Pokémon Go's ticketed Las Vegas event marred by network issues
This weekend's ticketed Pokémon Go Hoenn Tour event in Las Vegas received a poor reception — literally — due to phone network connectivity issues which left many unable to play, and which developer Niantic blamed on unexpected overcrowding.
Reports of problems at the event surfaced early on Saturday, local time, as the in-person gathering kicked off. Tickets sold out last month, with some 50,000 players signed up to attend.
After hours of issues, Niantic stated that «an additional 17,000 Trainers without tickets joined us at the park», causing the connectivity issues in the area. «This led to Trainers disconnecting from raids, being unable to log in, and other issues with gameplay,» the developer admitted.
To combat these issues for day two, Niantic took the unusual step of telling fans who did not have a ticket to stay away from the area, to ensure a «smooth event» for those who did.
We ask that Trainers who do not have a ticket for Pokémon GO Tour: Hoenn – Las Vegas refrain from joining us at the park tomorrow, to ensure a smooth event for Sunday ticket holders and Trainers who have the Sunday Extra Day Add-On.
Regardless, further issues were reported on Sunday, and fans at the event reported experiencing continued network problems across the city of Las Vegas.
Niantic ultimately extended the event's gameplay on both days, and provided several smatterings of in-game items by way of an apology.
But for many of those who travelled to the city, it was too late to turn things around.
«Pretty piss poor really — game is still unplayable for us here, can't get into raids and then constantly presented with login errors when restarting,» one user wrote on the game's top fan reddit The Silph Road. «Map just going blank
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