Throughout COVID-19, the Pokémon fandom has undergone a new resurgence. While some of the hobby is going through a particularly toxic spell as “Pokeinvestors” and scalpers flood the TCG, resulting in the 25th anniversary of the hobby becoming a nightmare for actual players and collectors, thankfully other areas of the hobby are receiving fresh interest without such downsides. Pokémon Go has introduced new features long wanted, expanding the distance of Pokéstops, allowing remote raiding, and adding tons of new Pokémon to catch.
With the recent Festival of Light event in-game, it is the perfect opportunity to try out some new devices from Taiwan-based accessory maker, Brook. Brook has already released a bunch of its “Auto Catch” range in various styles, and now joining the Auto Catch family is the Reviver Plus. Cubed3 checks out that, plus the older Lightning model in this latest Tech Up! feature.
Those who haven’t heard of these devices, they act in much the same way the Pokémon Go Plus devices do. They’re wristbands that can integrate with Pokémon Go to be able to spin Pokéstops and catch Pokémon at the press of a button. Something that can occasionally be even better, they can even catch without the press of the button. The Auto Catch allows players to set up the system to automatically perform events completely independently. This can be configured to either just automatically spin Pokéstops, and automatically catch any new and uncaught Pokémon.
These devices have been around since 2017 and have racked up an impressive player base, with over 350,000 sold around the world in various styles. From the entry-level Auto Catch Pocket and Auto Catch Lightning, to the mainstream Reviver, Dia, and Meteor, to the premium Watchic.
The latest addition to the series that is the Reviver+ and Cubed3 was able to try that out, as well as the older entry-level Auto Catch Lightning. Being the entry-level model, the Lightning is able to auto catch Pokémon and auto spin Pokéstops, but those who bought in early will know there are some fundamental issues with it. First off, it can randomly disconnect from the phone, without any notification it has done so, meaning a little while later, checking in oh it’s done nothing for the last hour. Similarly, there’s no battery indicator or warning that the device has died.
Then there’s the new Reviver+ that very quickly solves some of these issues. This updated version increases the battery life from 12 hours to 18 hours, allowing for a whole day of auto-catching fun. Not to mention a battery level display, and even a warning vibration system for when the device disconnects. Immediately, the device is addressing issues previously raised.
This works well for just about every level. For those who don’t want to utilise the automatic functionality for catching anything and everything, there’s the standard catch functionality that mirrors the same functionality of the Pokémon Go Plus. Play on the phone, and just press the button to catch, put the phone away, and just press when you feel the buzz of a nearby Magneton or even just set it up to auto spin Pokéstops to fill the bag.
Altering the settings on the fly is the best way to make the most of the Reviver+. During the Festival of Lights – whilst testing – it was first set to auto catch everything. After just a brief spell, the 300+ Pokéballs in the inventory were spent, and the Pokémon box full to bursting. Then, switching over to just spinning Pokéstops soon filled the bags back up again. This definitely felt the best way to use the device. It also gives a wonderful little experience at those points to see just what the net has managed to dredge together – any shinies that happened to appear.
