Bottle Caps have been introduced intoPokémon GO, but they’re the latest item locked behind a high pay wall, setting up a lot of potential frustration. AsPokémon GOapproaches a decade-long lifespan, it’s continued to push the boundaries in recent years, but many of the new features have not gone down well with the community. This includesthe introduction of Dynamax Battles in 2025, with an incredibly high difficulty threshold making them nearly impossible. However, the biggest frustration for many players is the ever-increasing paid element ofPokémon GO.
One major update toPokémon GOin the last 12 months wasthe introduction of a GO Pass, similar to the many season passes we now see in live online titles. This sees players earn continuous rewards throughout the season, depending on how many points they earn from tasks such as catching Pokémon, hatching eggs, or winning raids. However, from the Ancients Recovered event next week, one of the rewards will be Bottle Caps, and these won’t be available to players who aren’t paying.
What Is The Bottle Cap In Pokémon GO
The Latest High-Priced Item
Introduced into the mainline series in Generation 7, Gold and Silver Bottle Caps changed everything in relation to training Pokémon.Bottle caps are used for a method called Hyper Training, allowing you to max out the IVs in relation to one individual Pokémon’s stats, saving the time of having to train them. While Silver Bottle Caps may be introduced in the future, only Gold Bottle Caps are being released so far inPokémon GO. This would allow trainers to max out all of their stats for that Pokémon.
During the Ancients Recovered event, you will only be able to earn one Bottle Cap.
While we need to wait to see them in action inPokémon GO,what we do know is thatthey will be released in a similar vein to other items like Master Balls, where you will only be able to receive one during certain events. In addition, once you have picked which Pokémon you want to use it on, you will be able to start Hyper Training. This will involve completing certain in-game tasks, based on which stat it will improve. You will only be able to use this method with Pokémon that have a Good Buddy rating or higher.
You need to act quickly though, as if you do earn a Gold Bottle Cap, it will expire on Sunday, June 05, 2025, so you need to have given it to a Pokémon before then. However, once you have done this, you will get a year to complete your Hyper Training. It sounds like a good incentive for players to pay for the Deluxe Pass, butit continues a worrying trend inPokémon GO.
Why The Bottle Cap Takes Paid Element Of Pokémon GO Too Far
The Highest Price We Have Seen In Pokémon GO So Far
The only problem is that there are two levels of GO Pass, a free one anda paid one that costs $19.99 or the equivalent local currency, with the Bottle Caps rewards being locked on the deluxe paid option. Throughout the years,there have been a huge number of controversial paid elements added toPokémon GO, but this feels different. In-game coin prices have been an issue from day one, the ever-growing constant stream of ticketed elements, and, most recently, the huge increase that players saw inthe coin value of remote raid passes, essentially increasing their real-world price.
No Shadow Pokémon will be eligible for Hyper Training with Bottle Caps.
As a player since day one,I can recognize the need for events such asPokémon GOFest to be paid, as a one-off, but the price tag that is in front of Bottle Caps seems extremely excessive. The Deluxe pass had previously been either $7.99 or $14.99, local currency dependent, which is already pretty steep considering the rewards on offer.
However,this is a big jump to $19.99, which you will have to pay to have a chance of getting your hands on a Bottle Cap. The chances of catching a 100% IV Pokémon in the wild are so rare that some will say it justifies the price, but most casual players will simply not do it.
What Bottle Cap Could Mean For The Future Of Pokémon GO
Will The Costs Continue To Rise?
The Bottle Cap is designed to be a unique item and, like others that are rare,will only appear in the game on special occasions.This makes the price of $19.99 for a Deluxe pass feel like a one-off, but it shouldn’t be seen this way. If it is a success and people do buy it, there will be a cry for more opportunities to get hold of the item on a more regular basis.
The Bottle Cap is the latest item to make its way from the main series of Pokémon games intoPokémon GO, but newer generations have continued to introduce new features and items we have yet to see. With the launch ofPokémon Legends: Z-Aset for Switch 2 in November 2025, further updates will be introduced again, which are likely to come over toPokémon GO. Right off the back ofthe Ancients Recovered eventwill be GO Fest 2025, with another high ticket price for those looking to gain the most from it.
We have already seen the near-weekly paid event tickets become an integral part of the game for many players, and GO Passes are now already a monthly task, which resets and requires you to purchase again.
Ultimately,Pokémon GOhas continued to introduce new and different types of content for players since its launch in 2016, but as we approach its ten-year anniversary, more is being pushed behind a pay wall that is only getting more expensive for players. It’s not yet clear just how many players will pay for the Deluxe GO Pass inPokémon GOto try and claim a Golden Bottle Cap, but regardless, it’s not a good sign for the future of the game.
