Pokémon GO Fest 2020

Pokémon GO Fest in 2020 was the fourth GO Fest event in Pokémon GO. Unlike previous events, GO Fest 2020 took place as an entirely global event in a virtual format due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Features only occurred from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time of each day of the GO Fest. Purchasing the GO Fest 2020 ticket would provide more bonuses, exclusive wild Pokémon and two different exclusive Special Research on each day. Players who purchased the ticket received an exclusive medal.

Due to a number of technical issues, two makeup events were made only available for ticket holders.

Day 1 features
These were general features available for everyone (without necessity of purchasing the event ticket):

These were the features available exclusively for players who purchased the event ticket:

Featured Pokémon
The following Pokémon were released with the start of the event:

There were five themed, virtual habitats rotating each hour, and each one featured different Pokémon. Because the habitats were happening simultaneously around the world, the habitat of the same hour can be different depending on the players's location. For details go to: Pokémon GO Fest 2020.

These Fire-type Pokémon were available for everyone, during Fire habitat hours:

These Fire-type Pokémon were available exclusively for ticket holders, during Fire habitat hours:

These Water-type Pokémon were available for everyone, during Water habitat hours:

These Water-type Pokémon were available exclusively for ticket holders, during Water habitat hours:

These Grass-type Pokémon were available for everyone, during Grass habitat hours:

These Grass-type Pokémon were available exclusively for ticket holders, during Grass habitat hours:

These Pokémon were available for everyone, during Battle habitat hours:

These Pokémon were available exclusively for ticket holders, during Battle habitat hours:

These Pokémon were available for everyone, during Friendship habitat hours:

Additionally, these two Unown forms were possible to capture using Incense for ticket holders.

These Shiny Pokémon were released with the start of the event: PS Bulbasaur (001) PS Charmander (004) PS Squirtle (007) PS Tangela (114) PS Unown (201) PS Unown (201) PS Qwilfish (211) PS Tangrowth (465) PS Woobat (527) PS Swoobat (528) PS Heatmor (631) PS Durant (632) Part of these Pokémon are related to each habitat (Heatmor – fire, Qwilfish – water, Tangela – grass, Durant – battle and Woobat – friendship)

There was also a chance to be photobombed by Wash form Rotom Pokémon, exclusively for ticket holders.

7-km Pokémon Eggs obtained during the event would hatch more of these Pokémon:

The following Raid Bosses were available for a time of this event.

Special Research
If player bought an event ticket, logged in to the game on July, 2020 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time and made any in-game activity, they received Day One exclusive Special Research which was a GO Fest 2020: Welcome! campaign.

Welcome to Pokémon GO Fest 2020, TRAINER! GO Fest this year is a little bit different from previous years, but that doesn't mean it'll be any less fun--or challenging! I’ve noticed an amazing phenomena, it seems as though different Pokémon are appearing in the area on what seems an hourly basis. I’m going to need your help collecting data on this situation. I thought it would be fun to tie this phenomena to some tasks for you to complete. If you are able to complete them, I’ll make sure you get a reward for your hard work! For more details, you can log into the Global Challenge Arena. Don’t delay, since these Pokémon seem to be rotating quickly, your time to complete the tasks are limited! To help with your tasks, be sure to equip a few Incense to attract Pokémon. You've worked hard to earn rewards during the weekly challenges and don’t want you to miss out! Tip: you can now equip several at once and have your Incense attract Pokémon to you for hours! Plus, I think they smell amazing. Playing wherever you are doesn't mean you're playing alone! It brings a smile to my face knowing that there are millions of Trainers around the world right now working together because we all share a love for Pokémon. Furthermore, I've been sensing a great energy that has filled me with hope and determination, have you been feeling it as well? I wonder if it has any connection to the strange happenings that has kicked off our research this weekend. I have a feeling we are about to start an exciting adventure and today is just the beginning! We will have another fun filled day tomorrow, but for now I'm going to start looking into this situation as it is reminding me of a certain mythical Pokémon. Now, TRAINER, I'm sure you know what I'm going to say next. Let's GO!

