Pokémon Go Tour is finally here, and Niantic is giving fans a set of free research tasks to begin the celebrations. This time, the name of the game is Fairy.

With the Very Fairy Timed Research, you'll receive a Sylveon encounter for completing all the research, as well as a few other Fairy-type species for each specific stage. There are only four stages to this research pass, and you'll have only until March 2 to complete it.

How to get the Very Fairy Timed Research in Pokémon Go

To start the Very Fairy research, head to the Pokémon Go Web Store to redeem the following code:

• TH4NKY0UF41RYMUCH

You'll need to log in to your account before claiming the research code. Once you've done so, a pop-up in the Pokemon Go app will inform you that the code has been redeemed. The quests and their rewards will then appear in theEvents tab, at the bottom of the page, since this is Timed Research tied to an event, not a Special Research task.

All Very Fairy Research Tasks

Below are all the Very Fairy tasks you'll need to complete, as well as the rewards for finishing each one. Be sure to complete all the following requirements before March 2 at 12am your local time, which is when the event will end.

Step 1

Requirement	Reward
Use an Incense	682 Experience
Earn 6 hearts with your buddy	10 Spritzee Candy

Reward: A Spritzee encounter, and one Incense

Step 2

Requirement	Reward
Use 26 berries to help catch Pokémon	684 Experience
Earn 6 hearts with your buddy	10 Swirlix Candy

Reward: A Swirlix encounter, and one Golden Razz Berry

Step 3

Requirement	Reward
Send 26 gifts with a sticker attached	702 Experience
Earn 6 hearts with your buddy	10 Dedenne Candy

Reward: A Dedenne encounter and one Silver Pinap Berry

Step 4

Requirement	Reward
Catch an Eevee	10 Eevee Candy

Reward: A Sylveon encounter and five Sylveon-themed stickers

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You remember Avowed, don’t you? Well, it’s now a full year old, which means it’s old enough that it’s time to finally decide whether you’re ever going to finish the game or if it will forever sit on your list of dropped titles. And Obsidian Entertainment is giving you a reason to return to Eora, wherever you left off.

The developer is celebrating Avowed’s anniversary with an update chock full of new features, and that update will be available across all platforms—including PlayStation 5. Among the features in the update are three new playable races and additional customization options, a photo mode, a new weapon type, and a host of quality-of-life improvements. It’s the game’s largest update yet, and the list of additions more than proves it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtoGSz4Kv1o

Originally, players could pick from elves or humans as their race, but now, they also have access to Dwarves, Orlans, and Aumaua. If you don’t remember what those last two are, think Yatzli and Kai. And luckily for players who already dropped a gazillion hours into the game, you won’t actually have to make a new playthrough to experience those three races; you can instead just change it through a mirror system.

Avowed was one of those games that I played but never ended up finishing. And it’s not because I thought it was a bad game by any means. I loved my time adventuring with Kai and Marius at my side, finding hidden totems, and sight-seeing around Eora. But as with any open-world game, especially one I’m grinding for work, burnout starts to creep in after a week of playing, and my resolve to pick up a controller once more dips lower and lower with each passing day.

But the latest trailer for the anniversary update makes me actually want to jump back in, and no, I don’t think it’s only because of the music’s catchy gun-cock percussion or rapid-fire visuals of Eora’s beautiful sights and scenes—though both of those things are pretty cool, if I do say so myself. In addition to the new playable races and weapons, Obsidian is adding a few new stat changes and custom difficulty modifiers, which allow you to tailor the game’s difficulty to your preferred playstyle. Plus, there’s the photo mode, and I have to admit, I’m a sucker for spending way too long finding the perfect angle and pose to make my characters look devilishly stunning.

So, what say you, Destructoid? Will you be giving Avowed another go, or is it one that’s better left in 2025? Let me know in the comments below.

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New season, new Pokémon to catch. That’s right, my fellow trainers—a new season will soon kick off in Pokémon Go, and a couple of species are making their debut in the mobile game.

Niantic unveiled the details today for the next Pokémon Go season, named Precious Paths. In this season, which begins on Dec. 2, a new evolution line from Galar will grapple its way into the mobile game, and it’s sure to pack a punch.

Clobbopus and its evolution, Grapploct, will make their way into the mobile game, giving you a new Fighting type to add to your collection. And don’t think we won’t have new costume Pokémon, either; Precious Paths will be live during the holidays, and Sudowoodo and Charjabug are dressing up to celebrate. Sudowoodo checks out, given that it’s a tree and all. Charjabug, though? Well, we’re just happy the little battery pack is getting its time to shine.

