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Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto celebrates mobile game's 5th anniversary

Pokemon GO is almost five years old and that means trainers are about to take a trip back to Kanto.

Ozzie Mejia

December 8, 2020 8:00 AM

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It feels like just yesterday that Pokemon came to mobile devices for the first time. But would you believe that Pokemon GO is about to celebrate its fifth anniversary? Yes, it's about to turn five years old, so Niantic Labs and The Pokemon Company are ready to celebrate by going back to where it all started. On Tuesday, they announced the upcoming Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto event.

As its name implies, the Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto will operate similarly to 2020's Pokemon GO Fest. That means it'll be a fully virtual event, meaning nobody will have to risk catching COVID or violating any local restrictions. The difference will be that this event will focus entirely on the Kanto region. All 150 of the Kanto region Pokemon will be running around and, for the first time in Pokemon GO history, all of them will be available as Shiny Pokemon.

Of course, like Pokemon GO Fest, this event will not be free. The ticket price for the Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto event will run for $11.99 USD. Those who pick up their ticket early can get special Community Day Special Research for the January and February events. And in true Pokemon spirit, there will be two different tickets: a Red and Green version. That means the Pokemon you encounter will be different depending on which ticket you purchase, so be ready to trade in order to catch them all.

Those reading this story may wonder, "Aren't there 151 Pokemon from Kanto?" Yes, there is one last one to catch. Those who purchase a Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto ticket and complete the full Kanto Special Research task line will get a second event-exclusive task line. Completing that one will reward players with a Shiny Mew.

Those who don't purchase a Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto ticket will not come out of this event empty-handed. These trainers will still receive special Timed Research tasks and can still find Kanto Pokemon throughout the world. Plus, Articuno (with Hurricane), Zapdos (with Thunder Shock), Moltres (with Sky Attack), and Mewtwo (with Psystrike) will all be available through Legendary Raids.

Tickets for the Pokemon GO Tour: Kanto are available now in Pokemon GO. The event is set to run on Sunday, February 21 from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. local time. For more information, check out the Pokemon GO website.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?