Last night Pokémon Go celebrated its 10th anniversary by fulfilling the final promise of the game’s original trailer: giving players the chance to battle Mewtwo in Times Square.
Even before the event began, there were already rumours that Mewtwo’s appearance might be the surprise Scopely Explore – the developer and publisher of Pokémon Go, formally called Niantic Labs – had been promising attendees. Not only had the 10th anniversary art been a bit of a give away, but why else would the Mewtwo in the Shibuya Pokémon Center vanish from its container? (The legendary Pokémon was even removed from the PokéStops!)
Yet, it wasn’t until Times Square went dark that Mewtwo’s arrival was confirmed. And I mean that literally, because Mewtwo didn’t just invade Pokémon Go, but the screens lining Times Square itself. Appearing in its container, over 1,000 players joined a community raid to battle together. Though, when the countdown hit zero, a twist revealed itself as Mewtwo Mega Evolved into Mega Mewtwo Y! (The best Mewtwo Mega Evolutionhttps://www.eurogamer.net/mega-mewtwo-debut-announced-go-fest-global-free-pokemon-go and that’s not just personal opinion; the Pokémon Go meta backs me up on this.) As players fought against this powerful Psychic-type, both their Pokémon and avatars appeared on the screens surrounding Times Square.
Players got the chance to battle Mega Mewtwo Y twice, raising and lowering their phones to make their Pokémon deal the final attack both times. In a fitting move for the Generation 1 legendary, a Master Ball (rather than the traditional white Premier Ball) was used to catch them. Best of all, however, is that the second Mewtwo was a guaranteed “hundo” meaning it has perfect stats. The perfect addition to any Pokémon Go player’s team.
I was one of those Time Square players and, for a moment, it was like being transported back to the magical Pokémon Go summer of 2016. When the shout of ‘Pikachu’ could send people running across a park, Flareon rained supreme in Gym battles and we all definitely didn’t go somewhere we shouldn’t have to catch a Dratini. There’s a special kind of joy in being surrounded by people who love something just as much as you do and I could feel it in that crowd. I also heard it when someone near me, “I’m never going to stop playing” when Mewtwo appeared.
A quick, boots-on-the-ground look at what it was like last night in NYC.
My favourite aspect of the event (aside from my hundo Mewtwo, pretty chuffed about that) was how Pokémon Go counted down the years since its release in-game during the lead up to the Mega Mewtwo Y raids. Each year the game has been live for appeared on screen where the Times Square event was being held; accompanying it were both raids for some of the legendary Pokémon and wild spawns for other Pokémon released during that year. It was a subtle way of looking back at the game’s history through the Pokémon themselves.
With the conclusion of this event, Pokémon Go has completed everything it set out to do in its original trailer. What the future holds for the game is yet to be seen, but in the immediate one Go Fest 2026: Global – the game’s annual worldwide celebration – will be held this weekend on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th July. The event will be free for everyone for the first time, with the highlight being the global release of Mega Mewtwo X and Mega Mewtwo Y.
