Shiny Pokémon

"Pokémon Gallery: Encounter with Shiny Pokémon" by Ken Sugimori, which depicts Ethan encountering a Shiny Charizard

A Shiny Pokémon (Japanese: 色違い color variation; 光る shining) is a specific Pokémon with a different coloration to what is usual for its species. It is one of the many differences that a Pokémon can have within its species.

Form differences, such as that of Shellos and Gastrodon, are not normal or Shiny variations of one another, but their individual forms can be Shiny.

Terminology

Main article: Terminology of Shiny Pokémon

They were originally called rare (Japanese: レア rare) in the debug menu from Pokémon Gold and Silver, Color Pokémon in Pokémon Stadium 2, and also referred to as Alt. Color in the Generation III easy chat system. The Shining Pokémon from the Trading Card Game were also introduced before the word "Shiny" was officially used in Pokémon games. Some early guidebooks also refer to them as "colored Pokémon" or "specially colored Pokémon".

The term "Shiny Pokémon" was first created by fans based on the sparkling sound effect and animation at the start of an encounter with one in the games. Eventually, this term fell into official usage in Generation IV, used on promotional material promoting Shiny event Pokémon.

In the core series games

How Shiny Pokémon have been marked throughout the generations

GSC	Stadium 2	FRLG	Gen IV	Gen V	Gen VI	SMUSUM	SMUSUM Pokédex	PE	SwShBDSP	LA	LA Pokédex	HOME Mobile	Gen IX

Shiny Pokémon were introduced in the Generation II games. When a Shiny Pokémon appears in the wild or from its Poké Ball, it is surrounded by a flash of stars or light, which is accompanied by a pinging sound effect.

Individual Pokémon cannot change their Shininess. A Shiny Pokémon will always be Shiny, and a regular Pokémon will never become Shiny. Upon evolution, a Pokémon retains its Shiny status; for example, a Shiny Charmander, if leveled up, will eventually become a Shiny Charmeleon and then a Shiny Charizard, while a regular Charmander will become a regular Charmeleon and then a regular Charizard.

An icon (seen in the table above) appears on the status screen of Shiny Pokémon in most games. In Generation II, this icon appears in the top-right corner of the screen, by the gender symbol, while in most other games, it appears in or near one of the corners of the Pokémon's image; however, Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald do not have any icon. In Generation III, the Pokémon's Pokédex number will be colored gold instead of white and the background of the Pokémon's image has a lighter shade; likewise, in Generation IV and V, the color of some elements of the status screen differ for Shiny Pokémon.

Design

Early explanation about Shiny Pokémon
(Pokémon Gold and Silver: Complete Pokédex, page 9)

Shiny Pokémon can differ in color from their normal counterparts very little or very much. Some Pokémon, such as Glaceon or Pichu, have a Shiny coloration only a few shades darker or lighter in color. Conversely, some Pokémon, such as Caterpie or Smeargle, have dramatic differences in color.

An evolutionary line is not necessarily guaranteed to have similar Shiny colorations even if their standard colorations are the same; both Ponyta and Rapidash have orange flames, but a Shiny Ponyta has blue flames while a Shiny Rapidash has gray flames (this is switched in Generation II). Sometimes, two Pokémon in an evolutionary line with different standard colorations will have the same Shiny coloration, as in the case of Skitty and Delcatty.

Little is known about how Shiny colorations are chosen. While it is often rumored that early Shiny colorations were determined algorithmically, all Pokémon’s Shiny colorations are individually defined in the game data and Pokémon with similar palettes have distinct Shiny colorations even in Generation II. James Turner, who has worked as a Pokémon designer since Generation V, stated that the first time he selected Shiny colorations was in Generation VII, when he selected the Shiny colorations of the Ultra Beasts he designed.

In the Game Boy mode of Pokémon Gold and Silver, the sprites of both regular and Shiny Pokémon use the same shades of gray. A Shiny Pokémon can still be identified by the stars on its status screen or the animation shown when it comes into battle.

In Pokémon HeartGold, SoulSilver, Let's Go, Pikachu!, Let's Go, Eevee!, Legends: Arceus, Scarlet, and Violet, a Pokémon's Shininess is visible in the overworld, though this only applies to the player's Pokémon in HeartGold and SoulSilver, and does not apply to static encounters. Additionally, in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, the party icon of Shiny Pokémon will depict its Shiny coloration.

Determining Shininess

Generation II

In Generation II, being Shiny is determined by a Pokémon's IVs. If a Pokémon's Speed, Defense, and Special IVs are all 10, and its Attack IV is 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 11, 14 or 15, it will be Shiny. Because of this, a Shiny Pokémon traded to a Generation I game and then traded back to Generation II will retain its Shininess, and a Pokémon obtained in Generation I whose IVs meet the requirements for Shininess will also become Shiny when traded to Generation II.

Since the HP IV is calculated from the other four IVs, a Shiny Pokémon's HP IV will always be either 0 or 8. Shiny Pokémon are generally above average in terms of IVs, but only slightly.

The probability of a Pokémon encountered in the wild or obtained as a gift, in-game trade, or event in Generation II having its IVs line up in the above manner is 1/8192 (assuming every IV combination has the same probability, which is usually the case).

