As the year 2020 is left behind, there are many things to look forward to in the world of gaming withPokemon GOnot being an exception. Celebrating 2021, a surprise Pokemon will be coming to serve as a raid boss in the month of January, but players don’t know what Pokemon it will be.
This surprise Pokemon will be hitting raids inPokemon GOstarting on January 26th, 2021. With it following Kyogre and Groudon as a 5-Star raid boss, it is very likely that it will be a legendary Pokemon as well to compare to these beasts.
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There haven’t been any hints suggesting the identity of this Pokemon or if it’s new or a returning raid boss. Until the date comes for its reveal, the mysterious Pokemon’s identity is completely down to speculation.
Rayquaza
Rayquaza is a Legendary dual dragon and flying-type Pokemon from the third generation of Pokemon. It hasn’t been available as a raid boss sincePokemon GO’sGO Fest 2020, where players had a very limited amount of time to catch it.
One of the reasons it could be the surprise raid boss for January 2021 is due toKyogre and Groudonbeing the two raid bosses before it. Rayquaza, Kyogre, and Groudon are the box Legendaries of the Hoenn region and make up the three members of the Weather Trio inPokemon. Because of this, some may find it strange that Rayquaza was not included with the aforementioned Pokemon.
While this theory could be correct, it does seem to be a little too obvious for a surprise raid boss. It also wouldn’t make much sense for Rayquaza to be a surprise raid boss with it already being a raid boss on multiple occasions. It seems far more likely that a Pokemon that hasn’t been implemented intoPokemon GOwill be this surprise raid boss instead.
Arceus
Considered to be the creator and god of all Pokemon is Arceus. While it is normally apure normal-type Pokemon, Arceus has the ability to change itself into any type via the usage of various plate items. Despite being from the fourth generation of Pokemon, this Legendary has yet to be properly implemented and made available inPokemon GO.
Being considered a god, many players would want to get their hands on Arceus, with a raid seeming like the right way of catching it. However, its ability to switch types may have proven difficult for developers inPokemon GOwith another Pokemon known for switching its type, Kecleon, also not being implemented into the game yet. This is especially problematic with how Arceus in the mainline Pokemon titles requires held items to change forms and types andPokemon GOlacking that mechanic.
The introduction of Arceus as a new raid boss would likely be game-changing for players inPokemon GOand especially for players involved in the game’s PVP scene. Arceus can’t really be added without its main ability, so it would likely get a new mechanic special to it in order for players to switch its type. Its signature move, Judgement, would also cause loads of havoc for players in theGO Battle League.
Zygarde
Zygarde is a Legendary dual dragon and ground-type Pokemon that initially premiered in Pokemon’s sixth-generation during the events ofPokemon XandPokemon Y. With the lack of aPokemon Z, Zygarde receivedadditional forms inPokemon SunandPokemon Moonwith it having a 10% Form, 50% Form, and Complete Form.
While it is possible that any of the Kalos legendary Pokemon may appear as the surprise raid boss, it is very likely that the implementation of Xerneas and Yveltal wouldn’t happen separate from each other forPokemon GOdue their status as box legendaries. With those two out of the way, Zygarde is the only Kalos legendary Pokemon left that could reasonably appear by itself.
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One factor that decreases this likelihood is the potential for an event or special research tasks based around Zygarde due to its cells and different forms. Its premiere would likely have players collect its various cells and build up the Pokemon as they play the game. This would also allow them to collect Zygarde’s other forms such as its 10% Form and 50% Form.
Diancie
Diancie is a mythical dual rock and fairy-type Pokemon from the Kalos region. It has the status as the only mythical Pokemon to be able to mega evolve and was one of thefirst Pokemon from the sixth generationto be shown before the release ofPokemon XandPokemon Y.
With there being only three mythical Pokemon fromthe Kalos region, it is also likely that Hoopa or Volcanion could also appear as this surprise raid boss. Hoopa however seems to be the least likely with it probably being the subject of special research tasks such as Celebi, Jirachi, and Mew. Volcanion is also a strong contender, but Diancie is simply more well known that Volcanion, meaning that it is more likely to get this spotlight.
With Diancie being part fairy-type, it may be able to help bring down some of the powerful dragon-type Pokemon currently dominating the GO Battle League’s PVP scene. It could also possibly pave the way for morefairy-type movesto be added intoPokemon GOand add more variety to the existing fairy-type Pokemon.
Goodra
Goodra is a pure dragon-type Pokemon from the Kalos region and is thefinal evolution of the Goomy line. The entirety of the Goomy line is made up of pure dragon-type Pokemon with Goomy evolving into Sliggoo, which evolves into Goodra, but only if it is raining.
Despite the soft features and pastel colors, Goodra is one ofPokemon’spseudo-Legendary Pokemonwith powerful stats in battle. Unlike other pseudo-Legendary Pokemon however, Goodra is mostly defensive and is capable of being one of the best tanks around in the mainline Pokemon games.
If Goodra were to be the surprise raid boss coming in late January, it would also likely mean the implementation of both Goomy and Sliggoo as well for players to catch outside of the raids. This would increase the amount ofKalos Pokemon implemented intoPokemon GOby three.
Pokemon GOis available now in select regions on Android and iOS devices.
