More than a month after its release, Pokémon GO still have a couple of bugs. After the rollout of the recent update, there have been some new bugs reported, though others were properly squashed. Still, there are bugs big and small in the game, some of them minor enough to overlook, and some of them bothersome enough to ruin the playing experience for a lot of gamers. So what’s to do about these bugs? Are there any home remedies worth mentioning while we wait for Niantic Labs to update both the Android and iOS version of the game?
Even with these bugs, as well as the disappearance of certain key features, Niantic deserves credit for squashing most of the pressing bugs that made playing the game oftentimes unbearable at first. For starters, there aren’t too many server problems to speak of, while instances of the game freezing aren’t as common as they used to be. But since there are still issues here and there that sometimes frustrate us while trying to catch Pokémon, do check out this Pokémon GO guide, where we talk about ways to deal with the problems that still plague the game.
This covers all of the bugs and issues that are still being frequently reported on Reddit and other sources as of the first week of August. Some of what we shall cover here aren’t exactly bugs, but rather common complaints we’ve been seeing from gamers since the release of Niantic’s first major update for Pokémon GO.
Battery Saver Mode – What To Do Without It?
One of the several features Niantic took away on its last Pokémon GO update was battery saver mode. That’s because of issues with the mode that would make the game freeze unexpectedly. As Niantic has promised to bring battery saver mode back once it’s fixed, we suggest bringing a power bank with you if you have one, or simply grinning and bearing it in the meantime.
GPS Signal Issues
Oh, this could be an annoying one. You may be playing the game and walking around, looking all good to catch a ton of Pokémon on your current hunting trip. Then the game shows the error message “GPS Signal Not Found.” You can try restarting the game, but if you’re an Android phone user, you can try this more elaborate, yet more effective way of getting your GPS back up to speed. Go to the About Phone menu in your phone, tap on build number for seven times, and that’s going to pull up your developer options. Disable mock locations under the locations tab.
iPhone users with GPS problems also have a workaround they can try to improve the performance of their GPS within Pokémon GO. Switch on your Wi-Fi, and reset your network settings – that’s as easy as it gets. You can also try turning your phone (or merely the game) off, then on again, as that tends to work regardless of the type of device you’re using.
Inaccurate Distance Tracking
When hatching your Pokémon eggs, it should be as straightforward as it gets – if you’re incubating a 2km egg, you’ll have to walk two kilometers with Pokémon GO open. Likewise, you need to walk a total of five kilometers for 5km eggs, and ten kilometers for 10km eggs. So why doesn’t the game seem to accurately track the distance you’ve moved? It all boils down to how the game works – it pings your GPS every few minutes or so to see how much distance you’ve covered on the map in between pings. As such, it looks like the treadmill workaround doesn’t work after all. As for the inaccuracies, that may be because the game seems to have a hard time tracking your movements if you’re not walking down a straight path.
So is this a bug or not? Unfortunately, it does not seem like one, but on the plus side, it’s a good idea to leave the game running if you’re driving, or taking public transport through heavy traffic on a long trip. This is a good way to get the incubator going, though if a vehicle moves faster than 12 miles per hour, that won’t count as distance traveled.
Missing Footsteps
Remember how useful the footstep tracker used to be? Back in the day (which isn’t really too far back, if you come to think of it), Pokémon GO players could simply rely on this tracker to tell them how many footsteps away a Pokémon is. At some point, the tracker began to show all Pokémon being three footsteps away, no matter how near or far away they actually were, and it turns out that’s why Niantic has disabled the feature, hopefully for the meantime. Some have speculated this was done to add to the challenge of catching Pokémon, but Niantic has gone on record saying that it wants to improve this feature going forward. That means it may be back in a future update, so the best thing to do at this point is to tough it out.
The Ninja Bug
This is a rare, but almost funny bug where a Pokémon’s body would be blacked out entirely, except for their eyes, hence the term “ninja” bug or glitch. You may have to uninstall, then reinstall Pokémon GO in order to have your Pokémon look like they should – like cute pocket monsters, instead of weird pocket ninjas.
Pokémon Escape More Frequently Than They Used To
Normally, after catching a Pokémon, they’d be trapped inside your PokéBall, with no way to get out. They’d be looking good to go into your inventory, in other words. But recently, it’s been more common for Pokémon to escape the PokéBalls, though not exactly most of the time; usually, it’s the rarer Pokémon that are able to escape. But since everyone wants a rare Pokémon rather than a gajillionth Pidgey or Rattata, you can take consolation in Niantic’s confirmation that this is a bug, and one that may be fixed in due time.
Pokémon Transforming Into Another
It would appear that since the major Pokémon GO update from earlier this month, some Pokémon recently caught by a player would show up as a different Pokémon species upon a check of the inventory. The bug seems to be getting rarer with each passing day, but at the moment there’s no solid fix for this problem. Here’s hoping Niantic gets that one sorted out, as it could be annoying, to cite an extreme, hypothetical example, for your Vaporeon to look like a Pidgey when you view it in the inventory.
PokéStop Problems – No Items, Disappearing Stops
Getting items from PokéStops sometimes isn’t as cut-and-dry as it usually is. You might not receive any item after spinning the big circular icon in the middle of your screen. But that’s not really much of a problem, as you can wait for a couple minutes, then spin the icon again.
As for PokéStops that once were there but have suddenly disappeared post-update, this might not be a bug if the owner of the location, say a convenience store operator, asked Niantic that they remove the stop. After all, some business owners aren’t too happy about seeing several players converging near their area, not planning on buying anything, but rather stopping so that they can collect PokéBalls, eggs, and other items. Sometimes, PokéStops that have disappeared may return, but in most cases, it may be a case of Niantic honoring a business owner’s request that their store not be considered a PokéStop.
Post-Pokémon Catching Freezes
It’s still an annoying glitch that we see from time to time. The game will sometimes freeze once you’ve caught a Pokémon, and that could leave you wondering whether you caught it, or if you’ll just have to deal with it in the meantime and hope you find that same Pokémon in the same place or elsewhere. Fortunately, though, you will often find the Pokémon showing up in your inventory once you restart the game; worst case scenario would be a second chance to catch that same Pokémon.
Server Issues Still A Problem
All things considered, Niantic’s servers aren’t as uncooperative as they used to be. They don’t disrupt the gaming experience as much as they used to, but sometimes, players complain that they aren’t able to connect to the game. In such a situation, chances are the servers are indeed down or updating, so you will have to take solace in the fact that other gamers are also having the same problems.
What Happened To The Throw Bonuses?
If you’ve been playing the game for some time, you may be wondering what happened to the bonuses for Nice throws or better. As that’s one of the bugs introduced with the new update, the best thing to do would be to use this time to practice perfecting your throwing technique, or to focus on catching Pokémon without having to be concerned about your mechanics. Niantic is working to have this bug fixed, so stay tuned for the next update!