PokéWalker bugfix/update
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I made a colossal mistake in the PokéWalker's distance-calculation code, so I've fixed that and I'm adding something new! :o
So let's get the stupid typo out of the way: the radius of the Earth is 6371km. I mis-typed that in the code and it was calculating distance as if the Earth's radius were only 3671km. Needless to say, this massively under-rewarded players for their distance walked!
That's now fixed. Honestly, I'm surprised nobody - not even I - noticed that distances were suspiciously low for so long! Ah well, now the "rare" Pokémon and further areas will be easier to get :)
As for the update? You can now get Albino Pokémon from the PokéWalker. Due to the PokéWalker's "limited" graphics, there is no way of knowing if a Pokémon is Albino until you transfer it to PFQ. The chances of getting an Albino depend on distance travelled in the current day. It starts at 0% and increases every 1km travelled. At 1km, the chance is 0.2%, and that increases up to a maximum of 2% at 10km.
I should also point out a "hidden" mechanic of the PokéWalker: Advantage Types. Each Area has three Advantage Types, and if the Pokémon you are walking with matches any of those types, then distance requirements for both rare Pokémon and the new Albino update are reduced quite significantly. With an Advantage Type, you only need 7.5km instead of 10km for max Albino chances, so that's quite significant! Advantage Types are "hidden", but they are the same as in the official PokéWalker from HeartGold/SoulSilver, so feel free to look them up and take advantage of this bonus!
As for the update? You can now get Albino Pokémon from the PokéWalker. Due to the PokéWalker's "limited" graphics, there is no way of knowing if a Pokémon is Albino until you transfer it to PFQ. The chances of getting an Albino depend on distance travelled in the current day. It starts at 0% and increases every 1km travelled. At 1km, the chance is 0.2%, and that increases up to a maximum of 2% at 10km.
I should also point out a "hidden" mechanic of the PokéWalker: Advantage Types. Each Area has three Advantage Types, and if the Pokémon you are walking with matches any of those types, then distance requirements for both rare Pokémon and the new Albino update are reduced quite significantly. With an Advantage Type, you only need 7.5km instead of 10km for max Albino chances, so that's quite significant! Advantage Types are "hidden", but they are the same as in the official PokéWalker from HeartGold/SoulSilver, so feel free to look them up and take advantage of this bonus!
Clip from Pokémon anime, re-lined by me
-- OMNOMNOM!Featured story:
Injustice
Feedback welcome!
Couple of minor follow-ups:
- I've updated everyone's historical data to account for this bugfix. All historical distances travelled have been scaled by 6371/3671 to reflect the corrected calculation. This should be shown on the Stats page within an hour or two.
- The Walker has been updated to version v1.1 -- please ensure your Walker shows this version number on the About screen (right-most menu item) to ensure it sends the correct data to the server - invalid data may be rejected leading to distance not being counted.
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