Pokemon GOfollows the classicPokemongameplay formula: players catch Pokemon, strengthen and evolve them, and use those Pokemon in battles against other trainers. ButPokemon GOdoes just about everything else in a different way than the main game franchise. With real-world AR elements, step counting, and in-app purchases, it’s a much different game than its console siblings.
This mobilePokemongame also simplifies the Pokemon-catching process by not requiring a battle to weaken the wild Pokemon beforehand. This ease of catching combined with the area-based spawns of certain Pokemon types generally leads to trainers having a huge abundance of duplicate Pokemon that don’t serve a real in-game purpose.Professor Willowtakes care of that issue by offering to take Pokemon off a player’s hands in exchange for some rewards.
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Should You Transfer Pokemon to the Professor?
The process of transferring aPokemon inPokemon GOrequires a player to choose a Pokemon in their roster and request that Professor Willow takes it. In exchange for the creature,Professor Willow gives the player candy for that specific Pokemon type. For example, atrainer who transfers a Pidgey would receive Pidgey candy in return. These transfers are permanent, so once a trainer gives up a Pokemon, they can’t get that specific team member back.
Candies are extremely valuable inPokemon GO, which is why it’s a pretty fair trade with Professor Willow.Pokemon GOcandiesare resources that allow players to evolve a Pokemon to its next form or to boost its combat power, also known as CP. The candies are specific to each species of Pokemon and are hard to come by, so transferring Pokemon to Professor Willow is actually a fairly necessary part of the game.
Transferring also becomes a powerful resource duringPokemon GOeventslike Community Days. On these event days, one specific Pokemon will spawn in abundance around the world with an increased possibility for players to catch a shiny variety. Trainers who commit to playing through an entire Community Day can end up with hundreds of the same Pokemon by the end of the day, many of which serve no real purpose.
A common strategy is to identify the singular Pokemon with the highest stats (like CP and IV) and keep only the strongest and the shinies while transferring all the rest. This results in a backpack full of candy, allowing trainers to easily evolve the strongest Pokemon of the day and boost its CP sky-high. Additional incentive to use this strategy is provided by the game in that all Community Day Pokemon that are evolved to their final form know a special charged attack.
However, for the more sentimental player who cannot bear to part with a single creature within their collection of Pokemon, fret not. Transferring is not the only way to receive candy inPokemon GO. Trainers automatically receive three candies upon catching a Pokemon, or six when using a pinap berry.
Hatched eggs also provide up to 30 candies, depending on the distance required. Candy can also drop from in-game actions like walking a Pokemon or feeding a Pokemon in a gym.Rare Candyis also available as aPokemon GOraid reward, and this candy is a sort of wild card that can be applied to any Pokemon in the game.
Players unsure about making their first transfer can rest easy—there is no downside to transferring inPokemon GOas long as it’s a Pokemon a trainer is willing to let go of. While it is possible to stockpile candy through catching alone, trainers may find that without transferring, theirPokemon storagemay start to get a little bit cramped.
Pokemon GOis available on Android and iOS.
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