Pokemon Go: What's the New Symbol While Catching Pokemon?

‘Pokemon Go’ is available now for iOS and Android devices. (Nintendo)

A new update for Pokemon Go has just been released for iOS and Android. Among many other changes to the game, players will now notice new symbols popping up on the screen whenever they go to catch Pokemon. As usual, the game gives you absolutely no explanation for what these are. So what are the new symbols?

The symbols you see on the screen here are related to the game’s new catch bonuses. The way it works is that unlocking medals gives you helpful catch bonuses and makes the process of capturing Pokemon that much easier. The medals are associated with Pokemon species; catch a bunch of flying Pokemon, for example, and you’ll get a flying Pokemon medal. That medal comes with a catch bonus, and so the next time you go to catch a flying Pokemon, you’ll have a better chance of actually capturing it.

What appears at the top of your screen, then, are the medals you have that are giving you a bonus in this particular encounter. Take a look at the screenshot below via Reddit, for example. The player is trying to catch Pidgeotto, which is a normal and flying type Pokemon. That’s why the “normal” medal and the “flying” medal appear on the top of the screen here. It means that the player has the two capture bonuses associated with those Pokemon types, and they are currently being used to help in this encounter with Pidgeotto.

With this new update, players have an added incentive to catch Pokemon even if they’re low-leveled and even if they’re species the trainer has encountered again and again. For example, you might normally not bother going after a Pidgey. But now, doing so will give you points towards a flying Pokemon catch bonus, and that bonus will help you to catch high-leveled flying Pokemon like Gyarados or Aerodactyl.

In order to see how much progress you have made towards these medals, just go to your player profile screen, scroll down, and click on one of the medals. Here are all of the medals in the game that are associated with catching Pokemon:

Name	Description	Bronze	Silver	Gold
SchoolKid	Capture this many normal Pokemon	10	50	200
Black Belt	Capture this many fighting Pokemon	10	50	200
Bird Keeper	Capture this many flying Pokemon	10	50	200
Punk Girl	Capture this many poison Pokemon	10	50	200
Ruin Maniac	Capture this many ground Pokemon	10	50	200
Hiker	Capture this many rock Pokemon	10	50	200
Bug Catcher	Capture this many bug Pokemon	10	50	200
Hex Maniac	Capture this many ghost Pokemon	10	50	200
Depot Agent	Capture this many steel Pokemon	10	50	200
Kindler	Capture this many fire Pokemon	10	50	200
Swimmer	Capture this many water Pokemon	10	50	200
Gardener	Capture this many grass Pokemon	10	50	200
Rocker	Capture this many electric Pokemon	10	50	200
Psychic	Capture this many psychic Pokemon	10	50	200
Skier Tale Girl	Capture this many ice Pokemon	10	50	200
Dragon Tamer	Capture this many dragon Pokemon	10	50	200
Fairy Tale Girl	Capture this many fairy Pokemon	10	50	200

‘Pokemon Go’: What is the New Symbol While Catching Pokemon?

Now Test Your Knowledge

More Games News

{{title}}