Pokemon Go Holding Raikou Raid Day Event This Week

Pokemon Go's third annual Go Fest event took place in Chicago earlier this month, and as developer Niantic usually does, it held a series of Global Challenges during the event that all players could help complete, whether or not they were able to attend in-person. As a reward for completing these challenges, the studio is making a variety of bonuses available in the game for a limited time. Not only that, it's also bringing a popular Legendary Pokemon, Raikou, back to Raids very soon--but it won't be around for long.

From now until June 25, players will receive twice the usual amount of Candy for capturing and hatching Pokemon. On top of that, Pokemon Eggs will hatch at half the distance they normally require. You're also guaranteed to receive one Rare Candy each time you participate in a Raid.

Then, on Saturday, June 29, Niantic is holding a special Raikou Raid Day. On that day, the Legendary dog will reappear in Raid Battles from 4-7 PM local time, and you'll have a chance of encountering a Shiny Raikou. You'll also be able to receive up to five free Raid Passes during the event hours, which you'll need to participate in Raids. You can read more details about the Go Fest rewards on the official Pokemon Go website.

In the meantime, you'll have another chance to catch Kyogre. The Legendary Gen 3 Pokemon has returned to Raid Battles until June 27, and this time, you may encounter its Shiny form when challenging it. Kyogre marks the second of three Legendary Pokemon Niantic is bringing back to the game. The final one, Groudon, will appear from June 27 to July 10.

Niantic has two more Pokemon Go Fest events lined up this summer. The next one will take place in Dortmund, Germany, from July 4-7, with an event in Yokohama, Japan, following August 6-12. Even if you can't attend in-person, Niantic will hold Global Challenges during each event. Meanwhile, the game's next Community Day is scheduled for Sunday, July 21, although no further details have been announced yet.

In other news, Niantic's latest mobile game, Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, is now live in the US and UK. The game was slated to launch on June 21, but has arrived in both regions a day early. While the premise of both games is very similar, Wizards Unite also differs from Pokemon Go in a few notable ways. You can read more about the game in our hands-on impressions of Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.