New Pokémoji and stickers to spice up your texts

For the truly devoted Pokémon trainers/Instagrammers/texters, Pokémoji and Pokéstickers are here. 

While the emoji are not official and aren't available in app form, you can screenshot and send them to add some adorable flair to your texts. See all of the Pokémoji, created byKévin Magalhaes and Laureen Minet, below:

IMAGE: KÉVIN MAGALHAES AND LAUREEN MINET

Totally available in iTunes, however (sorry, Android users), are new Pokémon stickers that also look amazing, courtesy of Fatima Ouchao. 

IMAGE: INSTA EMOJI FOR POKÉMON GO

IMAGE: INSTA EMOJI FOR POKÉMON GO

These images are the ones Ouchao supplied in the App store, but we couldn't resist looking at all of them, so here are a bunch more.

IMAGE: INSTA EMOJI FOR POKÉMON GO

It's been a big few weeks for emojis, what with the nostalgic Disney emoji and the very current Rio-inspired emoji on Twitter. And then, of course, there's the big news that we'll actually have diverse, professional female emojis being lady doctors and mechanics and and coders and whatnot. 

None of this might seem like a huge deal, but as those at New York magazine, Wired, and Slate are pointing out, emoji are having a measurable impact on the way we communicate. Who and what become emojified could more and more important in the future. 

Niantic is cracking down on 'Pokémon Go' cheaters with permanent bans

Pokémon Go

 players, beware: Niantic is starting to get serious about cracking down on cheaters.

The company is starting to permanently ban players who cheat either by spoofing their location or by using software to access the game "in an unauthorized manner."

First spotted by Redditors in the Pokémon Go developer subreddit, Niantic quietly updated their FAQ page to address the issue of banned accounts. While Niantic has banned users before, the update suggests the company is starting to ramp up its punishment of cheaters.

Among the offenses that can get you permanently banned are "falsifying your location, using emulators, modified or unofficial software and/or accessing Pokémon GO clients or backends in an unauthorized manner including through the use of third party software." In other words, creating or using just about any third-party Pokémon Go app is enough to earn you a ban. That said, it appears Niantic is targeting the creators of third-party software more than those who use the tools — at least for now.

creating or using just about any third-party Pokémon Go app is enough to earn you a ban

The company does offer a form for banned users to appeal the decision, if they believe a mistake has been made, though it's not clear how these cases are handled.

Niantic previously updated its app to address the wave of third-party Pokémon-tracking apps and services that sprung up in the wake of the app's success. Though that update blocked apps like Pokévision, enterprising players have found other ways to cheat the game, like spoofing their GPS location — a technique that also violates Pokémon Go's terms of service. 

Though clever members of the Pokémon Go developer community will likely continue to try to stay one step ahead of Niantic, the company has made it clear it's committed to weeding out cheating in the game.

"We will continue to work with all of you to improve the quality of the gameplay, including ongoing optimization and fine tuning of our anti-cheat system," the company says.

A Tesla Model S that can supposedly run Pokémon Go might be the nerdiest thing I've ever seen.

Ever since Pokémon Go launched, I've been trying to imagine a way in which I could use a car to play. Specifically, I imagined playing with the Chevy Cruze. It has 4G LTE Wi-Fi, GPS, an 8-inch touchscreen and a reverse camera.

Since I'm more of a wordsmith than I am a hacker, I left the idea in imagination land.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered that Pink Java's media editor is claimed to have hacked his Tesla Model S to boot up and run Pokémon Go on his car's in-dash 17-inch display.

Now, as fun as this is, the claim raises some red flags. The man, referred to only as "Jeff" says he's declined offers to hack other Teslas because it's a "trial and error process.” This claim doesn't really pass the smell test for me.

What's more, in addition to his Tesla hack, Jeff claims that he once rigged the lights in his home to flash when he received an email. He admits he now cannot figure out how to make it stop. This doesn't sound like the work of a master hacker, if you ask me.

As if that weren't enough, Pink Java hasn't shared any video documentation or other details on how Jeff achieved this automotive technical feat. Given that, as well as his super-annoying house  hack, I am guessing this is a hoax.

Regardless, my hat goes off to Jeff and the rest of Pink Java. They've at least taken my idea one step further than I dared to. Kudos.

BONUS: Connecting 7 smart devices to the 2016 Chevy Cruze wasn't a Wi-Fi nightmare

 

Did 'Pokémon Go' remove PokéStops because neighbors complained?

Pokémon Go

 players in Sydney, Australia, may have three less PokéStops from which to get their Poké Balls, Razz Berries and potions.

The western suburb of Rhodes had been inundated with avid Pokémon Go fans since the game launched in July, leading residents to complain about crowds, rubbish and noise. In response, the local Canada Bay council began a campaign to have its PokéStops removed, and it appears to have emerged victorious from this particular battle.

According to Fairfax Media, three intersecting Poké Stops placed in Peg Paterson Park — which reportedly had been responsible for attracting hordes of Pokémon Go players — simply vanished sometime on Monday. 

Whether this is thanks to the recent game update or a separate change by the game developer Niantic is unclear. 

Mashable reached out to Niantic for comment but the company did not immediately respond. 

The council had submitted requests to Niantic to have the PokéStops removed, and encouraged residents to do the same. "The recent phenomenon of Pokémon Go has seen unprecedented numbers of people flocking to Rhodes," Deputy Mayor Helen McCaffrey said in an August newsletter. 

"I would like to thank residents, building managers and businesses for their support and patience as we all try to find an appropriate solution to the ongoing issues of noise, traffic and rubbish, as a result of the game's popularity."

Irate residents had posted pictures of trampled grass and rubbish on the council's Facebook page, ostensibly left behind by gamers. Others shared videos of crowds of people spilling off the footpath and cars circling the neighbourhood as they hunted Pokémon.

"Walking the dog at night suddenly feels like I'm in an ep of Dr Who or Torchwood or the walking dead or some post apocalyptic zombie phone reality where ‪#‎pokémongoaddicts‬ have taken over the kids park and cross roads without looking for cars," another posted.

The PokéStops and Gyms in Pokémon Go were chosen from a data set created by the players of Niantic's previous augmented reality game, Ingress. For the most part, public artworks, historical sites, and unique buildings and local businesses were chosen, Niantic CEO John Hanke told Mashable Australia when the game launched.

Hanke also said the game aimed to keep people safe while getting them out of the house and interacting with the real world. "We're trying to strike a good balance," he said.

Hopefully Niantic will reveal how it decides which PokéStops to remove. There may be some cemeteries and memorials that would like to know.

New 'Pokémon Go' update makes it much harder to cheat

Almost a month after the app took the world by storm, Pokémon Go has now been updated with some major changes that should make it more difficult to cheat in the game.

Developer Niantic pushed out versions 1.1.0 and 1.1.1 of the game over the weekend, and there are some notable upgrades and downgrades.

For starters, the footprints that used show up below Pokémon inside of the "Nearby" section of the game have been removed. 

Players had complained that the footprints system didn't make any sense. Some claimed it just didn't work. It was believed the number of footprints (1-3) was supposed to show how close you were to a Pokémon.

Speaking from experience, I can't say the footprints mechanic ever worked. Good riddance!

 Follow

Raymond Wong @raywongy

Before and after for new Pokemon Go update: footprints are gone.

New don't play n drive

And game balancing

4:10 AM - 31 Jul 2016

 
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Another feature that got removed was the battery saver mode. With battery saver mode turned on, the screen would go black when your phone was held upside down, and then it'd vibrate only when a new Pokémon spawned or when you were at a PokéStop. 

Also speaking from experience, the mode frequently glitched and didn't work. Sayonara. You're better off getting a battery pack or battery case for your phone to extend playing time.

With version 1.1.0, you can also re-tweak your Pokémon trainer avatar. Previously, you couldn't. You were stuck with whatever look you picked at the beginning. It's a good change. 

Niantic also adjusted a number of Pokémon stats in an effort to balance the game.

 Follow

Sam Rutherford @samrutherford

Niantic stealth balanced #PokemonGO. If you don't believe me go look at the power on your pokemon moves

7:43 AM - 30 Jul 2016

 
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Alex @alexpenn

Pokemon Go moves are being balanced server side. Restart your apps for updating damages. Water Gun nerfed from 10 dmg to 6.

4:15 AM - 30 Jul 2016 · Los Angeles, CA, United States

 
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Olvan @_Olvan

Wow, they really balanced Pokemon GO correctly. No more OP Vape, and type advantage and charge attacks matter now.

6:13 PM - 30 Jul 2016

 
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With the rebalancing, Vaporeon is no longer a steamroller.

View image on Twitter

 Follow

Bryan Zyto @NVA_Zyto

extremely balanced and diverse pokemon go gameplay

7:50 AM - 30 Jul 2016 · Enterprise, NV, United States

 
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The most controversial change to Pokémon Go might be the nuking of third-party Pokémon tracking services like the popular PokéVision, which showed maps for where to find the monsters.

The site, which used to have a map populated with Pokémon, states its "services are currently unavailable" and to defer to its Twitter.

IMAGE: POKÉVISION

 Follow

Pokevision @PokeVisionGo

Hey guys. We wish we had some news for you

At this moment, we are respecting Niantic and Nintendo's wishes.

Will keep you guys posted

<3

1:27 PM - 31 Jul 2016

 
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•  9,4669,466 likes

To be fair, Pokémon-tracking services aren't technically cheats. They're more like game guides. But, hey, any violation of the game's terms and services is a violation.

Mashable has reached out to Niantic for comment on Pokémon-tracking services like PokéVision and will update this story if we hear back.