5 things Pokemon GO players should keep in mind before using Master Ball

In a blog post on May 16, 2023, Niantic announced to Pokemon GO's community that the Master Ball would be making its arrival to the mobile title at long last. According to the post, the Master Ball will be available on May 22, 2023, and can be accessed via a free research story for Professor Willow. This high-performance Poke Ball has the ability to catch any Pokemon without a chance of failure.

Considering how many creatures in Pokemon GO are tough to find and capture, trainers have already been discussing how they would use their Master Ball. Some fans remarked that they would use a Master Ball on the Galarian Bird Trio, while others suggested they may save it until different extremely rare 'mons appeared.

Whatever the case might be, Pokemon GO players will want to take a few factors into account before using their Master Ball.

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Things Pokemon GO players should be mindful of before using the Master Ball

1) It can be obtained for free during the Rising Heroes season

According to Niantic's blog post, the Master Ball will be available on May 22, but the Special Research that rewards a free one will be accessible until the end of the Rising Heroes season. This should give fans plenty of time to complete the research for Professor Willow and collect their Master Ball.

However, Niantic may not offer the Master Ball for free after Rising Heroes concludes. Trainers will want to dive into the game and access Professor Willow's research to ensure that they get their superpowered Poke Ball.

Master Balls will likely be available after the end of the Rising Heroes season, but the opportunity to get a free one may not come around very often. Since this is the case, Pokemon GO players will want to use their free Master Ball wisely.

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2) Don't worry about missing the throw

When Niantic announced the arrival of the Master Ball in Pokemon GO, the tagline remarked that players would "never miss" with it. This allayed the dread that some fans were having, as they assumed that trainers could still miss their Master Ball throw and waste one of the most useful capture devices in the game.

However, community groups such as Pokeminers have managed to confirm that once players throw the Master Ball, a cutscene takes over that shows them capturing their target Pokemon flawlessly.

This should be particularly relieving for Pokemon GO fans who worry about wasting their Master Ball with a mistimed throw.

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3) Know your target

Since Master Balls won't likely be easy to come by in Pokemon GO, trainers will want to maximize the potential that they offer by using them to catch particularly important Pokemon. Tossing this perfect Poke Ball at random wild spawns would be a gross waste of it, so players will want to think about their target ahead of time.

Many Legendary and Mythic Pokemon have some of the lowest catch rates in the game, particularly the likes of Galarian Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno, which have a 90% flee rate after failing to be caught.

The ultimate decision of what to use the Master Ball on rests with each trainer, but they should have a good reason for using the ball on their Pokemon of choice.

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4) Raid bosses are technically exempt

Although any Pokemon can be caught with a Master Ball in theory, Pokemon GO's raid bosses are technically exempt from this rule. This is due to the fact that in post-raid encounters, players can only use Premier Balls to catch raid bosses after defeating them.

If trainers are hoping to catch some of the powerful Pocket Monsters seen in raids by using the Master Ball, they'll likely have to wait until the creature in question is made available through other means like Team GO Rocket Battles or PvP before tossing the Poke Ball and securing the catch.

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5) Don't waste your berries

For newer players in Pokemon GO who aren't aware of how the Master Ball works, it has a 100% perfect catch rate. Simply fire this Poke Ball and enjoy!

However, many players have likely gotten in the habit of making Pokemon catching easier through the use of specific berries. These berries won't influence the catch rate where a Master Ball is concerned since this Poke Ball will always catch its target, so that's something to keep in mind.

Although berries like Razz Berries won't be useful when a Master Ball is being used, Pokemon GO trainers can still technically use the likes of Pinap Berries to increase the candy obtained after the Master Ball catches its target.