Pokemon GO Protest Continues: Falinks Used Social Distancing!

Today we're taking a peek at the Pokemon called Falinks as represented in Pokemon GO, made by Niantic. As is sometimes the case with a Pokemon of an odd size, Falinks was delivered to Pokemon GO with a slightly odd set of visual/spatial rules. This Pokemon is large – like, Onix large. But instead of appearing very massive in battles, Falinks does the right thing – it uses social distancing to get the job done!

Niantic is in the middle of a social battle when it comes to gameplay in the modern pandemic age. In the year 2020, they adjusted the game Pokemon GO to account for users not being able to leave their houses, quarantined for COVID-19. Now, here in the year 2021, they want people to get back out there and play the game the way it was before the year 2020.

But the game is different now in the hearts and minds of players. It was proven through the course of the last half-year that Pokemon GO can be played with the option of leaving one's own house, but not the restriction of NEEDING to leave one's own space. This allows for gameplay for not only able-bodied individuals and those in places where social distancing isn't an issue, but for those that want to participate, but cannot safely do so.

Now there's Falinks. In an issue that's likely set to be fixed in the very near future, Falinks battle setup pushes the player back a LONG distance, causing "the gym battle to zoom out, and all battles to be really far away", as noted by The Silph Road member and Pokemon GO trainer "TrainerKolya". It's wacky, and crazy, and part of the game that's funny in the few days between launch and fix.

So once again we're asking Niantic to reconsider the idea that the game need be played up close and personal, and switch back to the distances and bonuses given to players in the second half of the year 2020. The game can be played this way, the game can still be profitable this way, we're hoping we can remain safe this way!