Pokemon GO Update: Mewtwo Countdown Ending In 5, 4, 3...

The Mewtwo countdown continues in Pokemon GO – just days are left before Niantic's plan to release Mewtwo is executed! It's high time, too, as Pokemon GO's best Pokemon is in player hands only in Japan as of this month. Once the shock of the initial Pokemon GO Gym event wore off, it was all fingernails in kneecaps until Mewtwo was released into the wild!

Niantic's announcement for "the arrival of Mewtwo" referred to the wider launch of the game's most powerful Legendary Pokemon. As previously unfurled, the tips provided to SlashGear pointed to Mewtwo being released during the Japan-based event (just so long as we accept that Ho-Oh was an option switched to Mewtwo before the event took place.)

Thankfully the complaint-festival that was Mewtwo breaking Pokemon GO didn't end in a major legal battle. The game persists, and no giant lawsuit has actually taken Niantic out of the game-making business (as yet.) It would seem that the only group of people that've decided to quit the game en masse are those hardcore completists that've realized they'll never ever get every single Pokemon in the game.

As for Mewtwo – again, we asked Niantic about the following bit of info: "Mewtwo will be the first of the Exclusive Raid Bosses, but other powerful Pokémon may also begin to appear in raids in the weeks following the launch of the Exclusive Raid Battles." We asked specifically about the Pokemon that'll follow this current batch. Niantic provided the following quip: "We'll be revealing more information soon, stay tuned!"

All information we have so far (some unofficial and/or behind the scenes-sourced) suggests that the end of the Legendary Bird Raids signal the coming of Mewtwo. That'd mean that the 31st of August, 2017 – this Thursday – might be the moment the switch is made – to Mewtwo or other majorly awesome Pokemon. Unless Niantic decides to give everyone a one-day break and release Mewtwo (or others) on Friday for the weekend.

The game's initial trailer – made once Niantic knew they were ready to roll – included a Mewtwo battle. This was the first look we had at a RAID battle, well before the raid battle universe was unleashed. It would not be a stretch to expect that the first Mewtwo in the United States would be released in Times Square in NYC.

Of course, it's slightly more likely that Mewtwo will be rolled out across the country in a few bit drops, like the Legendary Bird releases of last month. Don't expect this to be easy! Every Mewtwo raid will require more than a tiny team of raiders to complete!