Additionally, there will be new Dynamax and Gigantamax Pokémon to catch. The Fighting types Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan are appearing in Dynamax Raids and will be joined by Gigantamax Meowth, the lanky long fellow who looks more like one of those inflatable tube guys you might find outside of your local used car dealership than the lucky cat it’s based on.

As with other seasons, the pool of Pokémon you can get from eggs will rotate out, with new species coming in. From 2km eggs, you can expect Smoochum, Cleffa, and Bermite as the newest additions. From 5km eggs, look out for Audino, Elgyem, and Snom as the highlights. Lastly, Beldum and Tinktaink will lead the charge for 10km eggs, in addition to a few others. I’m quite excited to hatch some Snom, given how it takes 400 Snom candies to evolve the sucker into the gorgeous Ice and Bug type, Frosmoth.

During Precious Paths, players will have a chance to earn a Master Ball if they purchase a Master Ball Special Research ticket for $7.99. Master Balls allow trainers to catch any wild Pokémon without fail and can be used during any encounter—even ones that would normally restrict you to Premier Balls, like Team Rocket battles or raids. The last time a Master Ball was obtainable in Pokémon Go was in October 2024 during the Galarian Expedition if you bought a Masterwork Research: Master Ball ticket. Since the item’s debut in 2023, players have had four opportunities to obtain one, making Precious Paths the fifth.

Pokémon Go’s Precious Paths season kicks off Dec. 2 at 10am local time and runs until March 3 at 10am. To view the full list of upcoming additions for the season, visit Niantic’s website.

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Get ready for a new adventure, Octopath Traveler fans. Octopath Traveler 0, the third installment in the JRPG franchise, has arrived with the confidence only a series this established can have, and it's welcoming back players who’ve been hungry for another epic HD-2D journey.

We're travelling back to the continent of Orsterra this time around, but the franchise doesn’t just return to its old ways and slap a new number on it. Octopath Traveler 0 is full of new features, companions, and collectibles to find, making for a gameplay experience that truly pushes the series in a new and exciting direction. 

In 0, you create your very own character instead of taking on the role of one of eight premade characters—a franchise first. Customization options are limited, but you can select your hair, voice, victory pose, class, and a few items to start your journey with. You play as a resident of the small village of Wishvale, which is tragically burned to the ground. That’s when the real story begins, and it’s one of vengeance and rebirth as you hunt for the villains responsible for the destruction of your hometown.

Set prior to the events of the original Octopath, the game is split into two main narratives: one to get revenge, and one to rebuild Wishvale. The first evolves into something much larger than you originally imagined, circling themes of greed, self-sacrifice, and companionship as you take on the role of the Ringbearer Chosen. You’re bestowed a powerful ring from Aelferic, one of Orsterra’s many gods, and you must hunt down and seal away other rings that have fallen into the wrong hands. Though the story’s pacing can be odd at times and some key players are introduced without much buildup later in the game, there’s plenty of twists and turns, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t audibly gasp at certain reveals or shocking moments. 

The narrative line to rebuild Wishvale involves gathering residents, erecting homes and shops, and decorating the town. It’s not a free-for-all, though; you have to progress through the questline to unlock various structures, decorations, and building areas. Certain residents won’t appear until later on in the questline, but their return transforms what was scorched earth and piles of rubble into a bustling town full of life. This slow build makes the storyline successful; it really does feel as though you’re rebuilding the town one house at a time. Your version of Wishvale evolves in front of your eyes, and it’s a heartwarming story of perseverance that you play an active role in.

Octopath games are known for their companions, but in 0, the teammates just don’t seem to end. With over 20 companions, you’re not just assembling a team—you’re building a small army. Just when I thought I was done enlisting characters to my cause, another one would pop up on the map, and by the 15th, I started to feel a little fatigued from my recruiting efforts. There are about two to three companions for each archetype, with a few new classes thrown into the mix (though these new classes are more like a combination of older ones). You don’t have to recruit all of the companions—or any of them, really. But if you’re like me and want to experience everything the game has to offer, you’ll be parading around Orsterra with what feels like, at times, a literal parade of people.

With so many teammates, you’re sure to have an A and B team, and likely even a C team. On one hand, this leads to experimentation with tons of different playstyles and party compositions. On the other hand, keeping up with equipment and distributing attribute nuts becomes a hassle. There’s also always going to be a character who’s under-leveled and ends up sitting in your reserve as your A team sweeps up. The Training Ground, a structure at Wishvale that trains up allies while you battle from afar, helps alleviate this issue slightly, but it didn’t prevent the constant need to juggle your companions if you want to make use of all of them.

