Lured Up - A Pokémon GO Podcast

Lured Up Podcast 395: Forward Progress Live Streamed on - 5/27/2026 Publish Date - 5/28/2026 We are less than 2 weeks away from GO Fest Chicago! This window of time is the funky period where some are getting ready to travel to GO Fest, while the majority of others are still ready to play and grind at home! We break down some of the details of the Chicago event as well as the Team Leader Summer Quests that we will have globally over the next few weeks. Being a live service game, Pokémon GO definitely doesn't have time to rest on its laurels, as Season 23 of the game has been unveiled. Forever Forward will be our next season, and by the look of the promotional video, Niantic is doubling down on their core value of exploration. From Trainers walking an adventuring, to images of remote Pokéstops, the game has positioned itself as a key motivator in keeping Trainers moving forward. We unpack what we know so far, and how GO Fest season will drive the first few weeks of the season, leading right into Global in mid-July. We also have our June Content Update, bringing back some Raid favorites like Necrozma and some Ultra Beasts. Frigibax has been announced as the June Community Day Pokémon, and we have a few events called out for the month. If IRL GO Fests are not in your future, there is still plenty to do in game and from home, which can be considered a long, winding road to GO Fest Global. We cover some random notes like the Pokémon Fossil Museum in Chicago and the release of Excavator Pikachu. This will likely be on all Chicago Trainer’s bingo cards for the weekend. Pokémon GO has once again partnered with 100 Thieves to release some killer Mewtwo merch. We are hoping to get our hands on it, and ultimately give it away to the community.  We also run through our announced Chicago plans so far, including our Podcast Community Mixer with the GO Cast Podcast and our Pokémon Pop Punk night. We hope to have even more news to share by next week, and GO Fest will be here before you know it! Finally we reflect on how it has already been a year since the Scopely acquisition. We discuss our experiences working with Niantic and how our confidence in their goals has only increased since Scopely came in. If their 1 year promotional video doesn’t get you going, I am not sure what will! GO Fest Chicago Team Leader Summer Quests Forever Forward Forever Forward GBL June Content Update Frigibax Community Day Pokémon Fossil Museum 100 Thieves Lured Up at Chicago GO Fest Scopely - 1 Year Later Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! Listen to this episode ad free on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/PokemonProfessor  [email protected] | Voicemail and SMS: 732-835-8639  Grab some merch: https://crowdmade.com/collections/professornetwork  Connect with us on multiple platforms! https://linktr.ee/LuredUp  Hosts Ken Pescatore Adam Tuttle Writer and Producer Ken Pescatore Executive Producer  Xander Show music provided by GameChops and licensed through Creative Commons ▾ FOLLOW GAMECHOPS ▾ http://instagram.com/GameChops http://twitter.com/GameChops http://soundcloud.com/GameChops http://facebook.com/GameChops http://youtube.com/GameChops http://www.gamechops.com Intro Music Lake Verity (Drum & Bass Remix)  Tetracase GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/ https://soundcloud.com/tetracase  https://soundcloud.com/MegaFlare0 Break Music National Park Mikel & GameChops GameChops - Poké & Chill http://smarturl.it/pokechill https://twitter.com/mikel_beats Outro Music Vast Poni Canyon CG5 & GlitchxCity (Future Bass Remix) GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/  http://soundcloud.com/cg5-beats https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity Pokémon And All Respective Names are Trademark and © of Nintendo 1996-2025 Pokémon GO is Trademark and © of Niantic, Inc.Lured Up and the Pokémon Professor Network are not affiliated with Niantic Inc., The Pokémon Company, Game Freak or Nintendo. #pokemon #pokemongo #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lured Up Podcast 394: That’s a Lot of Raids Live Streamed on - 5/19/2026 Publish Date - 5/22/2026 Video podcast now available on SPOTIFY! The Community is split on how they feel about the sheer volume of Raids we will be seeing during GO Fest Global. With 50 or so different Raid Bosses, Trainers were feeling like they may not have the amount of opportunities to Raid a specific Pokémon as they would like. Plus, with Mega Mewtwo only showing up at Super Mega Raid eligible Gyms, some min/maxers are a bit annoyed with the deep roster. This led