Hello everyone!

Darren here from @johto

A few weeks ago, I took over this channel in an attempt to share weekly news coverage of Pokémon news, on a trial basis. After some serious consideration, I have decided not to continue.

My hope is that @Siphonay and donphan.social can find a more suitable person to continue this task, and keep everyone informed with the latest Pokémon news much better than I could.

I did my best to grow this specific community, and attempt to reach even more Pokémon fans, and I am happy to see dozens of new people following to get their weekly dose of Pokémon news!

I hope that the past few weeks of news I was able to help with, was useful, and I am sorry that I was not the best fit for this job! I look forward to seeing who will be able to continue this project.

I hope that you will consider keeping in touch with me on my own project via @johto as I continue to highlight the late 90s and early 2000s era of the franchise.

Niantic has detailed their Pokémon GO Fest 2025 event, which is taking place between March 29th, 2025 to June 1st, 2025 in Osaka, June 6th, 2025 to June 8th, 2025 in Jersey City, and June 13th,2025 to June 15th, 2025 in Paris. A global event will take place on June 28th, 2025 and June 29th, 2025. This event will introduce Volcanion into the game. People who purchase their tickets for the event via the Pokémon GO Web Store will receive some battle passes, rare candies, and max revives. Interested players can find full details on the event on the official Pokémon GO website.

Source: https://pokemongolive.com/post/go-fest-2025-events-announcement/

Back in January this year, we reported that the Pokémon Center store in Hiroshima was closing this month and reopening on the second floor of Ekie, near the north exit of Hiroshima Station. It has now been announced that the store will reopen on April 11th, 2025, featuring a Pokémon TCG area inside and a special Gyarados Plaza outside. The store will also feature a range of exclusive merchandise, including a jacket and plush featuring Shiny Gyarados and Pikachu.

Source: https://www.pokemon.co.jp/sp/hiroshima_2025

https://www.toy-people.com/?p=97803

Niantic has confirmed the sale of their games business to video-game developer and publisher Scopely, which includes Pokémon GO. The deal, which is valued at $3.5 billion, also includes Pikmin Bloom, Monster Hunter Now, and social companion apps Campfire and Wayfarer. The development teams of these applications are also part of the acquisition.

Ed Wu, the person who leads the Pokémon Go team at Niantic, wrote a statement on Niantic’s website yesterday confirming the news. He expressed his fond memories of working on the game since 2016, and states that he believes the partnership with Scopely "will be a positive step" for players and the game's future. He went on to confirm that he and the entire Pokémon GO team will be staying together through the partnership.

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A new Pokémon TCG Pocket Drop Event is currently underway, featuring Gible, Staraptor, Nosepass, Raichu, and Cherrim. The event is scheduled to last until March 17th, 2025. More information can be found in the in-game news section of the application. Last week, a new themed booster pack was added to the game called “Triumphant Light”, adding many new cards into the game, including an immersive Arceus ex!

Source: Pokémon TCG Pocket (in-game news)

Pokémon GO's Might & Mastery season will take place between March 4, 2025 and June 3, 2025. Special Research relating to Dynamax Kubfu, as well as new Dynamax Pokémon such as legendary beasts Raikou, Entei, and Suicune, will make an appearance. More Pokémon from the Galar region will be introduced into the game, such as Nickit and Thievul. Information on all of this, including themed stickers, PokéStop showcases, field research, and seasonal bonuses can be found on the Pokémon GO website.

Source: https://pokemongolive.com/seasons/might-and-mastery#seasonal-highlights

The BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) recently conducted an interview with Tsunekazu Ishihara, president of The Pokémon Company, celebrating the 29th anniversary of Pokémon. During the interview, Mr. Ishihara made comments on the reach of Pokémon, the problematic resell market of the Pokémon Trading Card game, his thoughts on Ash Ketchum’s story beyond the Pokémon anime, and how he sees Pokémon celebrating its 50th and 100th anniversaries! You can read the full interview on the BBC website.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y0v3gd5e5o

There were tons of updates today, and we couldn't cover them all! Many other titles such as Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, Pokémon GO, Pokémon Sleep, Pokémon UNITE, Pokémon Masters EX, and Pokémon Café ReMix also had some small announcements, be sure to check them out in the latest Pokémon Presents right here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7FTkUFU7nw

A reminder that the Mystery Gift code to obtain a Jumpluff in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, based on the one used by Marco Silva, the three-time International Champion and winner of the Latin America International Championships, will expire tomorrow, February 28th, 2025. The code was distributed during the EUIC live stream earlier this week.

The code is EU1C25SUNNYDAY.