Pokémon Go community manager receives "violent threats", as game's Bluetooth accessories briefly disabled

Kelsey Danger, community manager for Pokémon Go, has reported receiving “violent threats” following discussion of a recent bug within the game.

Fixing the bug involved Pokémon Go developer Niantic briefly disabling the games Bluetooth device support – used by auto-catching accessories such as the officially-licensed Go Plus device and unofficial Gotcha wristband.

Support for these gadgets was re-enabled this morning when the bug was fixed, following a weekend of fan fury directed at Danger.

“Heads up: I deleted the thread from yesterday because I was starting to get violent threats emailed to me,” Danger wrote on Twitter. “I dont mind chatting about hard topics – especially when I make mistakes – but when we start hitting that level, its time to hit the pause button.”

A now-deleted tweet from Dangers personal account had described the interruption in Bluetooth support for the game as “interesting”, as it meant the niche group of people who regularly used the devices had been forced to temporarily play without.

Devotees of the games Bluetooth devices pounced on the comment, and Danger subsequently apologised to those who thought the message had sounded disparaging.

“My favorite threat I received this morning was Ive found your address in tortonto,” Danger wrote, describing one message they had received. “I dont live in Toronto.”

my favorite threat i received this morning was “ive found your address in tortonto”

i dont live in toronto pic.twitter.com/gxQpPHkSXe

— Mx. Magpie, Rocket Boss (@mx_danger) October 31, 2022

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Niantic posted shortly after midnight this morning to state the bug had now been fixed, and Bluetooth devices were once again enabled.

Trainers, the bug related to Zorua’s appearance has now been resolved, and functionality for Poké Ball Plus and Pokémon GO Plus has now been restored. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused. Thank you for your patience. https://t.co/8E7kfL78F4

— Niantic Support (@NianticHelp) November 1, 2022

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A thread on top of the Pokémon Go reddit The Silph Road discussing the controversy has called for fans to calm down, and highlighted how Pokémon Gos previous community manager – who has since left Niantic – ultimately deleted their social media.

“The fact we are doing this a second time shows that many still have not learned,” the thread stated.