Pokémon Go’s new ‘daily adventure incense’ will make you take a 15-minute walk

The parent company to Pokémon Go, Niantic has been very clear over the years that it wants us to take a “stupid walk for our stupid mental health,” as the meme goes. This week, Pokémon Go is rolling out a “daily adventure incense,” which brings “rare” Pokémon to you, so long as you’re in motion. This functions like the incense item that’s been in the game for years, but you get one for free each day and it only lasts for fifteen minutes.

The augmented reality giant wants to pioneer what it calls the “real-world metaverse” or games and other apps that bring you out into the real world. Pokémon Go already incentivizes players to go on walks to hatch eggs, find new Pokémon and participate in raid battles. But daily adventure incense basically tells players that they can get rare Pokémon if they take a 15-minute walk around the block. This is especially helpful for players who live in rural areas and don’t have the luxury of opening their app to see several creatures spawn.

Pokémon Go’s definition of “rare” is a bit liberal here, though. Most of the spawns are pretty average, like Bidoof, Yanma or Rattata, but there’s a key exception. Some users have reported spawns of legendary Pokémon, like the Galarian forms of Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres (so far, after two days of adventure incense, I’ve just been building up my Bidoof army). These legendary spawns are actually relatively rare, and the Pokémon can, indeed, flee your attempt to capture it, leaving some people angry on social media.

But even if you don’t catch anything interesting, you still get a cute little graphic to share.