New gameplay footage has leaked from the ongoing field tests for Pokémon GO in Australia and New Zealand. A nearly 9 minute video clip, uploaded by YouTube channel GAME Previews (embedded below), shows the player catching Pokémon, engaging in gym battles and more.
The video confirms that Pokémon are not caught by engaging them in battles, unlike the mainline games. Instead, players simply have to time their ball-throwing just right in order to catch the Pokémon they want. After catching it, the Pokémon is registered in the game’s Pokédex, and the trainer gains experience for a successful catch. Interestingly, it seems that the Pokémon will be overlaid on the device camera, i.e. in augmented reality, but this functionality can be disabled, rendering the Pokémon on a computer-generated grassy field instead.
Every Pokémon has two attacks, a quick one that doesn’t do much damage, and a slower, charged attack. In the real-time gym battle, we see a Magnemite going up against a Geodude. Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be much to gym battles other than spamming attacks back and forth. There also appear to be eggs, which can eventually hatch into Pokémon, while providing some neat experience as well. Have a look at the gameplay below.