"This has to be a new low for Niantic": Pokemon GO player furious with 'typo' ban based on Wayfarer submissions

Pokemon GO has received its fair share of criticisms in recent months, and one player recently shared a pretty aggravating experience on the game's subreddit. According to the user General_Secura92, they were given a ban from the Wayfarer service for submitting "unsatisfactory" Pokestop requests for 30 days. However, the ban was actually 90 days long due to a typo in the email they received.

It's quite understandable for players to get upset, especially when such an egregious typo essentially misrepresented the duration of a ban. The fact that a typo exists in what appears to be a standard auto-generated email is also cause for confusion.

This has to be a new low for Niantic byu/General_Secura92 inpokemongo

Nonetheless, Pokemon GO fans in the comments certainly had their own thoughts on Niantic as it stands in 2023.

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Pokemon GO Redditors react to General_Secura92's typo-laden Wayfarer ban

Pokemon GO fans were just as confused and frustrated as General_Secura92. Players lambasted Niantic for banning General_Secura92 for simply trying to add a Pokestop to the game, while others shared their own experiences with getting banned or risking getting banned for submitting Pokestops and Routes.

One fan by the name of NoTransportation538 suggested that the issue had been occurring often in the Netherlands, as they knew another player who had been banned for a similar reason. There was no mention of a typo in the confirmation email, but NoTransportation538 suggested that players are better off not submitting Pokestop or Route suggestions for the time being.

Pokemon GO players decry Niantic banning fans on Wayfarer (Image via Reddit)

Moreover, trainers lambasted Niantic for issuing a typo in the original email that laid out how long General_Secura92's ban would be. They stated that given Niantic's immense revenue stream in the mobile gaming market, there's really no reason that automated email responses can't do the job.

Trainers continued discussing the lack of logic behind banning a Pokemon GO account for refused Wayfarer submissions since the two are technically separate services despite working together to create Pokestops and Routes. The post also opened old wounds surrounding Niantic's past controversies and perceived greed.

Fans continue to rip into Niantic for its email typo and previous controversies (Image via Reddit)

In fairness, no enforcement system is perfect for a game developer, especially in the mobile gaming space and with a title that has millions of players. Be that as it may, the ban leveled on General_Secura92 by Niantic seems to be particularly nonsensical, at least with the current information presented.

This incident is far from the first time the community has spoken out against Niantic's handling of player concerns and Terms of Service enforcement. Trainers have reported in the past that they've been banned for a litany of reasons. Some iPhone users were inexplicably banned for spoofing despite never having done so.

Falsely banned as a birthday present byu/kelbels720 inpokemongo

Hopefully, Niantic's customer service is willing to amend its mistakes in General_Secura92's case. However, it's becoming quite clear that some adjustments need to be made when it comes to how the developer enforces rule violations. Too many Pokemon GO players are coming forward with strikes on their accounts that simply don't add up.