According to developer Niantic, the update – v1.3.0 on the App Store and v0.33.0 on Google Play – also introduces a warning for people playing the game in a vehicle while travelling above a particular speed.
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Niantic also notably resurrects the battery saver mode on iOS, and adds a pop-up notification to remind Trainers that they shouldn’t hunt and drive. In addition to the “Sightings” window that all players now have, the new tracker also has an updated “Nearby” section that uses nearby PokeStops to show where Pokemon are hiding.
According to Forbes, Sightings works by “pulsing” the area around you every 10 seconds, which will tell you which Pokemon have spawned and which have hopped it somewhere else. At this point, you have to confirm that you’re not driving to continue playing. A bug that has plagued the game since launch kept despawned Pokemon in that drawer, leading players to hunt for things that were LONG gone.
A fix has also been made to show the correct Medal icons in achievements.
Pokémon Go stole the hearts of players around the world last month, but its popularity in the weeks since has seemingly waned considerably. Get the update from the Play Store and let us know how the new features are working for you. You can also change your nickname one time, so choose wisely.
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The initial versions had a “nearby” feature which showed the number of steps under the Pokemon to indicate the distance between the player and the Pokemon. Here’s one Reddit user’s report on how the update is functioning. That just gives you a general sense of what Pokemon are around, but the new nearby tracker is much more specific. Hopefully the game finally becomes stabilized soon, so they can start giving us those sweet, sweet legendaries. Also coming with the new update, are new images of the Team Valor, Mystic and Instinct leaders – Candela, Blanche and Spark, respectively.
