Niantic recently updated Pokemon GO’s tracking system. Players can finally know the locations of specific Pokemon, but the update comes with a cost.
Pokemon GO has had a rough history full of highs and lows. When the game released, it was buggy, and the servers were extremely unstable. One of the features that actually worked (for most people anyway) was the tracker, a digital game of “Hot and Cold” that told players what Pokemon were nearby and their approximate distance from the players. Many gamers were confused by this system, but it was mostly functional. Then, the tracker suffered a glitch that made it impossible to track Pokemon. Niantic was forced to remove the tracking system until the issue was fixed.
Fast forward to this week; shortly after dataminers discoverd Pokemon GO will soon receive 100 new Pokemon, Niantic released a new patch that once again allows players to reliably track Pokemon. At least, that is what Niantic tried to do. Sites such as Forbes and Kotaku report that the tracker now only tracks Pokemon near PokeStops. Pokemon are not necessarily tied to Pokestops and can appear anywhere, but the only way to know if a Snorlax or Abra is nearby is if it is camped at a PokeStop.
There are numerous locations throughout the world that do not have any PokeStops, which means that people who live in these locations can no longer track Pokemon. Niantic has promised that it will listen to feedback and change the tracking system as needed. With luck, the system will see those changes in the near future.