R 7/28: What’s Going on in Pokemon GO?
Bryan Lawver 
Something strange is happening in Pokémon GO, and it looks like it’s Team Rocket’s doing. Whatever is going on is being called “R 7/28,” and vague clues about it have been popping up for the last couple of day.
R 7/28 – The Clues
Things kicked off on Friday, July 26, when Pokémon GO users started getting unexplained notifications from the app, consisting of just the letter “R.” Some players thought it could just be a bug, while others immediately connected to Team Rocket, which just started showing its face in Pokémon GO in the last week.
That connection was confirmed a short time later when the Pokémon GO Twitter account posted a series of images all containing the numbers “7/28”. A lightened version of the first image, which read “R 7/28” appears at the top of this article. The other two appear to show Team Rocket members and a man who players are assuming to be Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket.
— Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) July 27, 2019
— Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) July 27, 2019
The most recent clue followed not long after when Niantic posted a stream with a countdown ending at midnight Eastern on July 28 (7/28). The stream shows a countdown clock, with laughing Team Rocket grunts occasionally popping up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkTNzBkyMHw
What Could R 7/28 Be?
Putting all that together, it’s clear that Team Rocket has something up its sleeve for tomorrow, but we’re not sure what it is yet.
Just before the R 7/28 teases kicked off, players repelled a Team Rocket invasion in New York City. Without warning, Pokémon GO players found that Pokéstops all over the city had been taken over by Team Rocket, and actors in Team Rocket garb even showed up to “vandalize” ads for the game and leave their mark around the city. Some players are now speculating that similar invasions could be planned in more places for July 28. Probably not with Team Rocket grunts physically showing up as they did in New York, but they could be showing up in large numbers in the game.
? Alert ?
? Alert ?
We’re hearing reports that #TeamGORocket has taken control of a huge number of PokéStops in New York City. ? Trainers in New York City, help us stop the spread of Team GO Rocket by defeating as many Grunts as you can. The world will be watching. pic.twitter.com/UTCyAKlGZp
— Pokémon GO (@PokemonGoApp) July 26, 2019
Another popular theory is that this is the kickoff of a new kind of raid battle, with players squaring off against a series of Team Rocket Grunts before taking on the head of the organization, Giovanni.
Whatever R 7/28 ends up being, there’s not much longer to wait to find out. Since Team Rocket is involved, it’ll likely be a good chance to find plenty of shadow Pokémon, if nothing else.
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