Pokemon Go trainers have the chance to complete Weekly Research tasks on a regular basis, but veteran players have discovered an irritating trend in their rewards.
By completing Field Research tasks, Pokemon trainers can unlock different items, such as Poke Balls, Great Balls, and Ultra Balls alongside helpful consumables like Rare Candies, Potions, Stardust, Revives, and Evolution Stones.
However, most of the community looks forward to their weekly encounter with a Pokemon – and their chance to catch it. Sometimes, rarer Pokemon appear in these encounters or increased shiny odds are added during special events and themed months, which make them a big moment in the week.
Pokemon Go Weekly Research rewards have a problem
Some members of the game’s community have been studying their weekly rewards and have noticed one or two Pokemon, above all else, appear in the encounters: Furfrou.
On Reddit, a user said: “It has been weeks on end. Literally. And I know because I set myself a personal challenge to try and complete it every week in the year, and almost every single week, all I get is Furfrou – a Pokemon that doesn’t evolve, isn’t particularly interesting beyond its gimmick, and has a very expensive gimmick.
“Niantic, give me something more interesting,” they added.
Furfrou is considered to have an ‘expensive gimmick’ due to its multiple forms, each of which requires a significant amount of Stardust and Furfrou Candy to unlock. Unlike other Pokemon with simple evolutions, Furfrou has a unique form-change mechanic that allows players to change their trim (appearance) to various styles. Each form change costs 10,000 Stardust and 25 Furfrou Candy, which adds up quickly for players who want to collect all its forms. This makes it one of the pricier Pokemon to complete in the game.
Each form is available in different regions, too. Here’s how to get all of Furfrou’s forms in Pokemon Go.
Is this affecting other players?
It’s unclear as to whether Furfrou is the only Pokemon players on iOS or Android are annoyed by. However, it appears many trainers do have an issue with repeat Pokemon that appear over options they are still trying to hunt down.
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“Lol, this is how my weekly rewards have been going for, no joke, the last 7 weeks,” one player responded. “You’ve completed your 7 days of research tasks here is: 20 PokeBalls 2000 stardust 3000 XP Encounter with Furfrou or Jangmo-o (0 3-stars for both in this timeframe).”
A second user said: “Mines been Mr Mime for the last 4-5 weeks. I remember when you could get Legendaries in the weekly. That’s where my first shiny Groudon came from, and my Shundo Ho-oh. Those were the good old days.”
Another replied: “I remember when they gave legendaries,” noting Niantic’s change to put Legendaries in Go Battle League being a negative move for the weekly rewards.
Mr Mime does seem to be a Pokemon that’s mentioned a lot in regards to these rewards, but it does look like each player has that one monster who just won’t leave them alone. Others were luckier, and managed to encounter their shiny form!
How Weekly Research rewards work
Weekly Research rewards in Pokemon Go are earned by completing a Field Research task each day. After seven days, you’ll receive a Research Breakthrough, which can include rare Pokemon, items, and other rewards.
Simply complete one task per day to fill your progress stamp card. These rewards reset every Monday at 1:00 PM PT, so if you miss a day, don’t worry – just catch up before the week’s end to claim your breakthrough.
Weekly Research Breakthroughs sometimes feature rare Pokemon with boosted appearance rates, and certain shinies may also have increased odds during specific weeks. This can make Research Breakthroughs a valuable opportunity to catch elusive or shiny Pokemon that are harder to find in the wild.
Based on this player’s experience, you will be catching a Furfrou in no time…