The probability differs for bred Pokémon, as their IVs are partially influenced by their parents. Specifically, a parent passes its Special stat (plus or minus 8) and its Defense stat to its children that are the opposite gender from it. (If Ditto is one of the parents, it is always the one that passes these stats.) This means that if a Shiny parent passes its IVs to a child, the child's inherited Defense IV will always be 10, its inherited Special IV will have a 1/2 chance of being 10, its randomly generated Attack IV will have a 1/2 chance of being an appropriate value, and its randomly generated Speed IV will have 1/16 chance of being 10. This results in a 1/64 chance that such a child will be Shiny. These breeding mechanics also mean that if a child inherits its IVs from a Pokémon that does not have a Defense IV of 10 and a Special IV of 2 or 10, it cannot be Shiny.

Transferring from Generation I Virtual Console games

Pokémon transported to Pokémon Bank from the Virtual Console releases of the Generation I games via Poké Transporter may be Shiny after being transported. Since Version 1.3 of Poké Transporter, this is determined the same way as in the Generation II games. Prior to Version 1.3, the roles of the Attack and Defense IVs were swapped, meaning that the process did not properly correspond to Generation II.

The same quirks that apply to transferring Pokémon from Generation I to Generation II games also apply.

The Mew that were distributed to the Generation I Virtual Console games have IVs of 15 in every stat, meaning they can never be Shiny.

Generation III onwards

Main article: Personality value → Shininess

From Generation III onward, whether a Pokémon is Shiny depends on the Pokémon's Original Trainer's ID number and secret ID number, as well as the Pokémon's personality value. The exact calculation is:

TrainerID xor SecretID xor PersonalityValue31..16 xor PersonalityValue15..0

where the latter two values represent the highest and lowest 16 bits of the 32-bit personality value respectively.

The above formula can result in a number ranging from 0 to 65535. In Generations III to V, if this result is less than 8, then the Pokémon is Shiny, giving an overall probability of 8/65536 or 1/8192, exactly the same as in Generation II. Starting in Generation VI, this threshold was increased to 16 (meaning the result must be less than 16), effectively doubling the probability from preceding generations. In Generation VIII, if this result equals 0, or if the Pokémon has the fateful encounter flag set, then the Pokémon has square Shiny sparkles.

Shiny Pokémon rates

The table below summarizes the rates at which Shiny Pokémon can be found by the methods that will be detailed below. The Shiny Charm can directly add to the odds for most methods, with hidden Pokémon being affected uniquely.

	Gen. II	Gen. III	Gen. IV	Gen. V	Gen. VI	Gen. VII	Gen. VIII	Gen. IX
Base rate	1/8192				1/4096
Breeding a Shiny Pokémon if the offspring is the opposite gender	1/64	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Masuda method	—	—	5/8192 or 1/1638.4	6/8192 or 1/1366	6/4096 or 1/682.˙6
Poké Radar chaining (single patch): ≥40	—	—	41/8192	—	1/100	—	1/99	—
Forcing a gender with Cute Charm	—	—	1/24576	—	—	—	—	—
Shiny Charm	—	—	—	+2/8192B2W2 or 1/2048	+3/4096 1/512
Friend Safari	—	—	—	—	5/4096 or 1/819.2	—	—	—
Consecutive fishing: ≥20	—	—	—	—	41/4096 or 1/99.902	—	—	—
Hidden Pokémon: Search Level 200 + X	—	—	—	—	0.08% + X*0.0001%	—	—	—
SOS Battles: ≥31	—	—	—	—	—	13/4096 or 1/315	—	—
Dynamax Adventure	—	—	—	—	—	—	13.6/4096 or 1/300	—
Grand Underground after "something good happens"	—	—	—	—	—	—	2/4096 or 1/2048	—
Mass outbreak	—	—	—	—	—	—	26/4096LA or 1/158.02	—
Massive mass outbreak	—	—	—	—	—	—	13/4096 or 1/315.54	—
Pokédex research level 10	—	—	—	—	—	—	2/4096 or 1/2048.25	—
Pokédex research level max	—	—	—	—	—	—	4/4096 or 1/1024	—
After knocking out 60+ Pokémon in a mass outbreak	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	1/1365
Sparkling Power 3	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	1/1024

Shiny first partner Pokémon

In most core series games, the first partner Pokémon appear in their regular non-Shiny forms before the player chooses one, even if the chosen first partner Pokémon turns out to be Shiny. Therefore, the player is unable to verify if a first partner Pokémon is Shiny before obtaining it.

In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the player is exceptionally able to check if Chikorita, Cyndaquil, or Totodile are Shiny before choosing one of them as their first partner Pokémon. However, if this first partner Pokémon that appeared as Shiny is obtained by the rival Silver instead, it will appear as a regular non-Shiny Pokémon for the remainder of the game. The rival's Pokémon teams are predefined in the game data, with no way to account for a possible Shiny first partner Pokémon.

In some games from Pokémon X and Y onwards, there are some cutscenes and dialogue before the player is able to obtain the first partner Pokémon and verify if it is Shiny.

Transformed Pokémon

Shiny Mew transformed into Pikachu in Generation II

These are the results of Transform or Imposter used by or on a Shiny Pokémon.

