Pokemon Go again at the S.C. State House

“Pokestops” have reappeared at the South Carolina State House, more than a month after the popular game features mysteriously vanished from the state capitol grounds.

Players of the mobile game Pokemon Go reported several of the previously missing pokestops reappeared on the State House grounds on Thursday, as suddenly and mysteriously as they had vanished. The State House had been a popular gathering place for players before about a dozen different stops vanished at the end of July.

The disappearance of the pokestops – where users can load up on pokeballs and set “lures” to attract the digital creatures – was a mystery. No state agency would own up to asking developer Niantic Labs to remove the State House as an active spot for the game, and – despite publicized efforts to remove pokestops from inappropriate or unwanted locations elsewhere – a spokesman for the developer couldn’t say why the State House stops had been removed.

Coming at the height of the Pokemon Go craze, users were upset by the sudden end to one of their favorite Pokemon hunting spots. The state Agriculture Department even planned a Pokemon-themed promotional event at the State House and were disappointed to discover the day of the event that the pokestops were no longer available.

Even Gov. Nikki Haley took to Twitter to ask for the pokestops to return.

It wasn’t immediately clear why the pokestops had suddenly returned.

This story was originally published September 1, 2016 at 10:41 AM with the headline "Pokemon Go again at the S.C. State House."