Prepare for Pokémon Day

February is coming to a close, and that can only mean one thing: Pokémon Day is upon us! February 27th marks the annual celebration of Pokémon’s first video game release: Red and Green. Pokémon Go has something special planned in recognition of this day, so here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming event.

On February 25th, in preparation for the upcoming Netflix movie: POKÉMON: MEWTWO STRIKES BACK - EVOLUTION, Niantic has announced the return of Armored Mewtwo to Five Star Raids. Armored Mewtwo will replace the current Tier Five raid boss, Tornadus, starting Tuesday February 25th, at 4pm ET. Armored Mewtwo has appeared in raids before, but this time it will be returning with the powerful charged move: Psystrike. The return of Armored Mewtwo also lines up perfectly with the ongoing preseason of the Go Battle League, as this Pokémon currently ranks among the top ten best choices for both the Ultra and Master Leagues according to Pokebattler.com. Adding Armored Mewtwo to your team just before the start of the upcoming first season, could be exactly what's needed to climb up the ranks. Armored Mewtwo is only scheduled to be around until March 2, at 4pm ET, so trainers will have a limited time to add this legendary Pokémon to their team.

Also in preparation for the Netflix film, Niantic has announced that clone Pokémon will be making their first ever appearance in Pokémon Go. According to the announcement, clone Pokémon will be appearing in Four Star raids. There’s no word yet on whether the clone Pokémon will have any additional features like a special move or different stats, or if there is the possibility for a shiny clone Pokémon. In addition to Armored Mewtwo the new clone Pokémon will include Charizard, Venusaur, Blastoise, and Pikachu. Pikachu won’t be available in raids however, and the only way to capture the clone version will be use the games Camera feature to see if clone Pikachu shows up for a surprise photo bomb.

UPDATE** The clone Pokémon featured in four star raids will have their Community Day charge moves. Clone Charizard will know the move Blast Burn, clone Venusaur will know the move Frenzy Plant, and clone Blastoise will know the move Hydro Cannon.

During the Pokémon Day celebration event, certain Pokémon will be available wearing...you guessed it! Party hats. Pikachu and Eevee will be appearing in the wild wearing party hats, while Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur will be hatching from 7 kilometer eggs with the party hats on. The latter three will also be available in one star raids, with the chance that any of them could be shiny. In addition to the above mentioned Pokémon, a special raid day will be held featuring the two Pokémon from the original game cover: Nidorino and Gengar. The raid day will be held Sunday March 1, 2020, from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM local time. During the event, trainers can receive up to five additional raid passes at no cost, making for the perfect opportunity to add these exclusive Pokémon to your collection. Nidorino will be appearing in two star raids wearing a party hat, while Gengar will be partying it up in four star raids. Both of these Pokémon can appear shiny as well.

February has already been a busy month for trainers, with events happening one after the other. What better way to close out the month than with one final event in celebration of Pokémon Day!