Raikou, Entei, and Suicune will be available Starting August 31 and Exclusive Raid Battle Update

Trainers,

As the First Gen Legendaries leave us from Raids, Niantic has made a huge announcement regarding the Gen 2 Legendary Pokemon.

As you guys may have already read, Gen 2 Legendaries Raikou, Entei, and Suicune will be made available starting August 31

Here’s Niantic’s official announcement on their Pokemon GO Website:

Trainers,

Over the last several weeks, we’ve heard so many incredible stories of Trainers teaming up together around the world to catch Pokémon GO’s first Legendary Pokémon. We’re excited to keep the legendary adventures going!

Starting August 31, the Legendary Pokémon Raikou, Entei, and Suicune will begin appearing in Pokémon GO. Trainers worldwide can look forward to battling these Pokémon together with friends in Raid Battles for the chance to catch the trio of Legendary Pokémon originally from the Johto region. Raikou, Entei, and Suicune will be traveling the world throughout the coming months. From August 31 to September 30, you can find these Legendary Pokémon in the following areas of the world:

Raikou, an Electric-type Legendary Pokémon, can be battled throughout the Americas.

Entei, a Fire-type Legendary Pokémon, can be battled throughout Europe and Africa.

Suicune, a Water-type Legendary Pokémon, can be battled throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

On September 30, all three of these Legendary Pokémon will move to a different location and will be available for Trainers to battle with friends until October 31. They will make their final stop in the last remaining location on October 31. Raikou, Entei, and Suicune will be available for this limited time period, so make sure to battle against them when they arrive at Gyms near you!

Apart from this major announcement we also get to know more about Exclusive Raids, which from now on will be called “EX Raids”

They said,

While these Legendary Pokémon are traveling the world, we’ll also begin an EX Raid Battle (formerly Exclusive Raid Battle) field-testing phase at select Gyms before the feature is made available globally. We have collected some valuable early feedback on the new EX Raid Battle feature and will look to further test and hone the experience through the feedback of the dedicated global Trainer community. During the field test, we’ll be making periodic adjustments to EX Raid eligibility requirements, frequency, times, locations, and durations with the goal of making the EX Raid Battle feature engaging, rewarding, and most importantly, fun for Trainers who regularly participate in Raid Battles.

The first EX Raid Passes will be sent out soon, and those invited will have an opportunity to try out the new system as early as September 6. Stay tuned for more updates as we launch the EX Raid Battle field test to more Gyms in the weeks ahead. We look forward to reading all your constructive feedback on our social media channels and encourage you to continue share your thoughts throughout the EX Raid Battle field test!

—The Pokémon GO team