The Pokémon GO community is currently sitting around waiting for the new Buddy System update to go live on the Android and iOS stores. Almost everything about the update has leaked from players using APKs to get early access, but those who have gotten it have found an unfortunate development that many didn’t see coming.
As part of this new game update, Niantic is killing all support for Pokémon GO on rooted/jailbroken devices. Here’s their official word on the subject:
“We continue to focus on eliminating bots and scrapers from Pokémon GO. Rooted or jailbroken devices are not supported by Pokémon GO. Remember to download Pokémon GO from the official
The move is an attempt to further reduce cheating in the game, as jailbroken/rooted phones can somewhat easily install GPS spoofers to warp players around the world, leveling up quickly, planting themselves in ironclad gyms, and so on. There’s also some thought that when Pokémon GO Plus comes out next week, rooted devices may be able to develop apps that trick/hack the device in ways that benefit players further, which would explain why this is happening now.
Still, even if the intentions may be noble, many members of the community are upset that this update may in fact completely kill the game for them, even if they haven’t cheated. Many consumers use jailbroken/rooted phones for personal preference or technical reasons, but they’re being lumped in with cheaters and effectively losing access to the game.
Niantic isn’t outright banning or deleting accounts from rooted devices, meaning if players play the game “legitimately” through all the proper channels, they will still have access to it, but for many, that’s more trouble than it’s worth, and they’re threatening to quit and never return.
Niantic probably did a weighted calculation about the benefits of eliminating potential cheaters and killing off a niche portion of their playerbase, and decided this was the right call. That’s obviously a controversial opinion not shared by many, given that many “innocent” players feel like they’re being targeted and punished despite not actually doing anything wrong. The counter there is that it’s Niantic’s game with their own TOS, and they can do whatever they want.
In the long run, this may not be a major issue, but it’s been an unwelcome surprise for a portion of the playerbase who was looking forward to trying out the buddy system, and are now finding they can’t access the game at all. It's possible there may be a few workarounds for this new development, such as programs that hide the fact that your device is rooted, but whether those work or not is still being explored as we speak.
I will have more to say about the buddy system once the update goes live, so check back shortly for that, which should hopefully be by the end of the day.
Follow me on Twitter and on Facebook. Pick up my sci-fi novels, The Last Exodus, The Exiled Earthborn and The Sons of Sora, which are now in print, online and on audiobook.
Why does The Walking Dead have such lasting appeal? Find out below:
