Rejoice! Pokemon GO has resurrected one of its best activities

Published Jun 11, 2026, 4:59 PM EDT

Marc Deschamps has been writing about video games and popular culture for over a decade in various venues. Before joining GameRant, Marc worked as a freelance writer and editor for sites like IGN, Nintendojo, and ComicBook. Acting is one of Marc's oldest loves, but he also has a deep background in comics and movies. In addition to being a comic book writer, Marc is a certified Rotten Tomatoes critic who has reviewed films and interviewed directors, actors and actresses.

Pokemon Go announced that Spotlight Hour will return starting in June. Since its launch in 2016 Pokemon Go developer Niantic made a number of changes to the game, some more welcome than others. Mobile games often struggle to stay alive and relevant for more than a few years, but Pokemon Go continues to thrive ten years after launch. This 10-year period had some bumpy moments as players often clashed with the developers over the direction of the game.

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June 18 – Swinub (2x Candy on transfers)
June 25 – Wingull (2x Stardust on Catches)
July 2nd – Pidgey (2x XP for evolving Pokemon)
July 16 – Zubat (2x XP on catches)
July 23 – Eevee (2x Candy on Catches)
July 30 – Bidoof (2x Candy on transfers)

Spotlight Hours used to be offered weekly before the feature was temporarily discontinued in March. Pokemon Go brought back Spotlight Hours in April, but only as part of an event where they took place daily and lacked bonuses. Niantic is now restoring Spotlight Hours to their former glory, with weekly events starting on June 18th. This also means that Spotlight Hours will move to Thursdays, rather than the traditional Tuesdays. Bonuses will also return.