'Pokémon Go' Players Can Compete in An Official League in 2020 With 'Pokémon Go League'

"Pokémon Go" developer Niantic announced that it is working on a new competitive league for players in 2020.

In a recent blog post, Niantic detailed plans to launch the PvP (player versus player) league next year called the Go Battle League. As part of the new competitive play option, players can earn entry into the league simply by walking, which is already a major component of the mobile game as players must take to the real world to discover and capture new Pokémon.

The Go Battle League's matchmaking system will operate on a global scale instead of a local one, however, meaning that players looking to challenge other trainers would no longer be relegated to competing only against those in their immediate vicinity. That's one of the game's current pitfalls, as players are forced to interact only with objects, Pokémon, and other trainers close to them on the game's world map.

The way the new system works would instead allow players from all locations globally to potentially match up with other trainers the same way the "Pokémon" core games on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS currently do. In this, "Pokémon Go" would be well on its way to become a fully-fledged mobile alternative to the console versions of what fans are used to.

The new league will of course come with its own ranking system, which will lend weight to the battles completed after matchmaking. However, Niantic didn't offer many details on how the system would eventually work. All the developer divulged was the fact that it hoped "this feature will make the 'Pokémon Go' battling experience more competitive and accessible to more trainers.”

Slowly, "Pokémon Go" has begun to definitively morph into a bigger, more compr,ehensive game than what it began as. What set out as a fun little novelty for "Pokémon" fans to enjoy when away from their larger, expansive entries in the long-running series is quickly becoming a viable alternative to Switch and 3DS iterations.

It remains to be seen whether this may be the next massive update to "Pokémon Go" or if Niantic has something else in store, but it should be interesting to see where the game goes from here.