Pokemon Go Announces Big Changes to Mega Evolution

Pokemon Go is implementing some big changes to its Mega Evolution mechanic. Earlier today, Pokemon Go announced that it was overhauling its Mega Evolution feature, with Mega Raids, Mega Energy, and the Mega Evolved Pokemon all seeing some big changes. Three major changes are being implemented with this update. First, Mega Raids will be easier, so that less players are needed to challenge a Mega Raid. Additionally, players will only need Mega Energy to Mega Evolve Pokemon for the first time. Once a specific Pokemon has Mega Evolved, players can Mega Evolve that Pokemon again after a rest period. Finally, Mega Levels are being implemented, which will grant players additional benefits whenever their Pokemon Mega Evolves. You can see a trailer for the new system below: 

The purpose of these changes are to make Mega Evolution more accessible to more players. Introduced two years ago, Mega Evolutions were supposed to add an extra level of complexity to battles and provide players with a new challenge, but the extreme Mega Energy cost needed to Mega Evolve a Pokemon caused only a fraction of players to actually use the system. Pokemon Go made several other tweaks to the system to decrease the amount of energy needed to Mega Evolve a Pokemon, but it seems that Niantic felt that a bigger overhaul was needed to the system. 

The new Mega Level system will cause a Pokemon's Mega Level to increase every time they Mega Evolve a Pokemon. When a Pokemon with a higher Mega Level Mega Evolves, they'll have an increased chance of earning Candy XL when they catch a Pokemon with the same typing as a Mega Evolved Pokemon. They'll also receive increased XP for catching Pokemon of the same type as a Mega Evolved Pokemon, and the rest period needed before their Pokemon can Mega Evolve again will also decrease. 

Although players will only need Mega Energy the first time they Mega Evolve a Pokemon, they'll still be able to use Mega Energy to decrease the rest period needed to Mega Evolve Pokemon afterwards. More details about the overhaul can be seen in the video below: 

The new Mega Evolution system is available now in Australia and New Zealand, and will roll out globally soon.