Top Pokémon Go personalities fed up with exclusive Raid battles

One of Pokémon Go’s most popular YouTube personalities is taking a break from the game, he announced over the weekend. Pokémon Go streamer Reversal’s reason for the hiatus isn’t just personal — like many other players, he’s finally fed up with the game’s controversial exclusive Raid battle system.

“You know what? I’m done with this EX-Raid Pass System,” Reversal tweeted on Sunday afternoon. “Way to kill my motivation on this game. Taking [an] indefinite break from Pokémon Go.”

Frustrations with the premium Raid invitations have mounted over the past several months, as hardcore players found themselves inexplicably locked out of the game’s most challenging battles. EX Raids is the only type of fights in which players can capture Mewtwo, but with required premium passes doled out at random, even the game’s biggest influencers are left empty-handed.

Reversal’s decision to take a break from the game appears to be inspired by Niantic’s release of a new wave of passes, which he was again left out of. Reversal gave a cheeky reply to a tweet from fan site Pokémon Go Hub that asked if players had received an invite.

“Out of 30+ waves I got exactly 0,” he said, followed by a pair of emoji.

This is a common ratio for players who devote tons of time and energy to the game’s normal Raid battles. Although Niantic tweaked the system in November, following the first wave of criticism, to make EX Raids supposedly easier to enter, many top players still find themselves locked out of the party.

For Reversal to step away from the game is a big sign that the game may need some adjustments. The YouTuber has been an active face of the community since the game launched; he has more than 300,000 subscribers to his channel. Niantic has even sponsored the Dutch player and invited him to participate in events across the world, like Pokémon Go Fest.

Many other big YouTubers note that Niantic has “finally” invited them into an EX Raid in their videos, hinting at the difficult, random nature of the battles. Mystic7, whose channel has more than a million subscribers, also tweeted mockingly about the system this weekend.

“What’s an EX Raid pass?” Mystic7 asked, subtly hinting to his own bad luck with the invite-only system.

The majority of replies suggest players are on the same page as Mystic7 and Reversal. Here’s one that sums it up:

Confusion and exhaustion with the EX Raid system isn’t anything new, but high-profile names dismissing them marks a new low for the maligned feature. It may be time for Niantic to overhaul the invitationals, and stat. We’ve reached out to Reversal to ask about how long he plans to step away from the game and will update accordingly.