Niantic has announced a monstrous update incoming for the hit mobile game, Pokemon GO . The developer plans to dive deep into the Gym battles, totally restructuring them and adding additional features, including a new mode.
Soon players will be able to collect items at Gym locations, just like at PokeStops. Niantic will also be dropping the Prestige and training mechanics, opting for a whole new system. Now, Gyms will have six static slots, and upon filling those slots a new Motivation mechanic will come into play. Defeating Pokemon in these slots will drop their motivation and CP, ultimately forcing them out of the Gym. Motivation can be restored by feeding Pokemon berries.
Battling at Gyms also will reward badges, which can be leveled up with successful Gym interactions and berries. Leveling up badges nets rewards such as bonus items and better earnings from Gyms.
Finally, once a day players will be able to receive Raid Passes from Gyms, and use those to initiate a multiplayer, co-op Raid Battle. Once initiated, up to 20 players will be able to fight a strong, boss-level Pokemon with a five-minute time limit. Defeating the Raid Boss will net unique rewards, including Rare Candies, Golden Razz Berries and Technical Machines. Players will also get the chance to capture rare and powerful Pokemon.
While these changes are being implemented, Niantic has disabled Gyms entirely.
Source: Niantic