Pokemon Go is a popular Pokemon game created for mobile devices and based on Augmented Reality. Although it may not attract infamous, hardcore cheats like aimbots, ESP, or wall hacks, many users indulge in unfair activities like location spoofing, sharing accounts, or traveling at very fast speeds. Such activities are against Niantic’s terms. Using third-party applications with Pokemon Go opens your account to events like ban waves, where you may also end up losing your account permanently. Let’s face it; a game is enjoyable only when everyone practices fair policies. As it happens, it isn’t easy for Niantic to keep Pokemon Go free of “hackers”. Result? The majorly reported 2021 Pokemon Go Ban Wave, which unintentionally banned thousands of legit accounts.
With 2022’s first quarter coming to an end, fans are wondering whether a 2022 ban wave in Pokemon Go already happened. Well, no – the ban wave for 2022 didn’t happen yet. It’s obvious that Niantic doesn’t want to make the same mistakes again. So, we do expect things to go well this time. Pokemon Go features a three-warning ban policy – you won’t get banned immediately upon breaking rules. Keep reading to know more about how Pokemon Go bans work and when the 2022 ban wave is expected to happen.
What is Niantic’s Three Strike Policy?
According to Niantic, a player is entitled to receive up to three warnings, before his/her account gets banned permanently. The third warning is the last blow, while the first and the second warning only soft bans or suspends the account. Soft bans consist of light restrictions, limiting you from locating rare Pokemons or catching them [they will flee immediately]. Soft bans are also known as shadowbans and last up to 7 days, after which the account will be restored to normalcy. If the player commits a violation again, he/she may receive a second warning. This time, the account will be suspended for up to 30 days. During the suspension, you will not be able to log into your Pokemon Go account or play the game. But once the suspension period is over, your account will return to normal.
If the player still decides to abuse the rules, Niantic will issue a complete termination of his/her account. After complete termination, a player will not be able to access his/her account permanently. As you can see, Niantic has a pretty strict policy. Abiding by it may be the best idea if you don’t want to lose your account.
When will Pokemon Go Ban Wave happen in 2022?
As there are no reports regarding this year’s ban wave in Pokemon Go, we all have to depend on speculations and some predictions. The 2021 ban wave reportedly happened in July 2021. The 2020 ban wave, triggered in June 2020, may also be taken into consideration in this prediction. By data, Pokemon Go usually undergoes a ban wave during mid-year. We can probably expect this year’s ban wave in June/July/August 2022. Singular bans happen all over the year, where cheater accounts are wiped from Go’s servers. However, the ban wave is mostly targeted at bot accounts. But, players can receive a ban even during a wave, if violating policies.
Also Read: How to catch Ditto in Pokemon Go (2022) & Ditto disguise list
It is said that once you have connected a third-party app like PGSharp to your Pokemon Go account, your account will immediately become vulnerable to bans/restrictions. So, don’t be under the impression that your account is safe if you haven’t received any warning notifications over a few months. We recommend not indulging in any kind of spoofing/cheating/exploiting activities on Pokemon Go, to avoid sudden bans or losing your account in ban waves. You can also check out Niantic’s Terms of Service Document here.
If you feel that your account has been banned without any reason, you could always report a false ban to Niantic. If found innocent, Niantic will restore your account. Pokemon Go’s ban waves aren’t accurate; players heavily criticized both the 2020 and 2021 events. 2022’s ban wave may also follow the same path, according to experts. But rest assured that if you haven’t violated any policy, Niantic will restore your account. Make sure to submit an appeal!
