Pokemon Go Is Getting A Special Research Quest Featuring Team Rocket

The infamous Team Rocket made their long-awaited debut in Pokemon Go earlier this summer, and the villainous organization is getting up to even more mischief. We were recently introduced to three mysterious new Team Rocket characters, and now Professor Willow has made a discovery that hints at their involvement growing deeper.

On the official Pokemon Go website, developer Niantic published a "report" by Professor Willow about strange metallic objects Team Rocket Grunts have been leaving behind. It's unclear what the purpose of these "mysterious components" is, but the report surmises that the devices are used to take over PokeStops and may even be able to track down their whereabouts:

"I had a hunch that the Team Go Rocket Grunts were using some sort of device to take over PokeStops and collect resources. Based on what I know so far, these Mysterious Components I've found seem to be able to serve that purpose. But considering how advanced this technology is, there must be another use for it. I've been working on something in my lab with the help of the team leaders, and I think we might be able to use these components to track down where Team Go Rocket is hiding."

Perhaps most interesting, however, is the title of the report, "Looming in the Shadows," which is also the name of a new Special Research questline that was discovered in the game's files by known dataminer Chrales. This suggests the mysterious components may be what ultimately leads to the aforementioned new Team Rocket members--Cliff, Arlo, and Sierra--debuting in the game. Not many details about the characters have been revealed so far, but they appear to be high-ranking members of the evil team, and they're featured alongside Team Rocket boss Giovanni on Pokemon Go's newest loading screen.

In the meantime, to coincide with Pokemon Go's Halloween 2019 event, Team Rocket has expanded their lineup of Shadow Pokemon. You'll now be able to catch Shadow versions of Electabuzz, Magmar, Beedrill, and more after defeating certain Team Rocket Grunts. Be sure to check out our Team Rocket guide for more details on how to catch and purify Shadow Pokemon.

Niantic has a number of Pokemon Go events lined up for the next few weeks, including the return of the Regi trio and the debut of Regigigas. The developer has also shared the first details for November's Community Day. This month's event takes place on November 16 and features the Fire-type starter Chimchar.

In other Pokemon Go news, Niantic recently announced it will add online battles to the game next year. The new Go Battle League feature is slated to roll out in early 2020 and will let players compete against other trainers around the world and rise in the online ranks. Niantic promises to share more details about the feature "soon."