Pokemon Go: How to get Hoopa, is Hoopa available yet?

Last Updated on: 5th September 2021, 03:11 pm

Pokemon Go recently added Hoopa to the splash art for the current event, prompting a large number of trainers to ask how to get Hoopa.

Hoopa has caused quite the stir with this, being unexpected by most trainers and just having kind of popped up in the game art assets, as well as adding its characteristic golden rings to the skybox of the game.

How to catch Hoopa Update

Hoopa is now available in Pokemon Go as part of the ongoing Misunderstood Mischief storyline. If you’re looking for a Hoopa of your very own, make sure to check out our article on how to catch Hoopa now!

The original article will resume below this point, though may now be outdated.

How to get Hoopa in Pokemon Go

How to get Hoopa in Pokemon Go isn’t currently clear, though the Pokemon Go fest day two event has added giant Hoopa rings to the skybox of the game as shown below, as well as having Hoopa itself appear in the login artwork as a sudden addition.

From 10:00 AM local time on the 18th of July and onwards, Trainers can expect to receive a special research task relating to the sudden appearance of Hoopa as well.

Strange Rings Research

A special research project with two sets of tasks became available at 10:00 AM local time as mentioned above, we’ve listed the details about this event here. The research seems to be fairly simple, and rewarding – so it’s certainly worth doing. It doesn’t however seem to feature anything to do with Hoopa beyond the rings themselves being visible.

This section is speculation and may not be correct, please consider carefully.

It seems most likely now that Hoopa Confined will be available from Ultra Unlock 3, as I’ve written about here. Nothing now suggests the likelihood of Hoopa Unbound, so return to just expecting Hoopa Confined.

Original Speculation (UPDATE)

The original 5* raid listing has been removed from Leeduck since, though it is also possible that the new unknown raid bosses were simply Dialga and Palika, who were simply given an additional page each on top of their Respective Ultra Unlock ones.

Original article continued

There is an upcoming 5* raid boss that is currently not known, as seen on Leekduck here. This timing is suspicious, but base form Hoopa doesn’t quite fit the bill. 5* raids are typically Legendary Pokemon or final form evolutions. Hoopa confined, the Pokemon currently being teased is a Mythical Pokemon.

Mythical Pokemon such as Mew or Celebi are typically captured with forced-AR events in Pokemon Go with no preceding battles, definitely not in a raid battle.

With that said, there is another theory that just about squares up. We are currently seeing Hoopa Confined flitting around the game with these teasers, and while Hoopa confined doesn’t fit as a raid boss, Hoopa Unbound, shown below, certainly would.

If this theory is correct, then Hoopa Unbound may be available to Trainers from the 23rd of July 10:00 AM local time onwards, which would answer the currently popular question of how to get Hoopa in Pokemon Go.

Of course, this is not confirmed, so you shouldn’t plan around it – but it does roughly line up with the tease event and makes sense as a 5* raid boss.

Is there anything else to know?

This is everything we know about how to get Hoopa in Pokemon Go at the moment, though this is very much a developing situation so this article may be updated in the near future.

In the meantime, you can find further Pokemon Go news, stories, and guides on The Click right here, and more pieces written by me personally here.