Questions regarding S2 L17 exceptions, local retailer eligibility, and Power Spot grid distribution

General Discussion
1

Hello everyone,

I am looking to get some clarity from the community and Niantic team regarding a few observations in my city involving S2 cell behaviors, local business criteria, and the distribution of the newer Power Spots compared to Elite Gyms.

1. Multiple PokéStops in a Single Level 17 S2 Cell

According to the generally accepted community rules for Pokémon GO mapping, only one active Wayspot (either a PokéStop or a Gym) should occupy a single Level 17 S2 cell. However, I have noticed several specific areas in my city where multiple active PokéStops coexist within the exact same Level 17 cell.

  • Could someone explain how this occurs today?
  • Is this an intentional exception, the result of legacy location edits, or a specific map update?

2. Eligibility Criteria for Local Shops and Retailers

Many existing PokéStops in my area are local retail shops. I want to submit more of our neighborhood businesses, but I want to ensure they aren’t rejected as “generic businesses”.

  • If I submit more local retailers, what specific burden of proof do reviewers look for to approve them?
  • What makes a local shop stand out as a valid point of interest under the “socialize, explore, or exercise” criteria versus being dismissed as a standard commercial property?

3. Power Spots vs. PokéStops in the Same Cell

With the introduction of Max Out features, I have been trying to understand the mechanical overlap between regular gameplay mapping and Power Spots.

  • Can a Power Spot and a standard PokéStop/Gym exist simultaneously inside the exact same Level 17 S2 cell?
  • Are Power Spots bound by the same structural cell limits, or do they solely rely on proximity rules (like the rumored 22-meter distance rule from an existing PokéStop)?

4. Uneven Map Distribution (Power Spots vs. Elite Gyms)

Lastly, I want to open a discussion about an uneven layout issue affecting my city. Currently, almost all of the city’s Power Spots have spawned on one side of town, while the other side (where I primarily play) holds all of the Elite Gyms. This makes balancing Dynamax battles and Elite Raids incredibly difficult without extensive travel.

While I understand that map generation is heavily automated, is there any way the Wayfarer team or Niantic’s algorithm can look into balancing this type of uneven regional distribution? Having automated systems cluster specific types of gameplay cells into opposite ends of a city heavily restricts local communities from enjoying all features evenly.

I would love to hear thoughts, advice, or official insights on any of these points! Thank you.

2

Hello and welcome @Raiden160504

It’s is onto obvious where the best place is to post, but I am going to move this to the general discussion area.

As you have several distinct questions it is likely that fellow wayfinders will find it easier to assist you if you create some separate topics?

And if you are comfortable to tell us what the name of the city is it will aid discussion.

3

Hi I am new into this community and a little bit confused on how to actually use this properly.
My city name is kotdwar from uttrakhand, india.
There are many pokestops in a single cell ( I guess it’s due to lack of pokestop in old days that niantic just made random shops as pokestop here )
But I am more concerned about the uneven distribution of the power spot and elite gyms.

4

This is community observation, not accepted rule. Scopely doesnt acknowledge s2 cells. So there might be other thing that we dont know. If you notice that there are multiple wayspot in a single cell and you suspect its created by abuse, you can report them for recalculation.

The onus is on submitter to convince reviewer that this local shop stand out. It could be award warning or anything that you can find. Put yourself in reviewer shoes, would you approve it if you see it in review pool?. Cafe/coffee shop usually stand out because it fit socialize category

5

Thank you :slight_smile:

6

Since you are in India, there, back then Niantic had mass imported data from 3rd parties to boost the pokestops in the country.

That means, that a lot of inaccurate and normally ineligible Wayspots also got into the game. You can not expect to be able to have the same rules applied to.user submitted entries, for those, only the Wayfarer Criteria is to be objected.

All of that means, basically if you see for example a hotel live in the game in your country, it doesn’t mean hotels are allowed as user submissions, it depends on your individual case and if it relates to exploration, Excercise or socialising criteria, which hotels usually don’t do.

7

Use the little globe symbol at the bottom of this post to translate into your language (we can do this too if you prefer writing in your own language)

This kind of confusion about what makes an eligible waypoint is exactly what the community feared when niantic announced they had imported a ton of pokestops in India. The database they used for the import included many outright banned businesses and most of the locations were inaccurate but they decided that something was better than nothing.

As you find good things to add to the map, you can ask for the inaccurate and inappropriate pokestops to be removed.

  1. Many years ago there was a way to abuse the system and get more than one pokestop/gym in a cell. Niantic mostly fixed this exploite but did not recaclulate all the historic abuse and errors occasionally still happen.
  2. Buisness need to meet exploration, excersise or socialization criteria. You as the submitter should use the supporting info section to explain how the purpose of this shop meets criteria. For example: a gym or yoga/ dance/ zumba business exist for exercise. A restaurant has tables so people come, sit down over food, and talk/party. A museum, library, church, artist space, or adult school are to help people learn about new things, imagine new ideas, and explore thier mind/soul.
  3. Powerspots also got imported from a database of businesses and incude many outright banned locations and may ineligible businesses. You can report the inaccurate locations and banned ones to get them removed/ relocated. Natural powerspots happen when a waypoint exists in the same cell as a pokestop/gym and is also 22+ meters from any pokestop/gym. They sync in the first week of each month (around the 4th day).
  4. It sounds like most of your powerspots are imports and so are over in the buisness district not in the social/ art area where the pokestops are. You can fix this by nominating things that are not currently on the map near elite gym area. If you want advice on things to submit then you can post the coordinates of one of the gyms and the community here will look around the map.
8

Here are the staff posts about the imports @kawin240 mentioned, if you would like to see those. Clarifications on Pokémon Go Power Spots
That one explains that they were only to be used as Power Spots, and did not have to meet the criteria normally expected for a Wayspot. Then this next one explains that they decided to promote these to Pokestops in some parts of the world.
More PokéStops and Gyms coming to India and Indonesia

(There may have been a previous import, too. I am not sure about that.)

9

Hey, thanks for the detailed information about all the issues I was facing. I really appreciate you all taking the time to help me. :heart:
So, according to the rules, if I nominate a Wayspot that meets all the nomination criteria but is located in the same cell as an existing PokéStop or Gym, it can become a Power Spot, right? My nomination won’t go to waste if it’s accepted, even if there’s already something in the same cell. Is that how it works?

10

Yes. As long as it is 22 meters or more from any existing pokestop/gym then it will eventually become eligible to be a powerspot. There is a limit to the number of powerspots in an area, just like gyms, and so powerspots can rotate between all the eligible options.

11

There is an element of randomness to which eligible Wayspots are selected for the Power Spots being used, which seems to rotate around the 4th of the month. So we can’t promise that it will be used, just that it has the potential to be used as one.