Global Challenge Arena
This year GO Fest also had its Global Challenge segment that was called Global Challenge Arena and was available for ticket holders only from in-game Today View tab on the Day One of the event (only between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. local time).

Goal of each challenge was to complete a number of a specific in-game activity by all Trainers globally within one hour as each hour there was one of five different global challenges to complete which was correlated with a one hour-long, rotating, virtual habitats. These were:
 * Fire Habitat – catch Fire-type Pokémon,
 * Water Habitat – make great throws,
 * Grass Habitat – use Berries to catch Pokémon,
 * Battle Habitat – battle in Raids
 * and Friendship Habitat – send gifts.

After completing each challenge, there was an additional bonus activated for ticket holders until the habitat rotated and new global challenge would start. These bonuses were:
 * catch Fire-type Pokémon – 2× catch Candy
 * make great throws – 3× catch Stardust
 * use Berries to catch Pokémon – 3× catch XP
 * battle in Raids – 3× Stardust and XP from Raids
 * send gifts – chance of a one Rare Candy when opening gifts

There was total of 34 global challenges:

The contribution and time of completion of each challenge can be viewed in the Team Contribution section of Virtual Team Lounge, here.

There were three weeks of the Ultra Unlock bonus event series announced if Trainers complete specific number of these challenges:
 * If 8 global challenges are completed, Dragon Week would happen.
 * Dragon Week was unlocked on July, 3:29 UTC and it was announced at 4:00 AM UTC via Twitter.
 * If 16 global challenges are completed, Enigma Week would happen.
 * Enigma Week was unlocked on July, 11:12 UTC and it was announced at 12:30 PM UTC via Twitter.
 * If 24 global challenges are completed, Unova Week would happen.
 * Unova Week was unlocked on July, 19:23 UTC and it was announced on July , 10:45 AM UTC via Twitter.

Day 2 features
The events on Day 2 was kept secret until event began. Team GO Rocket had taken-over the PokéStops again. These were general features available for everyone (without necessity of purchasing the event ticket):

These were the features available exclusively for players who purchased the event ticket:

Featured Pokémon
The Pokémon in wild were a mix of those on Day 1. Alolan Pokémon became available for all Trainers regardless of owning the event ticket. Pokémon in 7-km Eggs were also the same.

Tier 1 to 4 Raid Bosses were the same as those on Day 1. Only Legendary Pokémon were changed.

Trainers might have encountered returning Shadow Pokémon from Team GO Rocket Grunts, Leaders and Giovanni as their Pokémon parties were changed for the time of the event.

Returning Shadow Pokémon from Grunts included: Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Larvitar, Seedot, Sableye and Carvanha.

These were battle parties of Team GO Rocket Leaders and Giovanni during the Day Two of Pokémon GO Fest:

Special Research
Similarly to the previous day of the event, if player bought an event ticket, logged in to the game on July, 2020 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time and made any in-game activity, they received Day Two exclusive Special Research which was a GO Fest 2020: Rocket Straight to Victory campaign.

TRAINER, by the look on your face, I’m sure you’ve grasped the situation. Yes, that is Team GO Rocket confetti raining down from the sky. Yes, grunts are invading PokéStops all around the world. And yes...Team GO Rocket has taken over Pokémon GO Fest. And yes...I’m so glad you’re here. We thought that when we defeated them and ended their takeover during the GO Fest Timed Research that that would be the end of them for the time being. It appears to have only been a part of a larger plan. What their ultimate end goal, though, is still to be determined. Regardless of what lies in wait, TRAINER...you must prepare yourself. I’ve been in contact with your fellow Trainers around the world and I’m impressed by your energy! As long as we work together, I know victory is within our reach!

