'Pokémon Go' Event Over: Holiday special ends; update returns starters to old spawn rates

Impact

Sorry, everyone, but we've got a sad Pokémon Go update: That Pokémon Go event is over. If you didn't catch enough Bulbasaurs, Charmanders and Squirtles while their spawn rates were through the roof, bad news.

As originally scheduled by Niantic, the increased spawn rates for Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle and their evolved forms ended on Sunday, Jan 8. Pokémon Go players who saw an increase in these Pokémon over the holidays are now back where they started.

Pokémon Go Event Over: These updates don't work for everybody

The increased spawn rates for Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle began on Dec. 30 and ended on on Jan. 8. That was a whopping 10 days Pokémon Go players had to track down the starters — as long as they lived in a place where the winter weather wasn't forcing them indoors.

Basically, Pokémon Go sucks in the cold. For players freezing their asses off over the past week and change, the update was a major source of frustration.

If you lived someplace cold and snowy, you might have seen a Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle or any of their evolved forms pop up with the new "Nearby" feature. In that case, you knew where they were, but you probably didn't want to risk hypothermia to catch them. And by the time you put on enough layers to venture outside, those starter Pokémon were likely long gone.

Well, at least now that the Pokémon Go event is over, we're all back in the same boat — at least until Niantic's next big update.

More Pokémon Go news, tips, tricks and updates

Check out Mic's Pokémon Go tips and tricks. Here are guides on how to catch Gen 2 baby Pokémon, the 98 Gen 2 Pokémon that have yet to be added to the game, our analysis of post-update Chansey and Rhydon, everything you need to know about finding the long-awaited Pokémon Ditto, how to create new PokéStops, how to maximize your chances of catching Pokémon and how PokéStops distribute Pokémon eggs.