Mobile smash hit Pokémon GO has seen several updates large and small since its July launch, but it seems that "Niantic Labs" is queuing up for the biggest one yet. The developer has a big announcement coming Monday, December 12, where it plans to detail new Pokémon coming into the game, possibly from Gen 2. So far we've got a single monster added in in the form of Ditto, but this is the first major new content addition since launch. People are excited.
"New Pokémon," of course, isn't actually all that specific, but legendries still seem unlikely at this point. Most are assuming that we're going to get a big wave of Gen 2 Pokémon added into the game, whether all at once or little by little. The "Pokémon" series added new creatures with each new iteration of the main game, and all the monsters in the game right now are from "Red, Blue and Yellow." The fact that the main series has provided a steady stream of new content over two decades bodes well for "Pokémon GO" going forward: the developer has a kind of roadmap about where things need to go, at least from one perspective. If it is the full dump people are expecting, there should be something in the vicinity of 100 Pokémon.
Costumes have been discovered by data developers in the code for the latest update, raising the possibility of Pikachu wearing a Santa hat and melting all of our little hearts. Also likely on the docket are increased options for avatar customization and possibly the addition of rare shiny Pokémon.
Worth noting that data developer's information doesn't suggest something is coming right away, just that it could eventually. But I'm thinking we'll see a lot of new features at once: "Pokémon GO" seems to be looking for a big exclamation point to re-energize a flagging base and gird the game for colder months. Without an endgame or "People vs. People" battling, the game will still have all the same problems that led enthusiasm to wane in the first place. Without major new additions and actual gameplay progression, any new players lured back by new monsters will be gone as quickly they arrived.