Something NEW Is Coming to McDonald's!

All your favorite Pokémon are coming to McDonald’s.

McDonald’s

The iconic franchise is returning to McDonald’s as part of a collaboration between the restaurant chain and Niantic, the publisher (in collaboration with Nintendo) of the mega-successful augmented reality game Pokémon GO.

Launched in 2016 — yes, Pokémon GO is almost a decade old, we can’t believe it either — the game uses augmented reality to place Pokémon in real environments, allowing players to travel to real-life environments to“catch” them. Players can find Pokémon in most areas, especially those deemed Pokéstops as well as “battle” at Pokémon Gyms.

For several weeks from December 2024 through March of 2025, players can head to select McDonald’s locations in the U.S. to “encounter Pokémon attracted by Lure Modules at McDonald’s PokéStops and participate in five-star raids at McDonald’s Gyms.”

©Pokémon Go

According to Niantic, these Lure Modules and Raid Battles will be active from 6:00PM to 7:00PM local time each day during the following weeks:

Monday, December 16th, to Sunday, December 22nd, 2024
Monday, January 20th, to Sunday, January 26th, 2025
Monday, February 10th, to Sunday, February 16th, 2025
Monday, March 10th, to Sunday, March 16th, 2025

McDonald’s clinging with Pokémon GO is interesting, given the game’s history of players causing issues at some of the real world locations they’ve traveled to to “find” Pokémon.

©Pokémon GO

In fact, Niantic has had to warn players in the past to “Please be aware of your surroundings and follow guidelines from local health authorities when playing Pokémon GO.”

©Pokémon Go

Of course, the Pokémon franchise is no stranger to fast food tie-tins. Over the 25+ years it has been a staple of American culture, the Japanese import has been featured in a slew of tie-ins at various outlets including (arguably most famously to millennials) a mega-successful Burger King Kid’s Meal tie-in to the premiere of Pokémon: The First Movie in 1999.