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Trading Still A Work In Progress For Pokémon Go
Niantic still wants to add trading to Pokémon Go, but still hasn't settled on an idea that works. At this year's Game Developers Conference, Niantic's senior product manager Tatsuo Nomura told Polygon “We’re still trying to come up with an answer [to trading] that makes sense so it doesn’t kill the game. If we fail this, we can easily kill the game.”
The ability to trade Pokémon was one of Niantic's initial selling points for Pokémon Go, appearing in the launch trailer as a key feature. Since the launch of the game last summer, players have saved their Pokémon with hopes of being able to exchange them with other players – potentially to add a rare or region-exclusive critter to their Pokédex. It sounds like we'll have to wait a bit longer for that functionality to be added to the game.
Nomura seems confident that the trading function won't be handled through the internet, meaning someone in the United States can't trade with people in Australia or Japan. "You shouldn’t be able to exchange your Pokémon with someone who is 100 miles away from you. The person needs to be in your proximity," he said.
[Source: Polygon]
Our Take
Not having features from the launch trailer this late in the game's life cycle is a bit baffling, but Niantic is correct, trading could kill the game if players can freely trade and fill out their Pokédexes. Many players have theorized that Niantic would tie trading to a rare item (like the crown) which would greatly limit the number of Pokémon that can be traded. That solution would work, but not many people would be able to take advantage of it. Now we just need some clarity on what's happening with the legendary Pokémon.
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