Pokemon GO Fans Aren't Happy About Niantic's Apology

Many Pokemon GO players have called out Niantic for offering only 50 Poke Balls as compensation for their losses during a recent glitch. The issue began on July 24, when Pokemon GO fans noticed wild encounters were following a strange pattern.

At first, many players experiencing the issue believed they had been shadowbanned by Niantic, as none of their catch attempts were successful. It was later revealed that a mass shadowban wasn't the case. Apparently, a new bug in Pokemon GO was causing wild Pokemon to flee after the first throw. Fortunately, the bug was resolved within hours and things returned to normal soon after. However, many fans were still frustrated by Niantic's apology.

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After fixing the bug, Niantic Support's Twitter account announced that affected players could redeem a Pokemon GO promo code to receive 50 Poke Balls as compensation. In response, many fans took to social media to point out that they lost far more than just Poke Balls, with hundreds of them sharing screenshots of rare Shiny critters they failed to catch. Making matters worse, fans argued, the game only returns regular Poke Balls, not even Great or Ultra Balls that are slightly more precious.

POKEBALL50

It's worth noting that Pokemon GO's Ultra Unlock: Steel and Scales event was underway when the bug appeared. Since the event features increased spawn rates for some rare Shiny forms, the glitch caused many players some painful encounters. Several are now sharing missed opportunities to catch Shiny Rookidee, which is making its debut in the game. And they are calling on Niantic to offer more appropriate compensation, arguing that 50 Poke Balls is a "ridiculous" return.

What makes the situation even more frustrating for many players is that the fleeing-Pokemon bug wasn't the first major issue in July. Earlier this month, a serious Pokemon GO bug turned Golden PokeStops blue during the game's 9th anniversary celebration. That glitch also left many players upset, as they were unable to claim specific event rewards.

Fans looking to redeem Niantic's apology promo code, despite the surrounding controversy, will need to visit the Pokemon GO web store. After logging in with the same credentials used for their in-game account, they can enter the code to receive the compensation. Players should note that the POKEBALL50 code must be redeemed by August 1, 2025, at 12:00 AM UTC before it expires.

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