Dynamax Battles: Reskinned Raids in Pokemon Go?

A man stands at the train station, phone clutched in one hand and pot of hummus in the other. All three are slick with rain, fat droplets descending from the clouds, onto his waterproof hood, before dripping off the peak onto his device, which he rapidly thumbs. I know the man is playing Pokemon Go because of his repetitive motion. I know the man is playing Pokemon Go because the man is me.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Slide. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. The man quickly locks his phone, wipes it on his damp trousers, and resumes the ritual. Tap. Tap. Pause.

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This pause is the only thing that tells me he's playing a Dynamax battle and not a Raid. Raids are non-stop tapping, perhaps with a few slides thrown in if you're one of those who tries to dodge the boss' ferocious attacks. At this point though, most players have enough powered up monsters that taking damage is inconsequential. Raid bosses are easy now. Or at least they were, until Niantic dialled the difficulty way up in a recent update to push players towards the new, shinier version of communal battling.

Dynamax battles felt fresh and new when they were released. I likened them to strand gaming, and I stand by that assessment. After just a week with the system, however, I realize they're just raids. We're starting from the bottom again, facing off against Wooloo and Skwovet instead of Kyogre and Groudon. Somehow, it's almost as good.

You can only use Dynamax Pokemon in Dynamax battles. This means that everyone's starting from the same point, whether level ten or level 50. It also means the whole system is enclosed. None of your old Pokemon can be used here. Spend more candy, more stardust, power up new Pokemon, pay for new moves, maybe even use an Elite TM to get Blast Burn on Charizard in order to tackle those tricky Beldum. Everything is designed to make you play more, spend more. But beyond the mechanical explanation, the system is fun.

The man at the train station finishes his fight. His pulse is low, he hasn't broken a sweat. This isn't invigorating, exciting gaming. It's a part of the grind. But when he looks up from the gigantic Charmander filling his screen, from behind the veil of water pouring from his hood, he smiles.

While getting a good Charmander will never feel as good as catching a hundred percent Legendary – we've done it all before – it's satisfying all the same. Battling Beldum is tough, something I haven't felt in a raid for a long time. There's even a semblance of tactical play with choosing which monsters to Dynamax. It's not that different to a raid, but it feels refreshing to start from scratch.

I was surprised to find that Pokemon Go needed to essentially reset to get me back into playing, but it's working. I doubt I'll ever play as much as I used to, but I'm playing a little. That's something.

The rain-soaked man at the train station takes off his coat. He's home now, his phone a bit heavier from the new monsters stored in its memory. It's not the same as before, but it got him out of the house on a day he wouldn't have otherwise left. It's not 2016, but it's Pokemon. It might be a raid by another name, but it's fun. What more could the man at the train station ask for?