in Chicago.

But for many players, this was their first hundo Mewtwo, and since Mewtwo is one of the strongest Pokemon in the game, I think it's good that everyone who played the game this year has one to use for future raid battles.

I don't understand the jealousy or the resentfulness that some people still have toward the game. Afterall, it is only that -- just a game -- and you can't take your Pokemon with you to your grave. So, why not choose to be grateful for what you have?

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