Great work, TRAINER. Your Pokémon are battle-ready and I bet your fellow Trainers are thankful for the supplies you’ve sent their way. We need to work together to keep Team GO Rocket at bay and save Pokémon GO Fest! Oh, what’s this? Looks like the snapshots you took features some unwelcome guests! It's amazing that they're able to organize these massive takeovers, but they do seem a little silly. Is this actually all a part of their scheme? Anyway, why don’t you go ahead and put all of that training to work? In the meantime, I’ll do some more investigating with the team leaders.

Looks like you’ve just caught a Golem for your hard work! The team leaders and I have been scoping out the Team GO Rocket members traveling via balloon and have discovered that the Team GO Rocket leaders are using Flying-type Pokémon. Sources are telling me that they might have captured some Legendary Pokémon and turned them into Shadow Pokémon! If I recall correctly, the team leaders saw one of these balloons at GO Fest last year and also during their takeover a few weeks ago. I wouldn’t have imagined that they’d rally resources behind such an...interesting means of transportation. However, it’s clear that the boss has put a lot of effort into equipping his grunts with balloons. …Anyway, your Rock-type Golem might be a helpful addition to your battle party, since Flying types are weak to Rock! It’s time to rock their world, TRAINER, and save those Shadow Legendary Pokémon!

Great job defeating Arlo, Cliff, and Sierra. Now all that’s left is their boss, Giovanni. TRAINER, are you ready? Candela, Blanche, and Spark can handle the Team GO Rocket leaders from here while you prepare to face the boss. It's extremely interesting to see the Team GO Rocket Leaders commanding these Shadow Legendary Pokémon which are usually reserved for the boss himself. I wonder what this means as we uncover more of their devious plans and what Pokémon he now has under his control. I was worried about them but I received an encouraging message from the team leaders about a mysterious phenomenon. Remember that mysterious energy I was detecting yesterday? They and Trainers worldwide were suddenly overcome with a great energy that is filling them with hope and determination that they can win. I started digging through my research and found references to the very same energy. It documents a Mythical Pokémon that shares infinite energy and guarantees a winning battle. I have a feeling this is why Team GO Rocket is here. Perhaps they hope to use this powerful Pokémon to further their evil plans, since they’ve been so unsuccessful in the past? I hear Giovanni often begins his battles with his Buddy Pokémon, Persian, which is weak to Fighting-type moves. That Machamp that you caught earlier in your research might help you here. Good luck, TRAINER. The fate of Pokémon GO Fest is in your hands.

TRAINER, you did it! You defeated Giovanni and he appears to be retreating! Who would have thought that he could even turn Mewtwo into a Shadow Pokémon. It was a tough battle, but the fact that you defeated it really proves what an amazing Trainer you are. This alone is a mystery we need to investigate. However, I'm afraid that investigation will have to wait: we've just saved Pokémon GO Fest! It's time to celebrate! Candela, Blanche, and Spark were victorious battling the Team GO Rocket leaders and I’m now receiving word that they are retreating as well. Turns out the Mythical Pokémon that Team GO Rocket was after was Victini, the Victory Pokémon! They say that this Pokémon brings victory and that Trainers with Victini always win, regardless of the type of encounter. I am now sure that energy we were all feeling was thanks to Victini. I’m in utter awe at your tenacity and determination. Pokémon GO Fest was saved thanks to your hard work. Thank you, TRAINER.

Phew! Now I think you would agree it is time to get back to having fun—there’s still time to enjoy the festivities! While this year was quite a bit different from our previous GO Fests, I’m still overjoyed that Trainers all over the world came together to celebrate, and protect, our beloved Pokémon. Even when we’re apart, we’re still together and tied by our shared love of Pokémon. No matter what obstacles appear in our path, you can always know that your Pokémon and your fellow Trainers will be here for you. I know we’ll all meet again in the same park and under the same sky soon, so until then—let’s GO!

Avatar items
These avatar items were released with the beginning of the event:

Shop special offer
There were three bundles available during the Pokémon GO Fest 2020 from the in game shop and one GO Rocket Box during Day 2.

