Pokemon Go Fans Are Upset Over Controversial Zapdos Day Decision

Some Pokemon Go fans are upset over players' inability to obtain a new move for the Legendary Pokemon Zapdos with a TM.

Earlier this week, Pokemon Go announced that players would get to participate in a Zapdos Day mini-event this weekend. The Zapdos Day event, which starts at 2 PM ET for those playing in the Americas, will make Zapdos a Raid Boss at every gym. Players will get five free Raid Passes to complete the Raids and may have a chance to capture a Shiny Zapdos.

While the perks are almost identical to last month's Articuno Day, there is one big difference. Every Zapdos caught during the event will know the move Thunder Shock. Zapdos can typically only learn the fast move Charge Beam, but Thunder Shock has a higher damage per second rate and is thus more effective to use in battle.

A Zapdos with Thunder Shock is considered to be a superior Electric-Type Pokemon, falling just a modicum short of Raikou's power. So, fans were understandably upset when they discovered they couldn't use a TM on existing Zapdos to get Thunder Shock during the Zapdos Day festivities.

Fans are upset for two reasons. The first is that not everyone can attend the Zapdos Day mini-event. Some players have prior obligations, like family functions, or work, or writing up news during the biggest comics convention of the year. Using a TM would at least give those players who can't attend a raid during those events a chance to get the "reward" from completing the Global Challenges last weekend.

The other reason is that other players have already spent a lot of time, Stardust, and Candies boosting existing Zapdos. If a player has a "perfect" Zapdos (with a set of three IV stats at 15), they feel they should be able to fully optimize that Zapdos instead of tossing it aside for the Zapdos with a better moveset but inferior stats.

While Pokemon Go's policy has always been not to allow players to use TMs to get certain exclusive moves during Community Day, players feel that this is a little different. After all, a player doesn't need to catch a Pokemon during Community Day to get its exclusive move, they just need to evolve it. A player can still pour a lot of candy and stardust into powering up a perfect Totodile and then just hold it until there's a Totodile Community Day and evolve it to receive the benefit.

Of course, Pokemon Go wants players to go out and raid today, and offering a Zapdos with an exclusive move is one way to motivate players to get out there instead of burning a TM. There's not necessarily a "right" answer to this issue, but it certainly has cast a shadow on what should otherwise be a fun event.

Do you think Pokemon Go should open up its Zapdos Day exclusive move or keep it limited to Zapdos caught during the event? Let us know in the comment section or let me know on Twitter at @CHofferCbus!