5 things still lacking in Pokemon GO that fans would love to see

Pokemon GO has certainly introduced more than a few new features and creatures during the Season of Adventures Abound, but many trainers have been quick to point out that there's still plenty of work to be done. Some gameplay elements that have been considered the industry standard are still missing from Niantic's landmark title, leaving players a bit disappointed, to say the least.

Ask any Pokemon GO player what the game lacks, and you'll receive thousands of different answers. Still, there are some additions that fans agree would vastly improve the overall gameplay experience for them across the board.

Although there are countless improvements and features that could come to Pokemon GO, certain suggestions have appeared time and time again among community members.

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5 features or additions that Pokemon GO fans still want to see in 2023

1) Detailed stat readings

Pokemon games have offered detailed stat numbers dating back to Generation I (Image via Game Freak)

While Pokemon GO provides the ability to appraise a Pocket Monster and its IVs, otherwise known as the quality of its base stats, the game still doesn't display a creature's actual stat numbers. As creatures power up and evolve, their IVs are only the basis for how strong they can become.

Ever since the first generation of Pokemon games, trainers have been able to examine the current stat totals of their creatures. It's quite confusing as to why this hasn't made its way to GO, as it would be incredibly helpful for trainers who are sending their Pokemon into battle.

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2) Accessibility features

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Niantic made some strides with Pokemon GO's accessibility a few years ago during the COVID-19 Pandemic, such as improved access to Remote Raids. Since then, however, most features have been scaled back to pre-2019/2020 levels. For many fans with physical and mental disabilities, an overall lack of accessibility has been gutting for the overall play experience.

Niantic could consider adding simple accessibility settings such as a colorblind mode, UI resizing, button combos for certain actions, and improved functionality. Most mobile titles have these features by default, and it's incredibly frustrating for some players to have their experience impacted by their absence.

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3) Gym defender recall

Gym defense is sorely lacking in one particular area in Pokemon GO (Image via Niantic)

In most circumstances, Pokemon GO's gym defense system works well enough with one major caveat—trainers can't retrieve a creature that is defending a gym once it has been placed in one. This has led trainers to wait days, weeks, months, or even years for their Pokemon to be defeated before they are returned to be used elsewhere.

Since players have effectively lost their creatures to a single gym on some rare occasions, it's time for Niantic to introduce some method for trainers to call their gym defenders back to their side.

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4) Character customization beyond clothing options

Pokemon GO trainer customization simply hasn't lived up to the hype over the years (Image via Niantic)

While Pokemon GO certainly has a degree of character customization when it comes to skin, eye, and hair color and clothing, trainers have continued to mention that they still feel limited in how they can express themselves through their in-game trainers. Trainers still have the same haircuts, body types, and facial structures despite their differences in attire and skin/hair/eye coloration.

Niantic has introduced more comprehensive character customization in titles like Monster Hunter Now, so it's high time that more advanced trainer customization options make their way to GO. Fortunately, data miners seem to have noticed that these features are on their way, though a full release date is still up in the air.

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5) Batch Pokemon trades

Trading one Pokemon at a time is tedious, to say the least (Image via Niantic)

Trading in Pokemon GO works well enough for the most part, but when trainers have caught a huge batch of creatures after a big event, trading them can be a real pain. This is due to the fact that players can only trade Pokemon one at a time, which is a fairly slow process that includes multiple animations.

This may be something of a pipe dream, considering batch trading hasn't even been seen in the mainline Pokemon games, but trainers would save an immense amount of time trading if they could move multiple creatures at once with their friends in a single transaction.