Unlike other Octopath Traveler titles, very little of the main story involves your teammates outside of the core cast. Sure, they’re there to accompany you on your own travels. But most don’t have their own questlines, or the ones they do have when you first recruit them are very short. It doesn’t defeat the purpose of an Octopath game, but it deviates from the norm and could frustrate franchise fans who enjoyed the emphasis on companions. At times, it feels as though the only part of the game that retains the “Octo” is the fact you fight with a maximum of eight party members at a time. 

For the combat experience, you’ve got the same turn-based system, backline and frontline mechanics, weak points, and stats that influence your power or speed in battle. 0 spices up the formula by introducing a new weapon type and allowing you to mix and match attacks with the use of Masteries, equippable skills you can find around the world or by spending JP to purchase them from your teammates. The game also adds Ultimate Techniques, powerful attacks that generate slowly the longer a character spends in battle. If you enjoy the gameplay loop from the previous games, you’re sure to appreciate it in 0 since the core mechanics have remained the same outside of these few new additions.

What’s hard to appreciate, however, is the lack of difficulty, especially in the earlier stages of the game. I had battles where one character would singlehandedly mollywhop an entire group of monsters with just one attack while my other companions looked on. Roads connecting the first few towns where a third of the story takes place all housed extremely low-level beasts, and I found myself fast-traveling more often than not to avoid the repetitive and often annoying random encounters. But when I hit the later stages of the game? Oh, how the turn tables. Suddenly, I was the one receiving a beating, as all my teammates were one-shot. Perhaps it was my inability to properly distribute stronger armor across my company of companions, or perhaps it’s just an issue with the game's balancing. Either way, it was a jarring transition from earlier in the game, and suddenly I was grinding encounters and spending all my hard-earned Leaves at local shops to outfit my teammates in the best gear—gear that I had, up until that point, almost completely ignored.

What 0 loses in the series’ companion-first narrative focus, it gains in customization options. From building your team to altering your character’s look, 0 gives you the reins and lets you tailor your experience to your own desires. Now, don’t get me wrong, the options aren’t endless. I could spend hours decorating my town, meticulously landscaping and readjusting buildings to get them to look just right. But with each town level, you’re capped to a specific number of decoration items and structures you can have at one time, meaning you can’t just decorate to your heart’s desire. Limiting the number or types of buildings you can have? Fine, I get that. We have to play along with the story, after all. Preventing me from planting the flower garden of my dreams? C’mon, devs! While it encourages progressing through the game’s storyline and completing challenges to raise your town’s level and up the number of decorations, it’s still a head-scratching limitation. 

Town-decorating isn’t the only place where the developers pull back on the leash. On multiple occasions, the game gives you dialogue options in a quest. An NPC will ask you to assist them in fixing their problem, and you’ll have the option of telling them to kick rocks. But don’t be fooled—you don’t actually have a choice. If you reject them, you get stuck in a dialogue loop until you agree to help. Why game developers waste resources on adding this illusion of choice is baffling. It adds nothing to my experience if I choose to help someone when I know I’m going to have to if I want to progress the storyline. And if I reject them, skipping through the same lines of dialogue to get back to the original choice is no fun either.

Despite all this, I found myself hooked on this game for the several weeks I spent with it. With the first Octopath Traveler, the experience dragged on. But with 0, there was always something to do. Want to take a break from the story? Go hunt for some lumber to build your next house. Done tweaking your town to your liking? Stop by a neighboring town to pick up your next companion. You can cook, recruit NPCs to live at Wishvale, hunt mega beasts to fill the Monster Arena, or search for collectibles to fill your museum. There's plenty to do, and I never found myself bored while exploring Orsterra, even when my time with the game ticked past the 60-hour mark.

Whatever you choose to do, it's done against an incredibly gorgeous backdrop. If you’ve played an Octopath Traveler game, you’re more than familiar with how far Square Enix has pushed the boundaries of what it can do with pixelated, 2D graphics. The scenery is truly breathtaking, and there were plenty of moments where I stopped just to take in the visuals. How the development team gets that water looking so crispy or those snowflakes so beautiful is an enigma to us all, but boy, is it striking.

All in all, Octopath Traveler 0 is a delightful experience that offers something new to the franchise. Though it deviates from the franchise’s narrative formula, it’s worth picking up if you want a solid, turn-based JRPG experience. And if you’re already a fan of the series? Start packing your bags, friend, we’re heading back to Orsterra.

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