The Biggest Pokemon GO Myths Busted (and One Confirmed)

Reclaiming Poke Balls

One big rumor going around was that players can reclaim Poke Balls that missed their mark in Pokemon GO. All you had to do was quickly tap the Poke Ball as it rolled before it disappeared entirely. Poke Balls are one of the core items of the entire game, and we all wanted to believe we could waste less on that dang Zubat. But does it actually work?

Well… no. It turns out that that tapping the Poke Ball doesn’t do anything. Some players may notice an animation and the number near the Poke Ball reflect a reclaimed ball, but upon the next throw the number is corrected. At least there are always PokeStops to help you top off your supplies. 

Thunderstorms Bring Electric Pokemon

Now this is a really popular one. With all of the highly coveted electric Pokemon, especially a certain legendary one named Zapdos, players have been looking for any direction on how to catch them. Many believe that waiting for a thunderstorm in your area will increase the probability of encountering an electric monster.

Unfortunately, this is a rumor that just doesn’t have any proof. Many Pokemon GO players have attempted to catch Pokemon under these conditions, some even daring to venture outside if they were out of Incense, but there has been no concrete proof that it makes any difference. It sounds cool in theory, but it was always known that locations would be based on geography, not weather. If this was true, it would be the first time people start wishing for firestorms; Moltres has to show up somehow, right?

Day/Night Cycle Affects Pokemon Appearances

The difference between day and night plays a major part in many games, particularly RPGs. The cycle was also implemented in the core Pokemon series a while back, so several Pokemon GO players speculated that it would have an effect on the app as well. After all, if it was going to use the real world’s geography, why not its time as well?

This rumor actually turned out to be true. As day turns to night, the Pokemon you can catch differ. Clefairy and Ghost-types such as Haunter appear more often at night and in more locations. A few other rare Pokemon follow the same pattern, making it worthwhile to go on an adventure at night at least once a week. You never know what you may come across when the sun goes down. Just remember to be careful out there. 

Closing Pokemon GO and Walking Counts Towards Egg Distances

Hatching Eggs in Pokemon GO can prove to be an arduous task for some. Sure you just have to walk, but that alone can be too much for some. It’s not always a matter of laziness, walking around requires free time, and if you’re stuck behind a desk most of the time at work, you don’t have much of it. Another issue is some places don’t allow you to have your phone on while walking around, so what was a trainer to do? Luckily some fans figured out that you can walk with the app closed and still make progress towards your eggs… or did they?

It turns out that it isn’t true. The Pokemon GO app must be on for your distance to count. At the very least, you need to have battery saver on, which turns off the screen while you’re not actively using the app. Still, no app, no kilometers for you.

Farfetch’d is Exclusive to Japan

With everyone running about looking for every single Pokemon under the sun, the rumor about a country-specific little duck left a sour taste in many players’ mouths. We’re not entirely sure how it began, but word started going around that Farfetch’d was only available in Japan. That meant that if you really wanted to complete your Pokedex, you’d need start saving up for a long flight.

Thankfully, this rumor is unsubstantiated. Actually, people are still trying to figure out exactly where Farfetch’d is anywhere in the world. It turns out that it is surprisingly rare, but until the Japan servers actually open, this myth is a dud.

Update: No that the game has been out for some time and released in Sokcho, South Korea and Japan, reports of region exclusive Farfetch’d seem accurate. There’s also been a player in North America who has captured all available Pokemon in the US and no Farfetch’d was seen, further adding credence to this report.

XL Pokemon Are Stronger

This rumor is one of the few that actually made a lot of sense. As you may have noticed, some Pokemon are marked with XS and XL to denote their size in comparison to other Pokemon of the same species. Logically, bigger Pokemon will be stronger than smaller ones in Pokemon GO.

It turns out that the size is just that, a size. While some players have noticed higher CP on XL Pokemon, others realized that XS ones can have the same if not greater CP. It would’ve been cool to see size make a difference, another reason to go on an extra adventure. But, for now at least, Niantic is keeping things level. 

All Movement Counts Towards Eggs

We already figured out that closing the Pokemon GO app and walking does not contribute towards the distances required for your Eggs, but can you just hop into a car/bus/cab/etc. to get those kilometers running? Some people say yes.

Unfortunately, this isn’t entirely true. Pokemon GO is designed to not register car-like movement by using both GPS data and your phone’s pedometer, as well as excluding movement at higher speeds. Some people do manage to get Egg progress in cars, but only on rare occasions where they are moving slowly and their movement is tricking the pedometer. You essentially have to slow your vehicle down to a crawl. This is the same when you’re on a bike, scooter, or anything else on wheels.

Technically, this myth is false, but you can get results if you try hard enough to trick the system. If you have to drive as slow as humans can walk, though, you may as well save the gas money. 

Your Team, Location, or Time of Day Determines Your Eeveelution

Eevee has been the source of a lot of debate ever since Pokemon GO launched. While the base form seems to be common enough, its evolutions have players beating their heads against the wall. How can we choose our Eeveelution? Some believed that the team you chose upon reaching level 5 had an effect, since each team represented a different element. The effect of your location and the time of day also made the rumor rounds.

After many hours and hundreds of Eevees being caught and evolved in Pokemon GO, all theories have been proven invalid. If you’re team Valor, then you can still get a Vaporeon or a Jolteon. Evolve night or day, all three are possible. And you can sit by that lake all you want, if Eevee wants to be a Flareon, then Eevee will be a Flareon.

The only way to get all the forms for sure right now is to keep evolving until luck in on your side. You can also use this trick to choose which Eeveelution you’ll get.