Pokemon Go Shadow Raids Debut Next Week, Shadow Mewtwo Coming May 27

Pokemon Go will soon have a new Team Go Rocket problem, as Shadow Raids will bring a new stake on the usual Gym Raid experience beginning on May 22.

Shadow Raids will see Shadow Pokemon--Team Go Rocket's sinister spin on normal Pokemon--enter Gym Raids for the first time in the game's history. One-star and three-star Shadow Raids will begin May 22 with featured Pokemon including Beldum, Poliwag, Machop, and more, and then on May 27 Shadow Mewtwo will become the first-ever five-star Shadow Raid.

Shadow Raids will function similarly to normal raids--with multiple players attacking a single Pokemon in the center--but with one major twist: when the raid Pokemon reaches half of its health, three- and five-star Shadow Raid Pokemon will enter a new Enraged state that the game will signal with a new animation. Enraged Pokemon have boosted attack power and defense, which will make defeating them more difficult than the usual raid.

To counter this buff, Niantic has also added Shadow Shards, which will be dropped by Team Go Rocket members after battle. These shards can be made into Purified Gems, which if used during a Shadow Raid will take away a Pokemon's Enraged status for a short time. Players can use more than one Purified Gem per raid, and if multiple gems are used at one time, the effects will stack.

Players will need to be present at the Shadow Raid gym's location in order to participate, as Remote Raid Passes will not work with these types of raids. Also, unlike normal raids, Premier Balls will not receive a Team Bonus after the raid is completed.

Pokemon Go is available to download now for free on both iOS and Android devices.