Pokemon Go Turns 9,000 Circle K Locations Into PokeStops and Gyms

Niantic has announced a new partnership with Circle K, which will see 9,000 stores and locations becoming gyms and PokeStops in Pokemon Go. Niantic and Circle K announced the new partnership earlier today, which will include coupons and discounts for Pokemon Go players. When players a photo disc at a Circle K location, they will receive coupons and discounts that can be redeemed at Circle K stores for items like coffee, K Freeze, hot dogs, gummy bears, and more. New discounts will be added every month throughout the 12 month partnership. 

Corporate partnership has been part of Pokemon Go for years - at various points in time, companies like Starbucks, Verizon, Sprint, and McDonald's have partnered with Pokemon Go in various countries. Partnerships have varied by company - Starbucks released a limited edition Pokemon Go-themed drink, while Verizon customers have gotten exclusive Pokemon Go events. This marks the first time that Pokemon Go has given away coupons for a store through the game. While financial details were not disclosed, Niantic previously noted that it receives a fee per spin at a sponsored Pokestop.

Pokemon Go is finishing up its first multi-month storyline, with players completing various tasks in order to study the Mythical Pokemon Hoopa. Players who complete the storyline by the end of the month will receive an additional Special Research task, which will likely result in players receiving Hoopa in its powerful Unbound form. Pokemon Go is also preparing to run a series of events through November. In addition to its monthly Community Day (which focuses on Shinx), the game will also run a Festival of Lights event starting later this week and a tie-in event with Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.

While Pokemon Go will get a ton more location, fans of one of Niantic's other games received some bad news today. Niantic announced that it would be ending support for its Harry Potter: Wizards Unite game after January 2022. Niantic will move forward with concluding that game's storyline after two years. Niantic did recently launch a new collaboration with Nintendo titled Pikmin Bloom, which acts as more of a walking companion than as a full game.