One of the biggest draws of Pokemon GO (ok, really the only draw) is the ability to catch Pokemon out in the wild.
The augmented reality nature of the game means that plenty of people who would normally be stuck on the couch in their mom’s basement are now outdoors, experiencing fresh air and exchanging with real people. That’s both good and bad news. On the one hand: Vitamin D, exercise, human interaction. On the other hand the game has been blamed for Central Park mobs, car accidents and trespassing.
Still, most people are playing the game with the hope that those cute, cuddly little Japanese characters are somewhere nearby. Unfortunately, for many users, finding them has become a problem. The game’s infamous three-step-glitch has made it impossible to hunt down characters. For affected gamers, the bug causes every Pokemon to appear the maximum distance away, no matter where you are or how far you walk. Even when Pokemon on the “Nearby” tab change, they still appear three paw prints away. While users are able to continue hunting and catching the critters, it’s all basically by guess-work not tracking.
Obviously this is a major issue, one game makers have decided to solve by simply doing away with the three-step display image. According to gamers on Reddit and Twitter, the fix means users will no longer be tormented by every Pokemon they’re hunting being three “feet” away.
A host of other new updates have also been rolled out for Android and iOS users including adjusting battle damage values and solving memory issues.
#PokemonGO Android Version 0.31.0 Patch Notes. pic.twitter.com/1yIbIcctqb
— Pokémon GO News (@PokemonGoNews) July 30, 2016
Of course, now that the paw prints are gone, it’s equally as impossible to track Pokemon, but hey, at least you’re not as annoyed. The theory is the game makers have just removed the problem until they can find a way to fix it, then the tracking system will be back online.
Happy hunting.
(Via Kotaku)