Pokémon Go reportedly punishing ‘cheaters’ with common monster spawns

Pokémon GO players have been reporting a new “anti-cheat” feature that hides rare monsters from accounts that use tracker apps.

With these third-party apps, players are able to use bot accounts to see the locations of rare Pokémon. Go developer Niantic has previously said the use of these apps is considered ‘cheating’ and goes against the game’s Terms of Service.

Therefore, accounts that are flagged for this kind of activity have now only been able to find common Pokémon like Pidgey, if any at all.

The following image comes from Pokémon Go Hub, which shows the effect that the new anti-cheat feature, dubbed “shadowbanning” by players, has had on certain accounts:

Reddit users have put together a list of Pokémon that shadowbanned players haven’t been able to encounter.

Niantic has not yet addressed this matter publicly.

In other Pokémon Go news, you’ll have until tomorrow to take part in the Adventure Week event, which makes Rock-type Pokémon appear more frequently, among other changes.

Via: Polygon