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Pokémon Go Fans React in Disgust as Players Hand-Picked to Attend Exclusive Times Square Event Sell Their Prized Mewtwo for Thousands of Dollars, Breaking the Game’s Rules
Pokémon Go players have reacted angrily after learning that some fans hand-picked to attend the game's exclusive 10th anniversary event in Times Square, New York, are now selling their unique Mewtwo on eBay for thousands of dollars, in breach of the game's rules. Around 2,000 attendees, many of them unpaid "Community Ambassadors" who help promote the game locally, plus media and influencers, were given a guaranteed perfect-stat Mewtwo with a special cosmetic background as a reward for taking part in a Times Square battle — a first for the game, which has never before gifted a guaranteed perfect Pokémon. The move angered the wider player base, who spent the following weekend grinding through raids for a mere chance at catching one themselves.
Completed eBay listings show the exclusive Mewtwo selling for up to $5,000, with one ongoing auction reportedly attracting bids of up to $10,000; some listings also reference "flying" the trade, a term associated with location-spoofing, another banned practice. Developer Scopely Explore, which took over the game from Niantic, has since confirmed that selling or sharing accounts and Pokémon breaches its terms of service and that offending trainers face immediate bans. Fans have called on the company to investigate, noting that with only around 2,000 attendees it should be straightforward to identify which accounts no longer hold their unique Mewtwo.
In short
- Fans sold exclusive Mewtwo from Pokémon Go's 10th anniversary event on eBay
- Some listings reached $5,000-$10,000, breaching game's trading rules
- Developer Scopely Explore says offenders face immediate account bans
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The event's structure was fundamentally unfair, offering guaranteed perfect Pokémon to only 2,000 attendees whilst the wider player base could grind for mere chances. Selling these exclusive items for thousands of pounds violates terms of service that players agreed to and creates pay-to-win dynamics where real money spending becomes necessary for completionists. The company must investigate and enforce its rules, as failing to do so would render the terms of service meaningless and encourage widespread secondary-market trading that damages game fairness.
The case against
Exclusive event rewards are standard gaming practice, and recognising unpaid Community Ambassadors with special items is reasonable recognition for their work. Digital ownership and the right to trade legitimately obtained items remain contested issues; terms of service forbidding all resale may be unreasonably restrictive. The secondary market reflects genuine player engagement and value; the company should address this through more equitable event design in future rather than punitive bans, recognising that players acting upon legitimately received items is not inherently unreasonable.
Explained simply
Pokémon Go is a mobile game where players catch virtual creatures in real-world locations. The developer held an exclusive 10th anniversary event in Times Square, New York, where about 2,000 hand-picked attendees—including volunteers, media figures and influencers—received a special Mewtwo Pokémon with perfect statistics, a first for the game.
Some of these exclusive Mewtwo have since appeared on eBay being sold for thousands of dollars, with listings showing prices up to $10,000. This violates the game's terms of service, which forbid the sale or sharing of accounts and Pokémon, and has angered the wider player base who spent hours trying to catch their own Mewtwo through regular gameplay with much lower odds of success.
The game's developer, Scopely Explore, has confirmed that selling or sharing accounts and Pokémon violates its terms of service, and that offending players face immediate bans. Players have called on the company to investigate, noting that with only around 2,000 event attendees it should be straightforward to identify which accounts no longer have the exclusive Mewtwo.