to Niantic announcing that each of the rotating, 3 hour habitats will have a specific Mega and 5 Star Raid Pool. Even with this news, some Trainers are still feeling like the Raids will be overwhelming to manage, especially if they really have their sights set on Mega Mewtwo. Coming off the heels of successful Community Celebrations in cities like Philadelphia and Washington DC, Niantic is bringing a major wave of Celebration events across the globe. New York City is going to be a blast and both Ken and Adam will be in attendance on Saturday! It’s going to be an incredible day of gameplay and we hope to see you there! After the break we jump into some gameplay including Community Day Classic: Deino and the upcoming Falinks Super Mega Raid Day.For the latter, we put together a little Raid Guide and Battle Party, with a flying spec Mega Rayquaza coming in as the best counter. Be sure to tag us on social using #BattleParty so we can see what you are bringing, as well as your best catches! Looking ahead in the calendar we have a trio of weekly events being announced with the Team Leader Summer Quests. We will see events run through the IRL Go Fest window, each themed around a different Team Leader with different spawn pools for each. One thing worth noting is that the first of the three events takes place in what many presumed was another event-less week in May, but, SURPRISE! Niantic has blocked out the week, which reminds us of how great it can be when the game can actually surprise us. Sometimes, it’s better to not know all the information up front! GO Hub: GO Fest Global Raids GO Fest Global: Community Celebration Community Day Classic: Deino Falinks Super Mega Raid Day GO Hub Mega Falinks Pokebattler Mega Falinks Team Leader Summer Quests Listen to this episode ad free on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/PokemonProfessor  [email protected] | Voicemail and SMS: 732-835-8639  Grab some merch: https://crowdmade.com/collections/professornetwork  Connect with us on multiple platforms! https://linktr.ee/LuredUp  Hosts Ken Pescatore Adam Tuttle Writer and Producer Ken Pescatore Executive Producer  Xander Show music provided by GameChops and licensed through Creative Commons ▾ FOLLOW GAMECHOPS ▾ http://instagram.com/GameChops http://twitter.com/GameChops http://soundcloud.com/GameChops http://facebook.com/GameChops http://youtube.com/GameChops http://www.gamechops.com Intro Music Lake Verity (Drum & Bass Remix)  Tetracase GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/ https://soundcloud.com/tetracase  https://soundcloud.com/MegaFlare0 Break Music National Park Mikel & GameChops GameChops - Poké & Chill http://smarturl.it/pokechill https://twitter.com/mikel_beats Outro Music Vast Poni Canyon CG5 & GlitchxCity (Future Bass Remix) GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/  http://soundcloud.com/cg5-beats https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity Pokémon And All Respective Names are Trademark and © of Nintendo 1996-2025 Pokémon GO is Trademark and © of Niantic, Inc.Lured Up and the Pokémon Professor Network are not affiliated with Niantic Inc., The Pokémon Company, Game Freak or Nintendo. #pokemon #pokemongo #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lured Up Podcast 393 Live Streamed on - 5/5/2026 Publish Date - 5/8/2026 Listen to this episode ad free on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/PokemonProfessor  We are very excited to welcome LandorAlpha back to the show! We have known Joe for many years and have been a major fan of his from the beginning. His dedication to creating content that combines entertainment and information with incredible production value and a positive focus has earned him the respect of many core Trainers in the community. He covers the game with a positive lens, focusing on gameplay, community, and of course, the grind. We start of by learning about his approach to content, and how he has recently added a community focus to his gameplay experiences, which in our opinion, is the perfect compliment to his content style. Capturing the community experience, along with creating memories off camera, brings an organic feel and a relatable perspective. Like us, Lando feels that the future of this game is in the hands of new Trainers, which is why being there to foster a great experience is so important. You wouldn’t expect it after watching some LandorAlpha content, but he is creating part time, as he still works full time outside of his content. This brings a unique motive and workflow that makes you think and consider things differently. When TikTok was off the app store for a few days, it was a direct blow to his content. This created an epiphany of understanding that while you may be creating the content, it is the platform that holds all the chips.  