• In Generation I and II core series games (when played in color), the transformed Pokémon retains its original color palette. For instance, Shiny Ditto and Shiny Mew are both blue Pokémon, so they will transform into blue versions of the target.
• In Japanese Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium, the transformed Pokémon has the normal colors of the target.
• In Pokémon Stadium 2 and Generation III games (including Pokémon Colosseum and XD), a Shiny Pokémon transforms into the Shiny version of the target Pokémon. Likewise, a non-Shiny Pokémon transforms into the non-Shiny version of the target Pokémon.

  For instance, if a Shiny Ditto uses Transform on a non-Shiny (red) Magikarp, then Ditto becomes a Shiny (golden) Magikarp.

• From Generation IV onwards (including Pokémon Battle Revolution), Transform copies the target's coloration; whether or not the transformed Pokémon is Shiny depends on whether the target is, not the user.

  For instance, if any Ditto (Shiny or not) uses Transform on a non-Shiny (red) Magikarp, then Ditto becomes a non-Shiny Magikarp as well. Likewise, if any Ditto uses Transform on a Shiny (golden) Magikarp, Ditto becomes a Shiny Magikarp as well.

Generation II

Artwork of Ethan encountering the red Gyarados for Pokémon Day 2022

In-game Shiny Pokémon

In Generation II, any Pokémon can be Shiny, but the game includes a red Gyarados that the player must encounter at the Lake of Rage during the course of the story. In Pokémon Crystal, the Odd Egg also has a high chance of hatching a Shiny Pokémon: 50% in Japanese games, and 14% in all other languages. ^{[citation needed]}

Quirks

Pokémon that are transferred from Generation I games may also be Shiny, depending on their IVs. Due to correlations between pseudorandom numbers in the Generation I games, Pokémon encountered in those games in tall grass, on cave tiles, or by Surfing on water cannot have a set of IVs that would allow them to be Shiny in Generation II. Fishing encounters, gift Pokémon (including from Pokémon Stadium), stationary Pokémon (such as Snorlax and Mewtwo), and in-game trades can have any set of IVs, so they always have the same 1/8192 chance of having a Shiny IV combination.

Due to Shininess being determined by IVs, certain oddities arise in other things that are also determined by IVs in Generation II:

• It is impossible to have a Shiny Pokémon with a gender ratio of seven males to one female that is female in those games, as the highest Attack IV a female Pokémon with a gender ratio of seven males to one female can have is 1, while the lowest Attack IV a Shiny Pokémon can have is 2.
  • In v1.2 of Poké Transporter, when transfering Pokémon from Generation I, gender was determined randomly instead of being determined by the Attack IV. As a result, prior to v1.3, it was possible for Transporter to generate "1 ♀ : 7 ♂" gender ratio Pokémon as both Female and Shiny.
• Only Unown I and V can be Shiny.
• A Shiny Pokémon's Hidden Power type in Generation II can only be either Grass or Dragon, with a power of either 49 or 69.
• In Pokémon Stadium 2, Shiny Smeargle can only have pattern ID of 2, 3, 4, 6, 7 or 8.
• As Generation II does not allow two Pokémon to breed if they have the same Defense IVs, two Shiny Pokémon can never breed in Generation II.
• Each non-player character has a certain set of IVs shared by all of their Pokémon. Therefore, it would be technically possible for a NPC to have a team entirely consisting of Shiny Pokémon, but they cannot have a team with some Shiny and some non-Shiny Pokémon.

Shiny Ditto glitch

Main article: Shiny Ditto glitch

In Generations I and II, it is possible to use a glitch to catch a Shiny Ditto. If a wild Pokémon uses Transform twice (that is, transforms again while already transformed), when caught it will be a Ditto with the same DVs as the penultimate Pokémon it transformed into. This can be used to copy the DVs of a Shiny Pokémon owned by the player.

Generation III

In-game Shiny Pokémon

In Generation III, some Shiny Pokémon appear on NPCs' teams. In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, three Trainers in the Trainer Tower have Shiny Pokémon: the Trainer on the seventh floor in the Single Battle mode has a Shiny Meowth, the pair of Trainers on the first floor in the Double Battle mode have a Shiny Espeon, and the second Trainer on the fourth floor in the Knockout Mode has a Shiny Seaking. Several Pokémon Battle e Trainers also have Pokémon which are preset as Shiny.

Quirks

A bug with the way Shininess is handled for Eggs can cause the Shiny status of a Pokémon hatched from an Egg to differ from the Egg hatching animation. This means that a hatched Pokémon may appear to be Shiny during the hatching animation, but actually not be, and vice versa. This happens because an Egg is initially given the OT, Trainer ID and secret ID of the game in which it is generated, and if it is hatched in a different game, the hatched Pokémon will be given the Trainer details of that game's player; the problem originates in the fact that this update does not occur until after the cutscene of the Egg hatching, so while it may be Shiny for the player who hatched it, it may not be Shiny for the player who obtained the Egg (or vice versa). This also allows Eggs obtained from event distributions (which in Generation III were only distributed in Japan) to hatch a Shiny Pokémon when they would otherwise be non-Shiny Pokémon. This bug was not fixed until Generation VI.

Unown also has an uneven distribution of Shiny probability depending on its form. This is because Unown's form is also determined by its personality value. The exact probability for any given form depends on the player's Trainer ID and Secret ID, but it can have the values 1/5120, 1/6144, 1/9216, 1/10240, or 1/18432.

Generation IV

Pikachu-colored Pichu, a Shiny Pichu available via event

In-game Shiny Pokémon

In the Generation IV remakes of Generation II's Pokémon Gold and Silver, Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the player once again must encounter a red Gyarados at the Lake of Rage during the course of the story.

Pokémon encountered via the PokéWalker are prevented from being shiny.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

Generation IV introduced the first ways to increase the chances of finding a Shiny Pokémon.

The Masuda method refers to breeding two Pokémon originating from games of different languages to increase the chances of breeding a Shiny Pokémon. Under these circumstances, the game generates up to five total personality values to attempt to find one that will be Shiny. Despite being obtainable in one's native language savefile, foreign language Pokémon obtained via in-game trades, such as the Meister's Foppa and Lt. Surge's Volty, are treated as being from the language of origin shown by the language tag, so if bred with a parent caught in the same save file, the Masuda method will take effect.

The Poké Radar slowly improves the odds of finding a Shiny Pokémon as the player builds a chain. The odds can reach a maximum of 41/8192 (approximately 1/200) for a single patch of grass for a chain of length 40 or higher; since up to four patches of grass can shake, the total odds become approximately 1/50. If the Poké Radar forces a Pokémon to be Shiny, it constructs a semi-random personality value that will fulfill the requirement for the Pokémon to be Shiny.

Quirks

Cute Charm can make it possible for players with certain Trainer ID number and Secret ID combinations to manipulate the chance of Pokémon with specific gender ratios being Shiny to be as high as 21.34% (while making the chance lower for all other players and Pokémon with different gender ratios, while using the Ability). This is due to how Cute Charm forces a wild Pokémon to be a specific gender when it activates, which is accomplished by modifying the Pokémon's personality value to be one of an extremely limited set of values.

The bug from Generation III that can cause a Pokémon's Shiny status to differ from the hatching animation persists. This again allows Eggs obtained from event distributions (which in Generation IV were only distributed in Japan) and the Manaphy Egg to be Shiny after hatching.

Generation V

Red Genesect, a Shiny Genesect available via event

In-game Shiny Pokémon

Generation V introduced a mechanism often referred to by fans as a "Shiny lock", preventing Reshiram, Zekrom, and Victini from being encountered as Shiny, however Shiny sprites for all three exist in the games' data. All Pokémon obtained in Entree Forest (i.e., from the Pokémon Dream World) are also prevented from being Shiny. The Zorua gifted at Castelia City^BW, and the Zoroark encountered in Lostlorn Forest^BW are also prevented from being Shiny.

In Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, the player can obtain three specific Shiny Pokémon (however two are mutually exclusive and cannot both be obtained by the same savefile). If the player registers every non-event Pokémon in the Unova Pokédex, they can receive a Permit that allows them to travel to the Nature Preserve, where they can encounter a Shiny Haxorus. After defeating Benga in the Black Tower^B2 or White Treehollow^W2, Benga will give the player a Shiny Gible^B2 or Shiny Dratini^W2, the player can only choose one. Additionally, all of N's Pokémon that can be found in the wild or obtained as a gift are coded to never appear as Shiny.

Starting in Generation V, Pokémon in the Pokédex will appear Shiny if the first specimen of that Pokémon encountered was Shiny.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

The Masuda method now generates up to six total personality values instead of five. This remains the case in later games.

Generation V also introduces the Shiny Charm, a Key Item that increases the chances of encountering Shiny Pokémon, both in the wild, (including static encounters, such as legendaries), and via breeding. This is done by generating two extra personality values to attempt to find one that is Shiny, effectively resulting in a tripled chance to find Shiny Pokémon compared to the base chance; from 1/8192 to approximately 3/8192 (roughly 1/2731). This stacks with most other modifiers which increase the Shiny encounter rate, such as the Masuda method. It has no effect on Pokémon obtained via NPCs from in-game trades, gifts, or from Event Pokémon obtained via Mystery Gift.

Quirks

The bug from Generation III that can cause a Pokémon's Shiny status to differ from the hatching animation persists. This again allows Eggs obtained from event distributions to be Shiny after hatching.

Generation VI

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Mega Metagross

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Mega Gengar

In-game Shiny Pokémon

Generation VI slightly changed how Shiny Pokémon are determined to double the default chances that a Pokémon will be Shiny. The basic formula remains the same, but the threshold for a Pokémon to be Shiny is now 16 instead of 8. This results in a base Shiny probability of approximately 16/65536, or 1/4096.

The following Pokémon are prevented from being Shiny when encountered as wild Pokémon in Pokémon X and Y: the legendary birds, the Aura trio, Mewtwo, the Snorlax encountered on Kalos Route 7, the gifted Lucario at the Tower of Mastery, and in-game trade Pokémon.

