The Mysterious Disappearance of EX Raids in Pokemon Go Leaves Players Wondering

By Carlton Murphy Last updated Jul 9, 2023

Players of Pokemon Go have started a conversation regarding a ‘forgotten’ feature and want to know where it is right now. Since Pokemon Go has been available for seven years, a lot of new content has been added to the portable monster-catching game.

Newer or improved features will eventually replace some of the content. When those old features are retired, some fans do miss them, though. Fans are now wondering what happened to EX Raids and why they haven’t been shown in Pokemon Go for a while.

Where did the EX Raids go in Pokemon Go?

The community’s conversation was triggered by a post on the Pokemon Go subreddit, specifically a topic titled “So did Niantic (and all of us) forget EX Raids existed? It seems strange to still have a function in the game that was removed. A screenshot of the EX Raid Gym notification was included in the post. For those who might not remember, EX Raids were pass-required, exclusive Raid bouts. Trainers had an opportunity to catch uncommon Pokemon like Regigigas by taking part in them.

So did Niantic (and all of us) forget these existed? Seems weird to still show in-game a feature that was removed.
by u/RegaultTheBrave in pokemongo

Regigigas’ EX Raid was the final one to appear in Pokemon Go in March 2020. Since that time, the game has not received any additional EX Raids. As a result, some players recalled the thrill of these exceptional raid occurrences. “Man, I remember going to the lone Ex Gym in my city hoping to obtain a Mewtwo, only to have it flee… Back then, the game had so much potential.

Others expressed some suggestions as to why EX Raids haven’t made a comeback. Most Pokémon that were once Ex Raids are now simply standard 5-Star Raids. One trainer remarked, “My first Deoxys was from an Ex Raid, and I obtained the others in regular raids. Certain Pokemon featured as EX Raid Pokemon have returned to the game as regular Raid Pokemon. In 2023, Regigigas made a recent comeback as a typical 5-Star Raid target. The more recently launched Elite Raids have partially filled the hole left by EX Raids. Whether Niantic will ever bring these Raids back is unknown, but it appears they may be a thing of the past for now.