Pokemon GO Accidentally Reveals Upcoming Legendary Dynamax Raids

Pokemon GO Leak Hints at Dynamax Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno Raids

A premature announcement from the official Pokemon GO Saudi Arabia Twitter account, quickly deleted, revealed upcoming Dynamax Raids featuring the classic Kanto legendary birds: Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno. The event is reportedly scheduled for January 20th to February 3rd. This would mark the first appearance of Dynamax legendary Pokémon in the game, following the September 2024 introduction of Dynamax Pokémon in general.

The Kanto birds remain immensely popular within the Pokemon community. While they've previously appeared in standard raids (including their Shiny forms) and the Galarian variants appeared in Daily Incense (with Shiny versions available since October 2024), this Dynamax iteration represents a significant new addition.

The leak, spotted by Reddit user nintendo101, suggests a potential boost to the popularity of Max Raids. These raids have faced criticism in the past due to difficulty and the requirement of large player groups (40 players). Whether these challenges will persist with the legendary Dynamax Raids remains to be seen. The inclusion of these iconic Pokémon, however, might incentivize participation.

The potential for future Dynamax legendary Pokémon raids is also high, given the Dynamax forms of Mewtwo, Ho-Oh, and others in Pokémon Sword and Shield.

This leak arrives amidst a flurry of other Pokemon GO announcements for early 2025, including: a Community Day Classic featuring Ralts on January 25th, a Shadow Raid Day with Shadow Ho-Oh on January 19th (offering up to seven free Raid Passes), and the reveal of Pokemon GO Fest 2025 host cities: Osaka, Jersey City, and Paris.