Pokemon Go Just Added This Key Feature From The Mainline Games

Pokemon Go has traditionally differed from the mainline Pokemon titles. The mobile game has several key elements missing, including trainer vs trainer battles, breeding, and bikes. That said, recent updates have made Pokemon Go more like a mainline game than ever before.

From the start of the series, Pokemon creator Satoshi Tajiri envisioned players trading Pokemon back and forth. That's why he made two games with version exclusive Pokemon, as well as Pokemon that only evolve when traded. The first mechanic came to Pokemon Go a while back, but Trade Evolution remained elusive.

The Jan. 10 update ushered in welcome additions for players who have desperately gathered Candy for weeks to finally evolve their Haunter or Kadabra. It used to cost a whopping 100 Candies to reach the final evolution of these powerful Pokemon. Gathering Candy requires players to catch dozens of Pokemon or walk miles and miles, hoping their Pokemon buddy snatches up a treat or two.

Trade Evolution has finally come to Pokemon Go, bringing a huge quality of life improvement. Now players can simply trade their Haunters with a friend to get a Gengar (assuming they decide to give it back). This update also added new Pokemon from Generation 5 like Boldore, Gurdurr, Karrablast, and Shelmet, each with their own Trade Evolution benefits. 

According to Niantic, you can now find Roggenrola, Tympole, Dwebble, Trubbish, Karrablast, Joltik, Shelmet, and more in the wild. A variety of region-specific Pokemon have also turned up, such as the Red-Striped Form Basculin for the Eastern hemisphere and the Blue-Striped Form Basculin for the Western hemisphere. Generation 5 Pokemon now hatching from eggs include Timburr, Tirtouga, Archen, Venipede, Dwebble, and Axew, with Timburr also appearing in one-star raids.