Enter, Spawn Point, LandorAlpha’s weekly Pokémon GO Newsletter. A project that not only provides valuable info to Trainers worldwide, but one that is completely owned an operated by Joe. This security is important and shows the street smart approach to protecting content. We relate to this and admire how he has rolled this project out, making it exceptionally easy for Trainers to sign up. The newsletters provide complete game and event information for the week, while also aggregating all relevant and important links in a single place. After the break we talk GO Fest and how the IRL experience is like no other. Looking back on some of our favorite GO Memories and GO Fest stories. We rate our favorite park and city experience cities, and start the hype train for Chicago.  Make sure you connect with LandorAlpha on all of his platforms, and be sure to subscribe to the newsletter! LandorAlpha’s Links - https://landoralpha.tv/ Subscribe to LandorAlpha’s Newsletter - https://landoralpha.beehiiv.com/  [email protected] | Voicemail and SMS: 732-835-8639  Grab some merch: https://crowdmade.com/collections/professornetwork  Connect with us on multiple platforms! https://linktr.ee/LuredUp  Hosts Ken Pescatore Adam Tuttle Writer and Producer Ken Pescatore Executive Producer  Xander Show music provided by GameChops and licensed through Creative Commons ▾ FOLLOW GAMECHOPS ▾ http://instagram.com/GameChops http://twitter.com/GameChops http://soundcloud.com/GameChops http://facebook.com/GameChops http://youtube.com/GameChops http://www.gamechops.com Intro Music Lake Verity (Drum & Bass Remix)  Tetracase GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/ https://soundcloud.com/tetracase  https://soundcloud.com/MegaFlare0 Break Music National Park Mikel & GameChops GameChops - Poké & Chill http://smarturl.it/pokechill https://twitter.com/mikel_beats Outro Music Vast Poni Canyon CG5 & GlitchxCity (Future Bass Remix) GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/  http://soundcloud.com/cg5-beats https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity Pokémon And All Respective Names are Trademark and © of Nintendo 1996-2025 Pokémon GO is Trademark and © of Niantic, Inc.Lured Up and the Pokémon Professor Network are not affiliated with Niantic Inc., The Pokémon Company, Game Freak or Nintendo. #pokemon #pokemongo #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lured Up Podcast 392 Live Streamed on - 4/9/2026 Publish Date - 5/4/2026 We spent some time with Ashlee the Artist to discuss the state of the game, different gameplay styles, and of course, Wayfarer! We did in to her history with the Pokémon franchise, and how a career in digital marketing transfers skills to content creation. Ashlee shares what her favorite ways to play the game are, and how understanding gameboard mechanics create a better environment for everyone to play in. The importance of Wayfarer is present in most of Ashlee’s content. We discuss how Wayfinders end up having “Wayfarer” goggles on at all times, and when out doing some standard grinding, everything can be a potential Wayspot. She highlights how a single Wayfinder can have a dramatic impact on a location. It speaks to how important Wayfinders are to the overall game board experience, and how more Trainers should get involved in the process. This episode will be the first in many of guests coming on to Lured Up this Spring! Stay tuned for more details and dates! [email protected]     Voicemail and SMS: 732-835-8639  Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! Grab some merch: https://crowdmade.com/collections/professornetwork  Connect with us on multiple platforms! https://linktr.ee/PokemonProfessorNetwork  Hosts Ken Pescatore Adam Tuttle Writer and Producer Ken Pescatore Executive Producer  Xander Show music provided by GameChops and licensed through Creative Commons ▾ FOLLOW GAMECHOPS ▾ http://instagram.com/GameChops http://twitter.com/GameChops http://soundcloud.com/GameChops http://facebook.com/GameChops http://youtube.com/GameChops http://www.gamechops.com Intro Music Lake Verity (Drum & Bass Remix)  Tetracase GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/ https://soundcloud.com/tetracase  https://soundcloud.com/MegaFlare0 Break Music National Park Mikel & GameChops GameChops - Poké & Chill http://smarturl.it/pokechill https://twitter.com/mikel_beats Outro Music Vast Poni Canyon CG5 & GlitchxCity (Future Bass