If you haven't earned any hearts for taking pictures of your Buddy, here's why.
Update (09/07/2020): This bug has now been fixed. Make sure to update Pokemon Go to the latest version to receive this bug fix!
Update (09/04/2020): The Known Issues page for Pokemon Go now says that this issue will be “Resolved in update currently rolling out (0.185.1).”
Update (08/27/2020): The Known Issues page for Pokemon Go has been updated to confirm that this bug is affecting all Snapshots taken on iOS devices, and not just Snapshots taken of Buddy Pokemon. The problem’s “Issue status” is still listed as “Investigating.”
Original Story:
Trainers with iOS devices have run into an annoying bug in Pokemon Go: The game’s Snapshot feature isn’t counting the pictures you’ve taken toward earning Buddy Hearts or completing Research Tasks.
The game’s Snapshot feature allows you to take pictures of Pokemon through augmented reality (AR), which makes them appear as though they’re in the real world in front of you. While you can still use the Snapshot feature to take pictures, a technical issue is currently stopping the game from registering that you’ve done so.
This means you won’t earn a “Heart” for your Buddy after taking a picture of them, and the game also won’t count any pictures you’ve taken toward completing research tasks that ask you to take a snapshot of your Buddy Pokemon.
According to the Pokemon Go Known Issues page, this bug is only affecting users with iOS devices. This particular issue reads:
“Affection hearts for buddy snapshots aren’t earned on iOS devices
Issue description: Affection hearts aren’t earned after taking a photo of a Buddy Pokémon on iOS devices. This also affects their ability to be registered in tasks requiring a snapshot of your Buddy Pokémon.
Issue status: Investigating”
For now, there doesn’t appear to be a workaround that can force the Snapshot feature to work properly, so we may have to wait a few days for Niantic, the game’s developer, to sort things out.
If you’ve run into any other bugs in Pokemon Go, make sure to check the Known Issues page to see if Niantic has listed them there. If not, try using Pokemon Go‘s in-game support feature to see if the developer’s support team can help you.
Have you encountered this Snapshot bug in Pokemon Go? Let us know on Twitter at @superparenthq.
Brandy Berthelson has been writing about video games and technology since 2006, with her work appearing on sites including AOL Games, Digital Spy, and Adweek. When she’s not gaming, Brandy enjoys crafting, baking, and traveling with her husband.
