'Pokémon GO' Update: New Bug Causes Pokémon Gym Defenders to Disappear
The latest update to "Pokémon GO" has given birth to a new bug that appears to steal away the Pokemon that players put in the Gym.
Some users are reporting that after they put a Pokémon to defend the Gym or take part in a Raid battle, the creature disappears. Players end up with no coins and one less Pokémon.
"Pokémon GO" players affected by the issue would notice that they will get errors when adding a Pokémon to the Gym or when they successfully do so, the Pokémon does not show up upon rechecking.
However, the Pokémon gains the "defender" status symbol in its page. The gym badge overview shows a Pikachu icon on the Gym in question, indicating that the Pokémon is there, but it really is not when players click on it. With the Pokémon magically disappearing, there is no way of retrieving it, thus losing it forever.
The gym then stays available for battle or to be occupied by other Pokémon and trainers. "Pokémon GO" players can add another Pokémon to defend it too and get coins, but the lost Pokémon never returns.
This "Pokémon GO" bug is not widespread at this time, according to the folks over at The Silph Road, a reliable source on all things "Pokémon GO."
A small number of players have encountered a bug that has our Pokemon marked as defenders, even though they're not in a gym. Pokemon with the defender status can't be used for anything and we have been stuck with that.
"Pokémon GO" developer Niantic Labs have been informed about the issue and is working on a fix. Here is what a representative of the studio stated on Reddit:
We've seen a handful of reports of this bug previously but we hadn't been able to confirm that it was a persistent issue. This certainly sounds like a persistent issue from your experience and the reports you compiled. I'll share this information with our team.
With Niantic now aware of the issue, "Pokémon GO" players can expect to get updates from the studio in the coming days.