Well, we just made out of the Slowpoke event. Rather an odd one, but okay; at least we can expect to be free of events focused on oddball Pokemon!
.....what? Seriously? Okay, well I guess what we're doing this!
It's time for Pokemon Go to celebrate one of the single most meme'd Pokemon in the history of the entire series; it's time for the Bidoof Breakout Event!
....yes, we're apparently doing this now.
Bidoof Breakout Event
| Event Start | Event End |
|---|---|
| June 25, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time | July 1, 2021, at 8:00 p.m. local time |
- Bidoof will appear more frequently in the wild, in research, and will have its Shiny forme released. Bidoof's shiny rate is stated to rise as the event goes on.
- Bidoof caught during the event will have special charged moves
| Event Move | Catch Period Start | Catch Period End |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow Ball | June 25, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. local time | June 26, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. local time |
| Thunderbolt | June 27, 2021, at 12:00 a.m. local time | June 28, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. local time |
| Ice Beam | June 29, 2021, at 12:00 a.m. local time | June 30, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. local time |
- On July 1 from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. local time, players will be able to use normal Charged TMs to gain these moves on Bidoof. After this, they will become Elite Moves.
- Evolve a Bidoof during the event to gain a Bibarel that knows.... Hyper Beam? But Bibarel already has Hyper Beam as a part of its base moveset...?
- Team Rocket Grunts will have Shadow Bidoof.. but hopefully not 100% of the time.
- We can also grab new Bidoof-themed stickers from Pokestops and Gifts.... because why not?
Yes, this event is weird. On the surface, it offers absolutely nothing of actual value. However, it's good to remember that we're drawing ever closer to Go Fest 2021, which promises to be a very big deal. A random fluff event along the way isn't a huge deal, and Bidoof may have use if the Little Cup or a similar format makes it way back to the Go Battle League.... if Niantic gives it a usable fast move.
Honestly, the biggest take-away from this announcement is Bibarel learning Hyper Beam on evolution... a move that it already learns naturally. Is this a way to ensure that a specific normal move is always given, or just a random mistake in the event page? Time will tell, but regardless: this event is definitely strange!
