New Raid Bosses ‘Pokémon Go’: Update debuts during park event at Yokohama, Japan’s Pikachu Outbreak
The Yokohama Pikachu Outbreak is officially underway. Pokémon Go players have the opportunity to catch a Mr. Mime as well as various Pokémon from the game’s first and second generation, depending on what park they head to.
Players have also reported that new raid bosses have appeared in the parks where the Pikachu Outbreak takes place. Unfortunately, they appear to be a bit of a mixed bag. Here’s the list.
Pokémon Go Park Event: New raid bosses provoke excitement and confusion
In a thread on the Silph Road, a poster named crosswithyou shared an image of a special Houndoom raid boss. Since Houndoom is a good counter to a number of raid bosses, players got excited about its inclusion as a boss at the event. However as other posters quickly noted, Houndoom wasn’t the only new raid boss debuting in Yokohama for the event.
“So far there’s been sightings of Houndoom, Wobbufett, Pikachu, Ursaring and Piloswine as T4 raids appearing in this event,” wrote MrRandom10.
Players were thrown by the Wobbuffet’s inclusion most of all. The Silph Road post revealing it is posed as a question, as if the person posting it can’t even believe what they’re saying.
“Why, just why?” asked one poster. This was especially confusing given that all the raids at the Yokohama Pikachu Outbreak are four star, in spite of Wobbuffet’s somewhat paltry 7,000 CP. For the record, Tyranitar, another four star raid boss, has upwards of 34,707 CP. Almost five times that of Wobbuffet.
Pokémon Go Park Event: Wobbuffet’s inclusion in a Japanese event may make more sense than it seems
Most Western players of Pokémon Go are probably most familiar with Wobbuffet after it smacks them off the screen in a game of Super Smash Bros or as the fourth member of the Team Rocket Trio in the Pokémon anime.
However to Japanese players, Wobbuffet is slightly more pop culturally relevant. According to Wobbuffet’s entry in Bulbapedia, there are two reasons Wobbuffet might look and act the way it does.
“Wobbuffet may be based on the late Japanese comedian, Sanpei Hayashiya, who was famous for repeatedly touching his hand to his forehead while saying one of his trademark lines, ‘so nansu, okusan,’ or ‘That’s the way it is, ma’am.’”
Alternatively, Wobbuffet may be inspired by the Okiagari Koboshi style of doll that’s popular in Japan as a souvenir. So chances are good that Wobbuffet was included in the Yokohama Pikachu Outbreak because culturally it’s more significant in Japan than it is in America.
So if you’re glum that you can’t be at the Outbreak in person, at least you’ve learned a little something about why a confusing choice might not be so confusing after all.
More Pokémon Go news, updates, tips and tricks
Raids are here — and not just for ordinary Pokémon. Check out our coverage of the legendaries now in-game, Lugia and Articuno. Find out what went wrong at the Pokémon Go Fest in Chicago while you wait for the debut of the European Safari Zones in August and September. Finally, check out some reporting on the issues plaguing rural players a year after launch, how the game created a space for black female gamers and how Pokémon Go can continue to build its community.
