The February 2023 Team GO Rocket Takeover Begins In Pokémon GO

A shadow falls on Pokémon GO today as a new Team GO Rocket Takeover begins. This Takeover event will see the features of Crackling Voltage continue while we get an update to Team GO Rocket features, including new Shiny-capable Shadow Pokémon for the Leaders, Shadow Registeel for Giovanni, and entirely new Shadows from the Grunts. Let’s get into the details.

Here are the details for the new Team GO Rocket Takeover beginning today in Pokémon GO:

• Date and time: From Wednesday, February 1, 2023, at 12:00 AM to Sunday, February 5, at 11:59 PM local time.
  
• New Shadow Legendary: Shadow Registeel will be introduced as Giovanni’s new boss that must be defeated. You will be able to earn a Super Rocket Radar to encounter Giovanni and capture his Shadow Registeel starting with this Takeover and until the Season of Mythical Wishes ends on March 1, 2023, at 10 AM.
• Team Leader Shift: The Team GO Rocket Leader teams have shifted. You can now encounter the following Shiny-capable Shadow Pokémon through the Leaders
  • Cliff: Shadow Magnemite
  • Sierra: Shadow Beldum
  • Arlo: Shadow Nidoran (Male)
• New Shadow Pokémon: Alolan Vulpix, Spoink, Blitzle, Joltik, and more.
• 12KM Strange Egg Pool: Larvitar, Absol, Skorupi, Sandile, Scraggy, Pawniard, Vullaby, Deino, Pancham, Skrelp, Salandit.
• Takeover bonuses:
  • Team GO Rocket will appear more frequently at PokéStops and in balloons.
  • You can use a Charged TM to help a Shadow Pokémon forget the Charged Attack Frustration.

The features of the Crackling Voltage Event remain live as well:

• Date and time: Friday, January 27, 2023, at 10:00 AM to Sunday, February 5, 2023, at 11:59 AM local time.
  
• Shiny release with limited boosted Shiny odds: Shiny Helioptile makes its Pokémon GO debut. It will be in the wild, in raids, from Eggs, and from Field Research. Note that Niantic is setting rates to an encounter type rather than species. Helioptile is specifically noted to have a higher Shiny rate in Raids and Eggs. The only other time this was noted by Niantic was Noibat during the Halloween event.
• Wild spawns: Ekans, Magnemite, Grimer, Electrike, Stunky, Blitzle, Ferroseed, Helioptile, and Grubbin. Beldum and Dedenne will be rare spawns. Thankfully, Helipotile isn’t listed as a rare spawn so it seems we will have a fighting chance.
• 7 KM Gift Eggs: Alolan Sandshrew, Skarmory, Blitzle, Stunfisk, Galarian Stunfisk, Helioptile, Dedenne.
• Field Research Encounters: Voltorb, Hisuian Voltorb, Plusle, Minun, Emolga, and Helioptile.
• Raids:
  • Tier One: Alolan Grimer, Shinx, Bronzor, Klink, Helioptile
  • Tier Three: Venomoth, Galarian Weezing, Jolteon, Mawile
  • Tier Five: Registeel with Zap Cannon
  • Mega Raids: Mega Gengar