Scopely’s latest Pokemon Explorer Gadget update adds a mechanic that can automatically throw Poké Balls and spin PokéStops while Trainers walk. It is aimed at Trainers Level 20 and above, so the change reaches a specific slice of the player base rather than everyone at once.
Explorer Gadget in GO
The Explorer Gadget goes a step further than a standard tap-and-play loop: it keeps working as Trainers move through the real world, and it even functions when the app is not actively open on a mobile device. That makes it closer to a background helper than a manual-only tool, which is a meaningful shift for a game built around active movement.
Players can turn it on from the map view by tapping its icon in the top right. They can also reach it through Key Items in the Item Bag, which gives the feature two entry points instead of one. For a live-service game, that kind of convenience usually matters as much as the feature itself.
Top right and Item Bag
A pink Poké Ball icon appears over any Pokémon or PokéStop the Explorer Gadget is already handling. That visual cue does the practical work of telling Trainers what the system is doing without forcing them to guess whether the gadget is active.
Trainers can still step in. Tapping a Pokémon or PokéStop in progress lets them manually interact with it and override the Explorer Gadget, so the automation is not locked in once it starts. The feature is described as playing the game without you having to play the game, but the manual override keeps the user in control when they want to take over.
Level 20 and above
The Level 20 threshold is the key filter here. It means the update does not change the experience for every account equally; it gives a new automated layer to Trainers who have already cleared that progression gate and are most likely to have built routines around walking, spinning, and catching.
This week’s update is therefore less a full-system overhaul than a targeted quality-of-life shift with a clear limit on access. For Trainers who qualify, the immediate next step is simple: open the map, tap the icon in the top right, and decide whether to let the Explorer Gadget handle the routine work or override it one encounter at a time.
