Pokémon Go's Sinnoh Tour adds creatures you'll need to add game-changing effects

Pokémon Go's next major in-game event will add a pair of powerful and game-changing new abilities you'll need to obtain special creatures to use.

Pokémon Go Tour: Sinnoh will debut Origin Forme Dialga and Palkia from last year's Pokémon Legends Arceus – ancient versions of the Legendary creatures from Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (the appearance of which is not a surprise, as they were first revealed a little earlier than planned last year).

Befitting their powerful status and space-time warping properties, the pair will debut a new feature for Pokémon Go named Adventure Effects. These are gameplay-changing abilities unlocked by interacting with the creature itself that can also be boosted further using in-game resources.

Origin Forme Dialga obtained from Pokémon Go Tour: Sinnoh gets the Adventure Effect named Roar of Time, which allows you to spend Dialga candy and Stardust to pause the countdown of other in-game boosts – such as Incense, Lucky Eggs and Star Pieces – extending their use.

Origin Forme Palkia meanwhile gets the Adventure Effect Spacial Rend. This increases the range at which wild Pokémon appear on the game's overworld map – meaning more Shiny checks with fewer diversions.

It's great to see a new feature like this added to the game, and well-themed with the creatures it's attached to. But it's important to note that it sounds like not all Origin Forme Dialga and Palkia will have these moves – and the version of the event ticket you buy (either “Diamond” or “Pearl” versions) influencing your chances for one or the other.

Fans have noted that this adds a further layer of chance to the game's raid battles, which encourages you to raid repeatedly for a chance at a Shiny version of the Pokémon, or one with better stats.

There's debate too about the costs of in-game resources involved. Roar of Time requires 5000 Stardust and 5 Dialga Candy for six minutes of usage, which you can extend in similar increments up to 24 hours. (Although not even I have managed a 24-hour play session of Pokémon Go.) Spacial Rend requires 5000 Stardust and 5 Palkia candy for 10 minutes usage, meanwhile.

Pokémon GO Tour: Sinnoh is set to take place globally in-game on February 24th and 25th, following an in-person version first in Los Angeles the week before. The event is designed as a celebration of the Sinnoh/Hisui region featured in Diamond/Pearl/Legends: Arceus, with Shiny-boosted spawns of its creatures, plus boosted chances at hatching normally region-locked Pokémon.

But will the God Pokémon, Arceus, also make its debut?