Lured Up - A Pokémon GO Podcast

Lured Up Podcast 388: Pokémon GO Anonymous Live Streamed: 3/24/2026 Publish Date - 3/27/2026 Listen to this Podcast ad free on Patreon! We jump head first into this episode’s deep dive as we explore some of the symptoms of gaming addiction. Pokémon GO does have some systems in place that make it difficult for players to disconnect. We discuss the line between being an avid hobbyist and someone obsessed or addicted. From not wanting to stop playing, to over spending, to neglecting responsibilities, having this game in our pockets could be a slippery slope. We also take a look at the topic of how the game has been heralded to have therapeutic qualities. It’s no surprise that this game can be a great platform to use while exercising, exploring, or in some cases, escaping. We look at how escapism and addiction can cross paths, by posing the question of how being locked out of the game for 24 hours would make you feel. For most of us, it would be a pretty rough day. We want to hear your perspectives on the topic, and encourage everyone to join the conversation. Let us know how the game makes you feel, and if you ever have concerns that you are putting the game ahead of your responsibilities. Our live chat did an incredible job of opening up and sharing stories. We would love to hear more of them. After the break we recap the last week of gameplay. We had the conclusion of the Bugout as well as Water Research Day this past weekend. The April Content update has been released, and we will be sing the return of many legendaries, but the release of a few new Pokémon. Will next week’s A Shockingly Good Time event satisfy our Spotlight Hour fix, or will the flood of Pikachu lose its spark a few days into the event? Let us know your thoughts! Video Game Addiction Hanke CNBC Interview 2019 Class Action Lawsuits Bug Out Replay: Water Research Day GMAX Pikachu A Shockingly Good Time April Content Update Sustainability Week Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! [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

Lured Up Podcast 387 - Clutch Your Pearls Live Streamed on - 3/17/2026 Publish Date - 3/19/2026 We switched up the show format this week as the community news was too good to hold off on discussing. Social media was on fire thanks to a hit piece style tweet from a non-credible source was viewed over 20 million times. It shared the horrors of Niantic building a network to train automated pizza delivery robots using data collected through Pokémon GO. The pearl clutching and fauxrage was rampant with so many feigned gasps of air coming mainly from X. We look at the actual article that sparked interest in Niantic Spatial’s dealings from the MIT Technology Review. We discuss how Niantic’s vision for a complete 1:1 digital to IRL map of the world has always been the goal. Could we have known that pizza delivery robots would be amongst the fist to benefit from the map? Of course not but it is amazing to see Niantic’s vision start to be realized. The VPS is an amazing tool and LLM that Pokémon GO, Ingress, and Wayfarer have always been a part of. Wayfinders and keepers of the Gameboard have been enthusiastic about being a part of this process. Anyone saying they had no idea that this GPS based game is tracking our GPS data is simply feigned ignorance.  We run through some wishlist ideas that we have for the game, where the gameboard and environment is the focus. From persistent AR instances to the introduction of HMs allowing you to traverse different terrains, the gameboard truly is paramount to our experience. The question is, with Niantic Spacial separating from the Niantic brand which was acquired by Scopely, will we ever see the technology behind the VPS be utilized in PGO going forward. Finally we recap the last week of gameplay including the Pokopia Event and Scorbunny Community Day. We have some new Event announcements and nao everything out on our Google Calendar.  Newsforce Hit Piece MIT Technology Review Dexerto Article Niantic Spatial VPS Pokopia Event Scorbunny Community Day Fashion Raid Day April Community Day Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! [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

