'Pokémon Go' May Introduce Buddy System, Letting Players Walk Around With Their Pokémon, Finally Feel Loved

In one of the no longer canonical Star Wars Extended Universe novels, a newly Darth Vader’d Anakin Skywalker describes feeling like his connection with the Force was still there, but just agonizingly beyond his fingertips. Doesn’t that perfectly describe the connection we feel with our Pokémon in Pokémon Go? They’re there, right in our Pokédex, but we can’t hold them, pet them, love them. So close, but so far away. But that all could very well change in the not-too-distant future, as Pokémon Go Hub broke down a discovery in the game’s code that implies a sort of “buddy system” could be in the works for the alternate reality mobile game. Soon, your onscreen avatar could forge the same bond shared by Pikachu and Ash.

Found in a piece of Pokémon Go code, the buddy system would take advantage of the same distance tracking system used to hatch eggs and then will give players candy based on how far they walked with their Poké-pal. But that’s all the nuts-and-bolts gameplay stuff — what’s potentially really great about this idea is that your character would actually have the chosen Pokémon out walking around with them onscreen. The code suggests there will be four different ways for the game to display Pokémon — medium-sized, big-sized, flying all around, and on the trainer’s shoulder.

Hold up. On the trainer’s shoulder? Why should some lazy, good-for-nothing Caterpie earn candy based on our hard work (walking)? It’s like, does Caterpie ever wonder why it’s so soft and squishy? It’s because it never builds itself up, relying instead on the effort of others. I don’t respect Caterpie, and I never will.

And so, with Pokémon Go already losing millions of subscribers, will this new system be enough to keep the game at the forefront of our culture? I like to think it will — bonding with animals as adorable as Pokémon is important to the human psyche. We want to feel loved, and to love in return. If we don’t get enough of that, we tend to lash out, and push others away. Like, say, a certain bug-type Pokémon I just said some real harsh stuff to. If you’re reading this, Caterpie, I’m sorry. You can ride on my shoulder any time.

Follow Mikey on Twitter @mikeymccollor.