"We need to start a petition": Pokemon GO community demands return of daily of Remote Raid Passes

Pokemon GO's developers at Niantic have focused substantially on phasing out access to Remote Raid Passes since last year. They did so, citing the evolution of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the company's stances on encouraging in-person gameplay as opposed to a long-distance one.

Even back when Niantic began making these changes, Pokemon GO players were unhappy with the move for many reasons. It appears that now in March 2023, trainers are still bothered with how Remote Raid Passes are being handled, as indicated by a March 12 Reddit post made by user NarpusSwordo.

The player called for a community-led petition to bring back easily accessible Remote Raid Passes. The post's title read:

"We need to start a petition to bring back daily remote raid passes!"

Pokemon GO players largely agreed with this sentiment in the comments, but it appears as though Niantic may continue to drown out criticism.

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Pokemon GO Players Decry the State of Remote Raid Passes

Acquiring Remote Raid Passes in Pokemon GO has been made more difficult for many players (Image via Niantic)

Players leveling criticism towards Niantic's stance on remote raiding has become commonplace on social media, from Reddit to Twitter and beyond. However, the developers have maintained the course and stated that their intent is to bring gamers together in real-world raiding and gameplay.

However, this doesn't account for trainers who are unable to venture out into the world for whatever reason, including residing in a very small rural community and extreme weather events that can make in-person raiding dangerous.

In NarpasSwordo's Reddit post, Pokemon GO players confirmed many of the same complaints that have been found elsewhere. Several trainers also stated that if Niantic wanted to encourage in-person raiding, it should give additional rewards for close-knit raids instead of punishing players who prefer to raid remotely for personal reasons.

In addition to pointing out the same points of contention seen in other subreddit posts, courses of action for the problem were discussed. As pointed out by a few players, reaching out to Niantic via social media or starting a petition has proved fruitless in the past. Instead, many fans recommend not giving the company location data outside of the game by disabling GPS tracking while also denying them revenue by refusing to purchase Pokecoin-based bundles and similar items.

Unfortunately, as with many mobile titles, Pokemon GO is held upright by the presence of "whales," or players who are willing to offer up large sums of money to stay engaged in the title as much as possible. While a large swath of gamers refuse to pay for microtransactions or provide location data, it's unclear whether this would harm Niantic's bottom line or force them to re-evaluate their stances.

Unfortunately, the mobile title appears to be maintaining its current course. Niantic released a news article on March 10, 2023, doubling down on its "commitment to real-world play." In that post, the developers announced benefits and bonuses for trainers to raid together in person while also adding functionality to the Campfire communication app.

However, no statements were made on the availability of Remote Raid Passes, which likely means Niantic will push onward on making in-person raids the norm.

This likely won't go over well with fans who prefer remote raiding or are forced to use it due to environmental or personal reasons, but the criticisms aimed at Niantic appear to have fallen on deaf ears again.