A Pokemon Go datamine indicates that the Pokemon Contests are making a return to the game. Furthermore, the Pokemon’s size will play a role in them.
Pokemon Go hosted its previous Pokemon Contest in January of 2022. As part of the “Pokemon GO Tour: Johto Contest” event, where participants show off their avatars and 3-Pokemon teams that match their style.
Winners, picked by independent judges based on themes, composition, and creativity behind their avatar creation were then featured as NPCs in the following phase of the event.
Recent datamine suggests that after more than a year, another Pokemon Contest will be held, with the emphasis on “comparing sizes” of the Pokemon participating.
Pokemon Contests potentially coming back to Pokemon Go
PokeMiners, the datamine account that reads deep into Pokemon Go’s code in each update, shared a Tweet that simply reads: “Pokemon Contests are back, specifically comparing size.”
Furthermore, the “Contests Are Back” section of their in-depth teardown of the new version of the game, mentions a variety of information that gives us more of an idea of how they might play out.
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Pokemon Contests are back, specifically comparing size.
— PokeMiners (@poke_miners) April 7, 2023
“You get rewards per each contest and you have to specifically claim your contest rewards,” is mentioned on the report, suggesting that the Contests this time will offer actual in-game items and rewards as opposed to becoming an NPC in a limited-time event.
Another section goes over the fact that the size of the Pokemon will somehow play a part in deciding whether you are victorious in the Contest.
“These new actions specifically check size. So be sure to save on to all those useless XXL and XXS mons. They are about to become a little less useless,” PokeMiners concluded in their findings.
There was a mention of seasons playing a role in their findings and mentions of a schedule in the game’s code. This could mean they will appear as a permanent game mode like the “GO Battle League” but at this point in time no official confirmation whether Pokemon Contests are actually coming back.