'Pokémon Go' Christmas Event 2017: Will the Delibird's Launch Ruin the Holidays?

By Rachel Cruz, Christian Post Contributor Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Niantic gears up for another 'Pokémon Go' Christmas event. The announcement of this year's activities and surprises has not yet come but eager fans have started speculating on what to expect.

"Pokémon Go" might reportedly debut the Delibird for its Christmas event this year after Niantic confirmed there will be new EX Raids launching for December. Fans allegedly saw the Delibird in the leaked source code in the absence of any confirmation from the developers.

The Pokémon Go Hub team, however, downplayed the rumours since Mewtwo's notorious enemies might just ruin Christmas for the players. The publication cited that it would be impossible for Niantic to go Grinch on "Pokémon Go" players for its Christmas event when it should be a time for celebration and not sabotage.

"Pokémon Go" held the first day of Christmas event in 2016 on Dec. 25. Players received a swarm of gifts, such as in-store discounts for purchases, freebies like incubators for the monster eggs, Gen 2 Pokémon like Pichu, and a Santa Hat Pikachu that increased the spawn rate faster.

Niantic's Christmas event last year lasted until Jan. 8. Additional surprises included an increased presence of monsters like Squirtle and Charmander for players to lure and capture. Lure time also lasted for a full minute during this period.

Players think that a handful of these will arrive in the "Pokémon Go" Christmas event this 2017, especially the Santa Hat Pikachu. The "Pokémon Go" Christmas event might also include Gen 3 monsters, particular the ice types. The timing is circumspect since developers plan on introducing a weather feature in the game.

"We want the weather (in Pokémon Go) to reflect what the weather's like outside," developer Matt Slemon said. "That being said, if there are Pokémon that might spawn more often in the snow, you might still see them through events showing up because of the event, rather than because it's snowing outside."

Players expect Niantic to announce the complete "Pokémon Go" Christmas 2017 this week.