Pokemon GO players react to unexpected loading screen image change

Players are familiar with how Niantic changes Pokemon GO's initial loading screen art for certain holidays, events, or specific times of the year. This was the case with the winter season, where the developers put up charming art of Pikachu and Dedenne delivering presents to a player.

However, with the Christmas holiday over, and January in full swing, Niantic has made a small, but noticeable change to the current winter loading screen art. User MidwinterMagic on the Pokemon GO subreddit spotted the change and the community has now weighed in on it.

Alright, fun’s over *disrobes your Dedenne* byu/MidwinterMagic inpokemongo

In their post, the Redditor highlights the absurdity of Niantic making such a small change to the loading screen art, with many commenting on how they removed Dedenne's costume but kept the leftover presents in the artwork. If this change was made for the conclusion of the Christmas holiday, it would be odd for the presents to remain.

Comment byu/MidwinterMagic from discussion inpokemongo

This point was addressed by user More_Possession2871 and others as well.

Comment byu/MidwinterMagic from discussion inpokemongo

Many users like BGkitten have shared stories of costumed Pokemon being suddenly taken away after the costume event ended. For those unaware, this event brought holiday costumes for Pikachu and Dedenne, with them being available through Raid Battles.

With these costumed variants no longer being available to catch in Pokemon GO, Niantic likely changed the loading screen to reflect Dedenne's original in-game appearance, so as to not give the impression that its costumed form is still available in the game.

Users have made an interesting point regarding other creatures that were featured in this loading screen

User Affectionate_Past347 brings up an interesting contradiction to this point, as Corviknight is a creature that has been present in this loading screen artwork since its original release. However, the creature has yet to be available in Pokemon GO. Fidough is also seen in this loading screen but was released later on January 3, 2025.

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When is Corviknight coming to Pokemon GO?

There is no official word on when Corviknight is coming to Pokemon GO as of this writing (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Despite it being front-and-center on the loading screen artwork, Corviknight is not available in Pokemon GO as of this writing, and there is no official word on when it will be added. However, it may be safe to speculate that the Pocket Monster's arrival will happen sooner than later.

At the earliest, it could be a couple of weeks away, with Niantic intending on putting Corviknight's evolutionary line into the game before they replace Pokemon GO's current loading screen artwork. So far, only plans for the game until January 25, 2024, have been officially revealed, so it is currently impossible to tell when Corviknight and family will come to Pokemon GO.

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For more information on the game, check out the articles below:

• Ditto disguises
• Sierra counters
• Cliff counters
• Arlo counters
• Giovanni counters
• Team GO Rocket Grunts