An email announcement confirms Team Rocket is returning to Pokémon Go with the addition of balloons

Team GO Rocket has been noticeably absent from Pokémon Go following March after developer Niantic took steps to assist in preventing the spread of COVID-19. While the world continues to suffer from the pandemic’s plight, Niantic is bringing them back in full force using the oldest trick in Team Rocket’s book: balloons. These balloons have been hinted at and datamined for several weeks now, but the recent email sent out to Pokémon Go players confirms their return, and it’s sooner than expected.

The message contains a brief exchange with the Team GO Rocket leaders, Sierra, Cliff, and Arlo, speaking to the Team Rocket grunts who likely be manning these balloons. The email provides a fun exchange from the Team GO Rocket team, entirely in character, and offers small hints at how the system could work. At the end of the email, it does provide a promotional code for those who received it to turn in to their Pokémon Go account.

The big thing to take away from the message is that it’s likely coming tomorrow. This arrival is significantly sooner than many anticipated as several guessed the Team Rocket balloons would be an activity for Pokémon Go Fest 2020, rather than a lead up to it. But the email heavily suggests we’re going to see the massive red R in the sky, attempting to steal Pokémon all over the world.

We can expect to see more information come out tomorrow. The balloons will be a way for trainers to battle Team Rocket without leaving the house or spin PokéStops, so you can expect to see plenty of new Team Rocket battles happening alongside this unique event. The return of the Team GO Rocket team is a refreshing sight as many expected to see them make their next appearance sometime in late September to early October.