The following Pokémon are prevented from being Shiny when encountered as wild Pokémon in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire: The Super-ancient Pokémon, Deoxys, the in-game gift Cosplay Pikachu, and in-game trade Pokémon.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

The Poké Radar returns for Pokémon X and Y. The exact mechanics of the Poké Radar in these games are not confirmed, but the Poké Radar can still force a Pokémon in a shaking patch to be Shiny.

In X and Y, in the Friend Safari, Shiny Pokémon are more common. The game achieves this by generating up to four extra personality values when checking if a Pokémon will be Shiny. This effect can stack with the Shiny Charm's effect.

Consecutive fishing can increase the odds of finding a Shiny Pokémon as the player builds a chain of reeled-in Pokémon by fishing from the same spot. For every Pokémon added to the chain, the game tries two extra personality values to attempt to make the Pokémon Shiny, up to a chain of 20 Pokémon, at which point the chances reach a maximum of 41/4096 or approximately 1%. This effect can stack with the Shiny Charm's effect.

In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, hidden Pokémon have a chance to be forced to be Shiny. Unlike most other methods that increase the odds of finding a Shiny Pokémon, this does not increase the number of personality values that the game tries, but instead executes a custom algorithm to decide whether to force a Shiny personality value. In brief summary, the chances of forcing a Shiny Pokémon grow steadily from 0% at Search Level 0 to 0.06% at Search Level 100 (only surpassing the natural odds of finding a Shiny Pokémon at Search Level 41), then grows steadily to 0.08% at Search Level 200, after which the rate of growth becomes 0.01% for every 100 Search Levels. Certain factors can increase the odds further by performing the check extra times. There is a random 4% chance it will be performed four extra times; if the player has the Shiny Charm it will be performed two extra times; and if the player is encountering the 50th or 100th Pokémon in a chain of hidden Pokémon, it will be performed five or ten extra times respectively. All of these bonuses stack.

Generation VII

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Tapu Koko by kawayoo

In-game Shiny Pokémon

In Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon, after entering the Hall of Fame, Sightseer Marcus appears at the Seafolk Village Pokémon Center, battling the player with a Shiny Exeggcute. This marks the only time an NPC Trainer outside of a battle facility uses a Shiny Pokémon (excluding capture tutorials).

The following Pokémon are prevented from being Shiny when encountered as wild Pokémon in Generation VII games: The Guardian deities, the Light trio, Zygarde in Resolution Cave^USUM, the two Wishiwashi encountered during the Trial in Brooklet Hill^SM, Pinsir on Exeggutor Island^USUM, Bewear in the Hau'oli City Shopping District^USUM, the Gastly and Drifloon at the Trainers' School^USUM, the Sandygast on Route 15^USUM, the static encounter female Frillish on Route 14^USUM, and the Electrode found in Team Rocket's Castle.

The following Ultra Beast encounters are prevented from being Shiny in Pokémon Sun and Moon, but are not prevented from being Shiny in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon: Nihilego, Buzzwole, Pheromosa, Xurkitree, Celesteela, Kartana, and Guzzlord.

The following gift Pokémon are also prevented from being Shiny: Cosmog, Magearna, all Zygarde obtained from Route 16 and the Zygarde Cube, and all Totem-sized Pokémon obtained on Heahea Beach^USUM.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

Pokémon Sun and Moon

In Pokémon Sun and Moon, as well as Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, as Pokémon in SOS Battles continue calling in allies, the chance that they will be Shiny increases. At chain lengths of 11, 21, and 31, the game will check up to four extra personality values to find a Shiny Pokémon (meaning the maximum number of personality values checked will be 13 for a chain of 31 Pokémon or more). This effect can stack with the Shiny Charm's effect.

In Pokémon Sun and Moon, the chain length value is stored as an 8-bit integer. As a result, the chain length will reset to 0 if the chain length exceeds 255 due to integer overflow. This issue was fixed in Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, allowing SOS chains of any length.

SOS Chain Length	Shiny Rate	Shiny Charm
0–10	1/4096	1/1365.67
11-20	1/819.6	1/585.57
21-30	1/455.56	1/372.82
31+	1/315.54	1/273.53

Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Poipole

In Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, Pokémon encountered through the Ultra Warp Ride (excluding Legendary Pokémon and Ultra Beasts) have a chance to be forced to be Shiny. The Shininess of these Pokémon is determined when the player arrives at the Ultra Space Wilds. The probability that a Pokémon encountered this way will be Shiny depends on the rarity of the wormhole and the distance traveled.

Distance (ly)	0 rings	1 ring	2 rings	3 rings
0–999	1%	N/A	N/A	N/A
1000–1499		2%	3%
1500–1999		3%	5%
2000–2499		4%	7%
2500–2999		5%	9%	16%
3000–3499		6%	11%	20%
3500–3999		7%	13%	24%
4000–4499		8%	15%	28%
4500–4999		9%	17%	32%
5000+		10%	19%	36%

Note that 3-ring "blooming" wormholes will always contain Legendary Pokémon (which do not have increased odds of being Shiny), unless all Legendary Pokémon that could be encountered in that particular wormhole have already been caught.

Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!

In Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, Shiny Pokémon rates can be increased dramatically with catch combos and lures. However, combos past 31 will have no additional effect on shiny chance.

