Since the release of Pokemon Go, there have been programs that have allowed players to alter location in order to catch Pokemon outside their playable area. For many, this exploit angered most players who either did not know how to “spoof” or played the game legitimately. Trainers were able to battle gyms without leaving the comfort of their home. With each update, Niantic has attempted to eliminate fake location applications but has been unable to stop the spoofing. With the recent update to Pokemon Go, Niantic announced a new anti-cheating policy that will be used to punish players who fake their location.
Although not all players who spoof use it for their personal benefit, Niantic has instituted a three strike anti-cheating policy that is meant to deter many players from changing their location. These new policies will look to rehabilitate players rather than banning them outright using a successive strike system. Failing to change their actions will result in the permanent banning of their account per Pokemon Go’s Terms of Service. Below is the three-strike Discipline Policy:
Strike 1: Warning
Disciplinary actions:
If this strike is issued, you will see a warning message within the Pokémon GO app informing you that we have detected cheating on your account.In addition to this warning, your gameplay experience may be degraded in the following ways for the duration of the warning:
You may not be able to encounter rare Pokémon in the wild. These Pokémon may not appear on the map or on the Nearby Pokémon tracker.
You may be excluded from receiving new EX Raid Passes.
Duration:
This strike will last for approximately 7 days. After this period, your gameplay experience will fully be restored.Strike 2: Suspension
Disciplinary actions:
If your account is issued a second strike, you will temporarily lose access to your Pokémon GO account. When attempting to log into the game, you’ll be presented with a message stating that your account is suspended. You will not be able to bypass this message.Duration:
This strike will last for approximately 30 days. After that period, your account access will be restored.Strike 3: Termination
Disciplinary actions:
If you receive the first and second strikes and continue to cheat, your account will be permanently banned.Duration:
Permanent
If a player believes that their account has been wrongfully terminated, they may appeal the termination on the Pokemon GO website. Although Niantic does provide this option they seem very egotistical on their forum post stating,
If you believe your account has been terminated in error, you may appeal the termination. We will respond to your appeal after a complete investigation of your account. Please note that due to the high level of accuracy in our detection systems, very few terminations are ever overturned.
Although Niantic is looking to improve their game for the vast majority of players, this three-strike policy could deter some of the more seasoned players from continuing to invest in the game. Since this policy went into effect, I personally have reduced my hours on the game being unable to play it at home while working. Niantic’s Anti-cheating policy describes having multiple accounts or sharing accounts as cheating.
This last bit of no cheating policy seems like a low blow to players who have the inability to catch Regional Pokemon or trainers who have an alternate account supporting a different team. In the end, this policy feels more like Team Rocket trying to set strict guidelines on how to raise and trade Pokémon rather than a way to make the community better as a whole.