Lured Up Podcast 386: The Highs And Lows Live Streamed on - 3/10/2026 Publish Date - 3/13/2026 The 30th Anniversary Event is a perfect example of how the changes being delivered by the game can impact Trainers differently. Even with the basic wild encounter pool during an event can be dissected in countless ways. We saw Legendaries in the wild for the first time, but super low catch rates and super high flee rates, the experience was soured for some. March has been really strong so far, and the upcoming events look to continue the trend. Pokopia, Scorbunny and the Bug Out will keep us busy for a few weeks, while Pikachu will join us at the end of the month. We are also seeing more GO Passes, which aren’t that much different from the amount of Event Tickets that we were previously seeing. We will need some month over month data to really determine how the shift has impacted our spending habits. The GO Memories campaign is underway and Niantic is looking to hear your best stories and memories made through Pokémon GO. We live for this stuff, and can’t wait to dig into some of the stories that are shared. Also, you can win an all expense paid trip to any of the three GO Fests! Be sure to share your favorite GO Memories with us! Finally we dig into how the game is evolving and changing with Memories in Motion. The Scopely Effect is becoming more and more noticeable, but we can’t tell what the Community thinks just yet. Multiple GO Passes a month sounds scary at first, but once you realize that it is the same frequency of cost as the now retired event tickets, you can see that the value is actually greater. We have PLENTY to unpack here! 30th Anniversary Event Pokopia Celebration Scorbunny Community Day Bug Out A Shockingly Good Time  GMAX Pikachu Max Battle Day GO Memories Monk’s Pub Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! [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

Lured Up Podcast 385 GO Tourist Trap Live Streamed on - 3/3/2026 Publish Date - 3/5/2026 The last week of gameplay has been some of the best Raiding the game has seen. With multiple chases and backgrounds, this week was either a collectors best dream or worst nightmare. One thing was for certain, and that was how both the Road to Kalos and the GO Tour itself were set up to accommodate spending. We both had a different approach to the event, but we both felt the pressure of spending throughout. March is shaping up to have some great events. Blogs have been released covering the next three weeks of gameplay. This comes after last week’s March Content Update felt very light on info. The 30th Anniversary Event brings an ambitious amount of Pokémon to the gameboard, with plenty of availability for Legendaries. After the anniversary event we get a one-two punch from the Pokopia Celebration Event and the Bug Out! The schedule may be structured, but it hasn’t slowed down at all. Details for each of the IRL GO Fest events has been released and Mewtwo and Zeroara are leading the charge. The event will switch up the habitat style for this event, and even offers a stand alone city experience ticket. If the Early Bird ticket sales are any indication, this year’s GO Fest is going to be sold out across the board. We end the show with a discussion about how the Road to Kalos trained us to be prepared to spend, only to be followed up with an even bigger weekend of Raiding. We discussed the Scopely Effect last week, and we think this may be another side of that coin. It looks like a future “Global” events could be increasingly more demanding on our wallets! Kalos Tour: Global GO Pass: March 30th Anniversary Event Pokopia Celebration Bug Out Festival of Colors Replay: Water Research Day GO Fest Early Bird GO Fest: Chicago GO Fest: Tokyo GO Fest: Copenhagen GO Fest: Global Ticket Comparison  Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! [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 1996-2026 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 384 - The Scopely Effect Live Streamed on -2/24/26 Publish Date - 2/27/26 Happy Pokémon Day! This episode is releasing on a very important day, and we hope everyone has an excellent time. Niantic has given us an incredible amount of information, not just about events, but about the new Season and some significant changes that are coming! We start with a recap of the last week of gameplay including The Lunar New Year Event and the kickoff to the Road to Kalos. If you have been feeling like things have been building towards something, you have been feeling correctly. We will be seeing major changes to event and scheduling structures, a move away from event tickets to GO Passes, and some fun QOL updates like the ability to catch evolved form Shinies in the wild. Memories In Motion will be the potential dawn of a new era, with all of the announcements kicking off with the start of the new season. ITL Kalos Tour gave us a preview of the new Mega System. Link Charges have caused a stir online, however we feel strongly that they are a massive win for Trainers as a no cost option to Raid.  The March Content Update has been met with mixed reviews. Niantic’s new strategy seems to give us even less news than before, which was already a sore spot. With the top secret debut of Mega Dragonite, it does feel good to be pleasantly surprised.This all feels very calculated, and we will keep a close eye on it over the Season. Our final discussion takes a macro look at the upcoming changes. For better or worse, the Scopely Effect is beginning to take shape. Is the Community ready to embrace the change, or will they form a resistance? Time will tell, and we are exceptionally here for it all. Lunar New Year Road To Kalos Early Bonus Road To Kalos New Mega System Memories In Motion March Content Update Scorbunny Community Day Stay up to date by adding our Google Calendar to your account! [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