How to Train & Evolve Pokémon in Pokémon GO: Candies & More

It’s rare that any developer working on a legendary franchise gets to truly reimagine it. Often times, we’re left with new iterations of the same games with updated graphics and stories. Niantic Labs did get the opportunity to rethink Pokémon GO for iPhone and Android. It’s why a tutorial on training and evolving Pokémon in Pokémon GO is necessary.

Rather than force the traditional Pokémon experience on smartphones, franchise publisher Nintendo gave the studio space to create something unique for mobile. Pokémon GO takes a lot of inspiration from the other Pokémon games developed by Game Freak. It also diverges a bit. Capturing Pokémon is as simple as flicking PokeBalls at just the right angle, for example.

Training and evolving Pokémon is incredibly different from what most are used to.

Read: Pokémon GO Release in 2016: What We Know Now

Training Pokémon in Pokémon GO

Training Pokémon in Pokémon GO is more of an active experience than any previous game in the series. Everyone remembers spending hours going through the worlds of Johto and Kanto running into Trainers that’d block your way to the next town. Only through defeating these guys were you able to move on.

Gyms

Training in Pokémon GO requires that you head to the Gyms that are scattered throughout your city or town. If the team that you belong to has possession of that Gym, you can battle the Gym leader’s creatures. You can battle other teams for control of their Gyms too. Winning earns your Trainer a boost in XP.

Read: 7 Pokémon GO Tips for Beginners

CP & HP Using Items

The level system governs the stats of Pokémon in other games in the series. Pokémon GO has two main stats for users to focus on. Both are improved through items, instead of battling Trainers and increasing your Pokémon’s level.

CP stands for Combat Power and it’s how you gauge how powerful your Pokémon is. The higher the CP of your Pokémon, the more powerful they are up against other Pokémon at Gyms. You improve CP by collecting Candies and Stardust to give to your Pokémon.

HP stands for Hit Power, and it’s the amount of stamina your Pokémon has in a battle. It’s also improved through collecting Candies and Stardust.

Read: 6 Pokémon GO Tips to Level Up Faster

You get Stardust and Candies whenever you capture a creature in Pokémon GO. Stardust isn’t specific to a single type of creature. As such, you can build up a sizable stash of it for all of your creatures. Just keep capturing every Pokémon you encounter. Candies are specific to the types of Pokémon that you received them for capturing. For example, you can’t use Candies meant for a Squirtle to improve the CP and HP on a Pidgeotto.

Evolving Pokémon in Pokémon GO

Because Pokémon GO doesn’t use the leveling system, evolving Pokémon GO creatures is slightly different. It too, is based on items.

You don’t need Stardust to evolve a Pokémon, but you do need those same Candies that you get from capturing creatures of the same kind. To evolve a creature, simply look for it in your line-up and open its information to find out if you have the necessary items to do so. An animation shows the Pokémon taking its new form. For sure, the creature should look different. The CP and HP stats will change along with that creatures looks. Their attack abilities might have changed too.

If the creature isn’t in your Pokedex already, expect some bonus XP for your Trainer.

Read: Pokemon GO Battles: How to Play 

Pokémon GO Training & Evolution Quick Tips

• Even if you don’t need a Pokémon, capture it anyway. You’ll want all the Stardust that you can find. Having extra Candies for that specific type of Pokémon should come in handy too.
• Besides capturing creatures, you get 1 Candy every time you trade a Pokémon to Professor Willow.
• Swipe from left to right on each Pokémon’s information screen to look at the next one or previous one in your collection. This should save you a few taps on your smartphone’s screen.
• Keep your eye on the different moves that your Pokémon have available to them. Have a well-rounded team so that you can have the right tools to defeat whatever type of Pokémon you come across at a Gym.
• Keep an eye out for Pokemon GO events. The Halloween event included boosts for Candies when capturing or trading them to Professor Willow. It also offered easier to find Ghost Type Pokemon.

PokeStops & Gym Locations

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A recent question and answer session on the Silph Road confirms that Pokémon Go currently uses 30% to 50% of portals that were present in Niantic’s last game, Ingress. Pokémon Go maps these over real-world landmarks that players have to walk to. PokeStops and Gyms are real-world locations that players go to pick up items and battle the creatures left behind by other trainers. Police departments are already warning players of the game to stay away from their stations, according to VG247.

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