Remix) GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/  http://soundcloud.com/cg5-beats https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity Pokémon And All Respective Names are Trademark and © of Nintendo 1996-2025 Pokémon GO is Trademark and © of Niantic, Inc.Lured Up and the Pokémon Professor Network are not affiliated with Niantic Inc., The Pokémon Company, Game Freak or Nintendo. #pokemon #pokemongo #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lured Up Podcast 391 Live Streamed on - 4/28/2026 Publish Date - 5/1/2026 Listen to this episode ad-free on our Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/PokemonProfessor  This week we dig in to an interesting juxtaposition in the Pokémon GO Community. It seems the divide between sentiment towards the game is widening. One one hand you have the Trainers that spend a lot of time on platforms like X. They may not have or do not engage with their local Campfire Communities so much of their PGO social interaction is actually para-social. This crowd has been sharing feelings of being unsatisfied with the state of the game. With monthly content updates going from a full disclosure of the month’s events to having as few as one announced, is festering feelings of boredom and stagnation. Talks of the game feeling dead and not exciting will show up in most PGO feeds on X, even without searching it out. On the other hand, you have exceptionally robust in-person communities with active Campfires and plenty of meetups. In NJ we are seeing meetups increase in both frequency and turnout. Trainers are engaged and active and the vibes are always excellent. So how could both of these completely opposite takes exist at the same time? On paper they seem as if they are talking about completely different games? There is plenty to unpack and we do our best to find validation where it is warranted. From a news perspective, we have a TON to get through as we speedrun through the May calendar. We have Entei Shadow Raid Day this weekend, followed by the Spring Marathon and Community Day Classic: Deino. Phalanx Super Mega Raid Day takes us up to GO Fest Japan, making this month still pretty packed with action. We also had some fresh news from Niantic about a new branching Timed Research that Trainers will get for free during weeks without an in-game event. Things like Skill, Exploration, and Raiding will all be options to pursue in this new Research. While we don’t expect the rewards to be anything crazy, we do think this will be a nice push to supplement some Evergreen Week gameplay. The big news of the week is all about  the debut of Mega Mewtwo at GO Fest. It will set a new precedent for split Mega Evolving Pokémon, which will soon require require specific Mega Energy for each evolution. We now have a ton more info about GO Fests including the rotating spawn pools by type during extended, 9 hour event gameplay days. Things are beginning to look incredible and we are still over a month away. We are so ready for GO FEST! Mega Mewtwo  GO Fest Global Updates May Content Update GO Pass: May Entei Shadow Raid Day Spring Marathon Community Day Classic: Deino Falinks Super Mega Raid Day Pokémon GO Map Play! Pokémon Orlando Statement Firestar73 Statement [email protected]     Voicemail and SMS: 732-835-8639  Grab some merch: https://crowdmade.com/collections/professornetwork  Connect with us on multiple platforms! https://linktr.ee/PokemonProfessorNetwork  Hosts Ken Pescatore Adam Tuttle Writer and Producer Ken Pescatore Executive Producer  Xander Show music provided by GameChops and licensed through Creative Commons ▾ FOLLOW GAMECHOPS ▾ http://instagram.com/GameChops http://twitter.com/GameChops http://soundcloud.com/GameChops http://facebook.com/GameChops http://youtube.com/GameChops http://www.gamechops.com Intro Music Lake Verity (Drum & Bass Remix)  Tetracase GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/ https://soundcloud.com/tetracase  https://soundcloud.com/MegaFlare0 Break Music National Park Mikel & GameChops GameChops - Poké & Chill http://smarturl.it/pokechill https://twitter.com/mikel_beats Outro Music Vast Poni Canyon CG5 & GlitchxCity (Future Bass Remix) GameChops - Ultraball http://gamechops.com/ultraball/  http://soundcloud.com/cg5-beats https://soundcloud.com/glitchxcity Pokémon And All Respective Names are Trademark and © of Nintendo 1996-2025 Pokémon GO is Trademark and © of Niantic, Inc.Lured Up and the Pokémon Professor Network are not affiliated with Niantic Inc., The Pokémon Company, Game Freak or Nintendo. #pokemon #pokemongo #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices