Pokemon Go Guide: How to Battle

Pokemon battles are kind of the main gameplay mechanic behind the twenty year old series. Sure, you go on an adventure, encountering and capturing various Pokemon along the way, eventually forming them into a team and becoming their friend. But it’s the fights that really make the series tick. So, how do they work in the new mobile game? We’ll tell you. Here’s a guide on how to battle in Pokemon Go.

First up, you need to be at a gym. Battling in Pokemon Go isn’t like in the regular game. You can’t just walk up to your buddy and fight it out. Instead you need to go to a gym that is occupied by another team (click here to see how to join one of Pokemon Go’s three teams).

Once there you can do battle with the Pokemon that trainers have stored there. You will send out your chosen Pokemon to fight theirs, with the mechanics being fairly simple. To attack just tap the screen. Once the bar is filled you can perform a special attack by holding the screen.

Of course, you’re not the only one attacking. When the enemy Pokemon tries to hit you all you have to do is swipe to the side. This will cause your character to do a dodge maneuver. If timed correctly you will move out of the way of the attack.

Repeat this for the rest of the battle, and in the subsequent fights if there are more than one Pokemon stored at the gym. If you beat them all then you and your team will take over the gym and you can set your own Pokemon to guard it. Raising the prestige level of the gym will even make it so that other members of your team can help with the defense, adding their Pokemon to your squad.