Pokemon GO Announces Adventure Week, A Rock Type Event With Buddy Bonuses

Another week, another Pokemon GO event, this one just ten days after the end of its last one, the grass type-focused Worldwide Bloom. It’s called “Adventure Week,” and it’s not tied to any specific holiday anywhere in the world. Niantic just introduced it in a blog post that highlights that players have walked a (rather arbitrary) 15.8 billion kilometers. In that “adventure spirit” they came up with this new event, which will run from May 18^th through May 25^th, and it focuses on rock type Pokemon with a few other added bonuses.

Here’s what to expect from this new event, according to the recent listing:

– Discounted, 50% off Pokeballs in the store

– Players will get more items per PokeStop

– Buddy Pokemon now find candy 4x faster

– There’s a new wardrobe item, the Explorer’s Hat, available for free

– The event will see increased spawns of rock type Pokemon, and the article specifically mentions Omanyte, Kabuto and Aerodactyl

What’s clear is that this is a “real” event, not a micro-event like the Worldwide Bloom which arrived with grass types and pretty much no other bonuses over its long weekend run. Here, this is much more like a traditional event we’ve come to expect from Pokemon GO, and the buddy distance multiplier alone is definitely a reason for players to show up, as in my view, that’s quite literally one of the most valuable event bonuses the game offers, given how targeted the buddy system is for evolving/upgrading specific Pokemon.

I’m wondering if the biome issue will be fixed with this event, because for the Worldwide Bloom, while some areas were swimming with grass types, here in Chicago, the urban environment barely saw a difference in spawns, and the same was supposedly true of other city/desert biomes. It would be a bummer if this was also the case this time.

Like some past events, this one seems focused on getting players Pokemon that may be rare ones they’ve been missing for a while. Aerodactyl is one of the rarest Pokemon in the game, and many players may not have found enough Omanyte or Kabuto to fashion their evolutions yet either. But those are far from the only rock types in Gen 1 and Gen 2. Here are all the rock types that may appear in this event. It does say “rock types” not “ground types” which are indeed different in Pokemon, so I’m not including those (though some are both).

Geodude
Graveler
Golem
Onix
Rhyhorn
Rhydon
Omanyte
Omastar
Kabuto
Kabutops
Aerodactyl
Sudowudo (wait, really? Apparently)
Shuckle
Magcargo
Corosola
Larvitar
Pupitar
Tyranitar

Those last three got my attention, as Tyranitar is currently one of the most powerful Pokemon in the game, and this is essentially Gen 2’s equivalent of increased Dratini spawns, if Larvitar and its evolutions do show up more often for this event.

So far, this looks like a pretty solid event with good bonuses and a number of sought-after Pokemon to find. We’ll know what spawns look like on Thursday, but until then, start stocking up on supplies. More information to come.