Additionally, there was a free 3 Remote Raid Passes bundle for the ticket holders.

Ultra Unlock
Similarly to the previous GO Fest editions and their Ultra Bonus Events, this year there was a Ultra Unlock series of events planned to occur after players complete a number of challenges in Global Challenge Arena.

It was divided into three parts, which featured a series of themed, weekly events:
 * Week 1: Dragon Week – from July to August, 2020
 * Week 2: Enigma Week – from August to August, 2020
 * Week 3: Unova Week – from August to August, 2020

Makeup events
Niantic announced the first makeup event due to technical issues during some of habitat blocks during Day One of the event. It would last 3 hours on August, 2020, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time. It would be accessible only for players who previously bought the Pokémon GO Fest 2020 ticket.

However, the makeup event experienced other issues, notably shiny Unown being disabled. The second makeup event was planned on August, 2020, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time for ticket holders in the time zones from UTC+7 to UTC+14. Special habitats and Incense bonus took place but other features did not.

Features
Pokémon from Fire, Water and Friendship habitats would spawn more frequently in the wild. These habitats would rotate hourly with Fire habitat being from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., Water habitat being from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. and Friendship habitat from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

See: Featured Pokémon in Day One.

G and O forms of Unown would be lured with Incense during this event.

Special free item bundle box would be available for the time of an event. Players could claim this box only if they have fewer than three Remote Raid Passes in their Item Bag.

Weekly Challenges
From July to, 2020, there were three sets of Timed Research challenges in preparation for Pokémon GO Fest 2020. These Special Research challenges, were:
 * GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Skill
 * GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Battle
 * GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Friendship

Each of these three challenges lasted 6 days and consisted of three regular sets of tasks and one elite challenge set.

There had been certain Pokémon promised to be featured in the Pokémon GO Fest 2020 event if one milion of Trainers of each team completed each of three regular sets of weekly challenges.

For completing GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Skill, these Pokémon would be featured in the event:

For completing GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Battle, these Pokémon would be featured in the event:

For completing GO Fest Weekly Challenge: Friendship, these Pokémon would be featured in the event:

Niantic's puzzle
Between July to, Niantic was posting puzzle clues in social media each day. The answer was a 13-digit code, which was planned to be 14 initially. If a Trainer could solve it, they could have got the prizes on: Niantic Offer Redemption.

On July, Niantic tweeted that they had done a mistake by skipping a clue for the puzzle and they posted a revised list of clues.

After releasing the last clue for the code it was quickly solved and redeemed by few players in mere seconds. The code was UBCJL9X6RC47A and redeeming it would reward player with 50 items in total, which were:

However, Niantic Labs acknowledged that quick code redemption by a player community and they have tweeted a consolation code available for everyone. This code was: 5PTHMZ3AZM5QC and it would give to a player 21 items, which were:

Clues
Each day there was one clue posted from the NianticLabs Twitter account.

As stated in introduction tweet, the first letter of the answer for each clue was meant to be a part of the code. However as it turned out after the puzzle was solved there were few inconsistencies in this statement and the answers for the clues:
 * all numbers in the code were meant to be just digits not first letters of their names as it was suspected by a players guided by the puzzle introduction tweet.
 * answer for the ninth clue was an R which would presumably stand for Rocket, but in all media and the game itself the team from this clue is called Team GO Rocket which should have been either T or G as the answer for that clue.

Print at Home kit
To be added.

Virtual Team Lounge
Virtual Team Lounge was a Team Longue equivalent in a format of the public website under this adres: https://pokemongolive.com/en/events/virtual-team-lounge/.

These are screencaps of Virtual Team Longue site: 

Gallery


Trivia

 * There was a special Niantics live stream on YouTube during the Pokémon GO Fest 2020 during which there were few promotional codes for items published:
 * UWJ4PFY623R5X
 * MQE4PFNYVRM6M
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6
 * MQE4PFNYVRM6M
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6
 * 9FC4SN7K5DAJ6