Catch Combo	Base Shiny Rate	Lure	Shiny Charm	Lure &  Shiny Charm
0–10	1/4096	1/2048.25	1/1365.67	1/1024.38
11-20	1/1024.38	1/819.6	1/683.08	1/585.57
21-30	1/512.44	1/455.56	1/410.05	1/372.82
31+	1/341.79	1/315.54	1/293.04	1/273.53

The Catch Combo bonus is only applied to the next Pokémon of the chained species to spawn after the prior Pokémon is captured, meaning the player must continue to catch Pokémon regardless of chain length, or the bonus will not apply to any subsequent spawns. The bonus does not apply to any Pokémon that spawn nearby that do not match the currently chained species.

With a catch combo of 31 or higher, a Shiny Charm, and a Lure, the next Pokémon of the chained species to spawn will have the highest shiny chance of 1/273.53.

The above three Shiny-increasing methods have no effect on in-game trades or Gift Pokémon.

Generation VIII

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Zacian and Zamazenta

In Pokémon Sword and Shield and Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, Pokémon that appear in the overworld use their standard coloration, regardless of whether they are Shiny or not. They will not be revealed to be Shiny until they are encountered. Walking Pokémon assigned to follow the player in Isle of Armor, Crown Tundra, and Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl outdoor areas will use their correct coloration. In Pokémon Legends: Arceus, Shiny Pokémon that appear in the overworld will be colored properly, play the Shiny animation and audio cue when spawning, and periodically play the Shiny animation and audio cue while roaming the overworld.

Variants

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, there are two different types of Shiny Pokémon, distinguished only by the type of sparkle animation that plays when they enter battle. One type has an animation with star-shaped sparkles (similar to previous generations), while the other uses square-shaped sparkles.

Main article: Shiny Pokémon → Appearance

Like Shininess itself, the type of Shiny sparkle a Pokémon has is determined by its personality value. Ordinarily, there is a 15/16 chance of a Shiny Pokémon having a personality value that yields star sparkles, and a 1/16 chance of it having a personality value that yields square sparkles. (For Shiny Pokémon obtained in Generation III, IV, or V, due to the different Shiny rate in those games, there is instead a 7/8 chance of a Shiny Pokémon having star sparkles, and a 1/8 chance of it having square sparkles.)

However, wild encounters in Pokémon Sword and Shield have drastically different rates for each Shiny sparkle type. Shiny Pokémon encountered in the wild in Pokémon Sword and Shield have a 65521/65536 chance of having square sparkles and a 15/65536 chance of having star sparkles. This does not apply to Pokémon hatched from Eggs, received as gifts, or encountered in Max Raid Battles.

Shiny Pokémon obtained from Dynamax Adventures always have star sparkles. Pokémon that are guaranteed to be Shiny (i.e. from Max Raid Battles during some Wild Area News events) always have a personality value that yields square sparkles.

Additionally, starting in Pokémon Sword and Shield v1.1.0, Shiny Pokémon met in a fateful encounter or transferred from Pokémon GO always have square sparkles, regardless of their personality value.

In Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl and Pokémon Legends: Arceus, these variants are not distinguishable from each other, as all Shiny Pokémon use the same entry animation with star-shaped sparkles like in previous generations.

In-game Shiny Pokémon

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, the following Pokémon are prevented from being Shiny when encountered as wild Pokémon: the Galarian Slowpoke at Wedgehurst Station, the Corvisquire on Galar Route 3, Zacian, Zamazenta, Eternatus, the Galarian legendary birds, Keldeo, Glastrier, Spectrier, and Calyrex. Additionally, all in-game gift Pokémon (except the fossil Pokémon from Cara Liss) cannot be Shiny.

Pokémon that are too high a level for the player to catch with the current Badges (described as "very strong-looking" in-game) cannot be Shiny, except Pokémon that appear as static encounters.

In Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, the following Pokémon are prevented from being Shiny: the Gift Mew and Jirachi in Floaroma Town, and all Pokémon available via In-game trade.

In Pokémon Legends: Arceus, all Legendary, Mythical, and Gift Pokémon are prevented from being shiny, as well as certain static encounters during Missions and Requests, such as the three Alpha Pokémon found in Lake Verity, Valor, and Acuity's caves during Missions 14, 15, and 16. In Pokémon Legends: Arceus in the request A Peculiar Ponyta the player will encounter a guaranteed Shiny Ponyta. Once you've calmed the first Frenzied Noble Pokémon, you will be able to pick up this request in Jubilife Village from Yota.

Max Raid Battles

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, whether the Pokémon currently occupying an active Pokémon Den is Shiny or not is determined when the den becomes active, and will not change if the game is reset. For dens activated with a Wishing Piece, the Shiny status of the Pokémon in the den is also predetermined for every subsequent day the den remains active. The chance of encountering a Shiny Pokémon in a Max Raid Battle is not affected by the Shiny Charm.

Although Pokémon encountered in Max Raid Battles can always be caught regardless of how many Badges the player has, if the Pokémon's level is too high for the number of Badges the player has, it will be forced not to be Shiny. However, because Shiny status is determined when the Max Raid Battle spawns, if the player earns enough Badges before defeating it, the Pokémon will be Shiny upon capture even if they lacked the required Badges when it spawned.

