Special Backgrounds Coming to Pokemon Go

As a part of the latest Pokemon Go Fest that's approaching pretty quickly now, we've got another new update that's coming to add a bit more flavor to the game. This time around, we're getting special, unique backgrounds for Pokemon that can be viewed on their profiles.

These backgrounds, which can be viewed above, will only be available on select Pokemon and for limited periods of time. And on top of that, they will apparently not be guaranteed within their given time periods. As of right now, these are the confirmed Pokemon that will have special backgrounds available, as well as their availability windows:

In conjunction with the above, any Necrozma with a special background fused into Dawn Wings Necrozma or Dusk Mane Necrozma

The Impact of Backgrounds

As should be pretty obvious, this is a 100% cosmetic difference, and one that's even less impactful than a Shiny Pokemon, as Shinies can at least be seen as unique outside of their profiles. And while it can definitely be fun for the sake of collection, it honestly feels more like one more paper-thin layer of "Fear of Missing Out" on top of a game that's already built on a foundation of it.

100% odds that, when this system drops, we're going to see players talking about finding a 100% Pokemon, but RNG didn't favor them enough to give the special background. Or a Shiny with a special Background and terribly poor IVs. This could be a genuinely fun idea, but the fact that Niantic still hasn't given us any sort of agency in regards to actually improving Pokemon that we want to use over those who were smiled upon by the game's RNG means that this is just one more variable on top of a pile of others that need to be overcome in order to get the exact Pokemon that we want.

That said, it can definitely be fun if you just want to play 100% for the fun of it, which is objectively the best way to play any game. Either way, get out there and catch the Pokemon that you want, and let us know what you think of the new special backgrounds that are on the way.

Of course, this also brings up one question: if we trade a Special Background Pokemon, what happens to that Pokemon if they end up Lucky?