Pokemon Go Halloween 2017 Event And Gen 3 Release Happening Today, Here's Exactly When

Pokemon Go's Halloween 2017 event is starting in just a few hours, bringing with it the first batch of generation 3 Pokemon. Spooky Pokemon such as Gastly, Cubone, Misdreavus, Houndour--along with Hoenn-based Pokemon like Sableye, Banette, and Duskull--will become common as of 12 PM PT / 3 PM ET / 8 PM BST (6 AM AET on October 21 in Australia). The event lasts until 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM on November 2 (7 AM AET on November 3 in Australia).

Bonuses for the event include double Candy rewards for catching, hatching, and transferring Pokemon, and you'll be able to grab special boxes--"featuring items such as Raid Passes and Super Incubators"--from the in-game shop. Finally, special, Halloween-themed Pikachu will be out and about, and you'll be able to grab the Mimikyu Disguise Hat for your avatar to wear.

The addition of Gen 3 Pokemon was leaked earlier this week, when a datamine reportedly uncovered sounds for all species up to #386 (Deoxys, the final Pokemon found in Generation 3). Another leak, showing more Gen 3 creatures and Pikachu wearing a witch's hat, followed just days later.

This is the second year in a row Pokemon Go has held a Halloween event. For more, you can check out our roundup of all the games holding Halloween events this month.

A couple of other events are going on now in Pokemon Go. Until October 25, players can share the best AR photos they take in-game for a chance to win cool prizes. The Legendary dogs Entei, Raikou, and Suicune are also available in new regions through October 31. In other Pokemon news, the developer of the mainline series, Game Freak, has explained why Pokemon Ultra Sun and Moon aren't coming to Nintendo Switch.