Wild Area News events

Pokémon Sword and Shield has had several Wild Area News events that included Shiny Pokémon. During these events, one of the 5★ Max Raid Battle encounter slots was guaranteed to be a Shiny Pokémon. As mentioned above, these guaranteed Shiny Pokémon will always have square sparkles.

The following is a list of such events in reverse chronological order:

Start date	End date	Focus Shiny Pokémon	Notes	Source
September 9, 2022	September 19, 2022		Released to coincide with a Full Moon.	[1]
August 12, 2022	August 21, 2022		Themed around "imp Pokémon", released for Bon Festival.	[2]
July 1, 2022	July 10, 2022		Themed around "Defeating Water-type Pokémon to earn Fresh Water, Soda Pop, and Lemonade", however, due to an oversight, the event did not reward any of the above.	[3]
May 19, 2022	May 22, 2022			[4]
April 1, 2022	April 2, 2022		Released for April Fool's Day.	[5]
March 18, 2022	March 27, 2022		Themed around Unova/Kalos region "fossil Pokémon".	[6]
February 11, 2022	February 20, 2022		Released for Valentine's Day, re-run of event from February 11 to 14, 2021. Has the Gigantamax Factor.	[7]
January 1, 2022	January 9, 2022		Released for New Year.	[8]
December 17, 2021	December 26, 2021		Released for the Holiday season.	[9]
November 19, 2021	November 28, 2021		Themed around Eevee's evolutionary line.	[10]
October 29, 2021	October 31, 2021		Released for Halloween.	[11]
September 17, 2021	September 19, 2021		Released for the autumnal Equinox.	[12]
September 3, 2021	September 5, 2021		Themed around "cleaning".	[13]
August 20, 2021	August 22, 2021		Released for Bon Festival.	[14]
August 6, 2021	August 8, 2021		Released for Summer.	[15]
July 23, 2021	July 25, 2021		Themed around Kanto region "fossil Pokémon".	[16]
July 9, 2021	July 11, 2021		Have the Gigantamax Factor.	[17]
June 25, 2021	June 27, 2021		Themed around "tentacled Pokémon".	[18]
May 21, 2021	May 23, 2021		Themed around "frog Pokémon/the rainy season".	[19]
May 21, 2021	May 23, 2021			[20]
April 30, 2021	May 2, 2021			[21]
April 23, 2021	April 25, 2021		Released for World Penguin Day.	[22]
April 2, 2021	April 4, 2021		Released for Easter.	[23]
March 26, 2021	March 28, 2021		Released for the spring Equinox.	[24]
February 27, 2021	February 28, 2021		Released for Pokémon Day. Have the Gigantamax Factor. Part of 1 Million Victories challenge.	[25]
February 11, 2021	February 14, 2021		Released for Valentine's Day. Have the Gigantamax Factor.	[26]
February 4, 2021	February 8, 2021		Released to celebrate Pokémon featured in Secrets of the Jungle. Part of 1 Million Victories challenge.	[27]
January 22, 2021	January 24, 2021		Released for Chinese New Year.	[28]
January 8, 2021	January 11, 2021		Re-run of event from November 20 to 22, 2021	[29]
December 1, 2020	December 31, 2020		Released for Christmas.	[30]
November 20, 2020	November 22, 2020		Received a re-run on January 8 to 11, 2021.	[31]
October 30, 2020	November 1, 2020		Released for Halloween.	[32]
September 18, 2020	September 20, 2020		Released for the autumnal Equinox.	[33]
August 6, 2020	August 9, 2020			[34]
July 17, 2020	July 19, 2020		Released for Marine Day.	[35]
June 17, 2020	June 28, 2020		Zeraora was uncatchable, part of 1 Million Victories challenge.	[36]
December 31, 2019	January 3, 2020		Released for the Japanese New Year.	[37]

Traded Eggs

Unlike in previous generations, where Eggs keep their original personality values when traded and can potentially go from Shiny to non-Shiny or vice-versa if hatched by a player with a different Trainer ID and Secret ID, Eggs traded in Generation VIII have their personality values altered according to the hatcher's TID/SID, to ensure they retain their original Shiny status when hatched by a player other than the original owner.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

Pokémon Sword and Shield

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, the number of times that the player has caught or defeated each species of Pokémon increases the chance of Pokémon of that species appearing as a Brilliant Pokémon in the overworld. This number is recorded in the player's Pokédex as "Number Battled". The number recorded increases when opponents are defeated in wild battles, Max Raid Battles, and Trainer battles (except Link Battles, the Battle Tower, and Restricted Sparring).

The appearance rate of Brilliant Pokémon is further increased while chain fishing; depending on the length of the chain, a bonus between +2% and +25% will be added to the base appearance rate.

Brilliant Pokémon are more likely to be Shiny depending on the "Number Battled" for that species. When determining a Brilliant Pokémon's personality value, if the Pokémon would not be Shiny the game will regenerate the personality value a number of times depending on the "Number Battled", up to a maximum of 6 times. Non-Brilliant Pokémon are not affected and do not have enhanced Shiny rates.

