Pokemon Sun and Moon first global mission was a fail

Catching 100 million Pokemon is not a cake walk. Lesson learned.

At the end of November, the newest Pokemon game challenged players with the task of collectively catching 100 million Pokemon before Dec. 13. This was Sun and Moon’s first “global event.”

If players met the challenge, those who participated would receive 1,000 Festival Coins. Those coins are used in the game to purchase a variety of things, from leveling up Pokemon to customizing their look.

Since we have now hit the deadline, the game tallied up how many Pokemon players have managed to collect since the event started. The results are a bit abysmal.

While the English-language Pokemon website reported that “the first global mission goal was just missed,” a more realistic result was reported on Japan’s Pokemon page. According to a translation by Kotaku, the Japanese-language Pokemon website straight up said the result of the mission was a “failure.”

Just how far did we miss the mark? Japan’s site reported that just over 16 million Pokemon had been caught by players participating in the mission. Considering the goal was 100 million, I’d say Pokemon tried way too hard to sugar-coat the news for their English-speaking demographic.

Players who participated did not walk away empty-handed, however. Each player who took the time to properly register for the event received a “participation prize” of 100 Festival Coins.

Many players point to the registration step as a point of confusion for this global event. Many people did not realize they had to register on a website for their actions to contribute to the mission.

Next: How to beat all the trials in Pokemon Sun and Moon

The good news for Sun and Moon players is that there will still be global missions to come. According to VG24/7, the next mission may launch as soon as Dec. 27.

Hopefully the results of the first mission will allow game developers a chance to reassess either their expectations or their methods of communication about future events.