Pokemon Go Holiday 2020 Event Announced, Adds Vanillite, Shiny Jynx, And More

Pokemon Go's annual holiday event is returning next week, developer Niantic has announced. The event kicks off at 8 AM local time on December 22 and will feature a ton of festive activities and bonuses, including increased appearances of Ice Pokemon, exclusive Research tasks to complete, and more.

Throughout the holiday event, Ice-type Pokemon such as Spheal, Snover, Snorunt, and others will appear in the wild and hatch from 5 km eggs more frequently than normal. The Fresh Snow Pokemon Vanillite and its evolved forms will also make their debut in the game during the event, while Alolan Sandshrew, Dewgong, Jynx, Walrein, and more will appear as Raid bosses.

In addition to all the Ice Pokemon, a couple of festive costumed Pokemon will be available during the Holiday 2020 event as well. You'll be able to catch Pikachu, Delibird, and Cubchoo wearing holiday-themed outfits. You'll also have a chance to encounter Shiny Jynx in Raids.

Beyond the increased Pokemon spawns, there will be a variety of event-exclusive Field Research tasks to complete. These will lead to encounters with Cryogonal and Vanillite, among other rewards. Niantic is also adding some new holiday-themed avatar items to Pokemon Go's style shop, including a Greedent Sweater, Whimsicott Earmuffs, and Winter Coat.

Finally, Niantic will offer various bonuses during the celebration. Throughout the entire event, you'll be able to carry 40 gifts at a time and open up to 45 gifts each day. The following bonuses will also be available on specific days:

• December 22-23 -- 2x Raid XP
• December 24-25 -- 2x catch Candy
• December 26-27 -- 2x Star Piece duration
• December 28-29 -- 2x Lucky Egg duration
• December 30-31 -- 2x catch Stardust

The Holiday 2020 event runs until 10 PM local time on December 31. You can read more details on the Pokemon Go website.