Pokemon Go is finally fixing its instant win exploit, and that’s bad news for cheaters

Niantic has finally fixed an exploit in Pokemon Go that allowed cheaters to automatically win matches, and perpetrators who exploited it were punished accordingly.

The Code for the Pokemon Go Battle League game was revealed on December 31, 2024, when a player named JukkaBukka rose through the ranks, causing other players’ games to freeze, rewarding them with victory. This method allowed JukkaBukka to reach Legend rank without using Pokemon.

Official Niantic support Twitter/X the account confirmed that the issue has been fixed and players can no longer cheat to win battles using the exploit. Additionally, those who used it to gain victories had theirs Battle League record sanitized to remove ill-gotten gains.

Fixed Avatar combo crash in Pokemon Go

Niantic’s post confirmed what many fans suspected: the exploit was caused by an avatar combination problemmost likely related to Allister’s Mask. For those unfamiliar with the character, Allister was a Ghost-type Gym Leader in the Gen 8 games and wore a scary white mask that was unlockable in Pokemon Go.

Pokemon Go players discovered that Allister’s Mask caused problems when worn with clothing such as a Wooloo jacket. This was not a common problem, as the mask was a reward for people who achieved the rank of Veteran during the war Maximum seasonso many players missed it.

Given this, it’s surprising that it took so long to resolve the issue, especially since players identified it before their Battle League victories. Niantic isn’t known for lightning-fast fixes, but an issue this serious should be a priority for the developers, especially when it affects the game’s PvP mode.

Fortunately, the avatar combination code has finally been fixed, and cheaters can no longer become the best they’ve ever been through glitches. MissingNo may have helped people become champions back in the days of Pokemon Red & Blue, but glitching shouldn’t be used to win in Pokemon Go.