Team Rocket has infiltrated Pokémon GO

Bringing chaos at a breakneck pace. Dashing hope and putting fear in its place. Team Rocket has infiltrated Pokémon GO. Well, kind of.

Those logging into Pokémon GO may see a couple shady PokéStops around their neighbourhood. These PokéStops appear a slightly darker blue, and the cube on top is slightly askew, turning to a spooky black when in range. Spin one of these PokéStops and you’re in for a surprise — Team GO Rocket attacks!

Niantic rolled out its first major Trainer Battle event today, and brought with it a few interesting new mechanics. As mentioned above, spinning a slightly odd PokéStop will initiate a battle with a member of Team GO Rocket — an offshoot of Team Rocket that’s taken to terrorising the world of Pokémon GO.

After a tough battle, the GO Rocket Grunt will leave behind a Shadow Pokémon, a Pokémon that’s been infested with dark energy and knows the special Charge Move Frustration. You’ll get a chance to catch the Shadow Pokémon using a mechanic similar to the end of Raid Battles. Once caught, you can purify these Pokémon using some Candy and a bit of Stardust, turning Frustration into Return — a Normal-type move that shows your Pokémon’s love for you — and boosting the Pokémon’s power.

It’s an interesting little event, and it’s even more interesting to see Niantic pull ideas from spinoff games. The concept of purifying Shadow Pokémon first appeared in Pokémon Colosseum and its sequel Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, though the process was a little more involved in those games.

It’s currently unknown how long this event will run for, or if it’s a permanent feature. Only time will tell, but it’s probably best to get in quick while you can.