No. Battled	Brilliant appearance rate	Bonus Shiny Rolls	Approximate Shiny rate
			No Charm	Shiny Charm
1	1.5%	1	1/2048.25	1/1024.38
20	2%	1	1/2048.25	1/1024.38
50	2.5%	2	1/1365.67	1/819.6
100	3%	3	1/1024.38	1/683.08
200	3%	4	1/819.6	1/585.57
300	3%	5	1/683.08	1/512.44
500	3%	6	1/585.57	1/455.56

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl

In the Grand Underground, the Lightstone bonus allows for 1 bonus shiny reroll after all players in an instance of the Grand Underground collect pink sparkles left by Diglett and Dugtrio that occasionally appear at corners and intersections, that give 1 and 3 points respectively.

Accumulating 40 of these points displays the message "something good will happen", and a whistle sound will play to all players in the instance. This increases the shiny odds for Pokémon in Hideaways from 1/4096 to 1/2048.25, for a period of 4 minutes. After the 4 minute period is over, a whistle will sound and the counter resets to 0, allowing Diglett and Dugtrio to appear again.

Additionally, Poké Radar chaining is available, and has Chain Bonuses that differ from Pokémon Diamond & Pearl, capping out at a Shiny Rate of 1/99 when the player reaches a chain length of 40+.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus

In Pokémon Legends: Arceus, completing Research Tasks to increase a Pokémon's Pokédex entry grants extra shiny rolls for that species once the entry reaches Level 10, and completing all Research Tasks for a given entry upgrades that entry to "Perfect", granting even more shiny rolls that stack with other bonus rolls.

The Shiny Charm in this game also grants 3 additional shiny rolls (instead of 2 in prior games), and is obtainable after all Pokédex entries are at Research 10.

Massive Mass Outbreaks grant 12 additional rolls, and Mass Outbreaks grant an additional 25 rolls, both of which will stack with any rolls granted from the Shiny Charm, or the player's Pokédex Research progress for that species.

Variables	Wild Shiny Rate	Wild Shiny Rolls	Mass Outbreak Shiny Rate	Mass Outbreak Shiny Rolls	Massive Mass Outbreak Shiny Rate	Massive Mass Outbreak Shiny Rolls
Base Shiny Rate	1/4096	1	1/158.02	26	1/315.54	13
Species Research Level 10	1/2048.25	2	1/152.19	27	1/293.04	14
Species Research Perfect	1/1024.38	4	1/141.72	29	1/256.47	16
Shiny Charm & Species Research Level 10	1/819.6	5	1/137.02	30	1/241.41	17
Shiny Charm & Species Research Perfect	1/585.57	7	1/128.49	32	1/216.05	19

Generation IX

Promotional artwork of a Shiny Lucario with Florian, drawn by Raita Kazama

In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, all wild Shiny Pokémon will appear as Shiny in the overworld. However, unlike those found in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, there is no audio or visual effect to alert the player to a nearby Shiny prior to being encountered and beginning a battle. Additionally, while using the Auto Battle feature, walking Pokémon will refuse to attack Shiny Pokémon. However, this will not happen while using the Synchro Machine.

The star and square sparkle variants that appeared in Pokémon Sword and Shield are not present in Scarlet and Violet. Pokémon that previously appeared with square sparkles, if transferred to Scarlet or Violet, will display standard star-shaped sparkles like any other Shiny Pokémon.

When multiple players join a co-op session via the Union Circle, each player has a radius where Pokémon will generate around them, and the chance of a Shiny appearing, and their respective bonus Shiny rolls, are determined by the player that "caused" that Pokémon to appear. If multiple players stand near each other, one of the players spawns will take priority. If players stand near the player hosting the Union Circle, it appears to always prioritize the host player's spawns and respective Shiny chances.

In-game Shiny Pokémon

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: More specific location info for the fixed symbol encounters that are Shiny-locked post-v1.0.1, encounter tables here for reference.

In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, all static encounters, NPC gifts (such as the first partner Pokémon), and NPC in-game trades (with one exception) are coded never to appear as Shiny. Static encounters include:

• All legendary Pokémon, including Koraidon, Miraidon, all four treasures of ruin, all three of The Loyal Three, Ogerpon, Terapagos, and all legendary Pokémon encountered from speaking to Snacksworth.
• Titan Pokémon
• All Gimmighoul
• The Lechonk encountered during the catching tutorial on Poco Path.
• Artazon Gym Test Sunflora
• The interactable Tatsugiri at Casseroya Lake prior to the "False Dragon" Titan encounter
• Bloodmoon Ursaluna
• Gouging Fire, Raging Bolt, Iron Boulder and Iron Crown

There are also some fixed symbol encounters that are only prevented from being Shiny in v1.0.1 onward, but could generate as Shiny in v1.0.0, specifically:

• The two Green Plumage Form Squawkabilly located on the roof of the player's house in Cabo Poco
• The Wingull and Fletchling that fly away when approached in Cabo Poco, Poco Path and South Province (Area One)
• Tarountula in South Province (Area One)
• Wattrel in West Province (Area Two) and East Province (Area Two)
• Wingull in North Province (Area Three).

Wild Tera Pokémon have the standard 1/4096 chance to appear as Shiny.

Due to the RNG being limited to 32-bit seeds for Tera Raid Battles (1,046,775 possible Shiny seeds out of 4,294,967,295 possible seeds), the chance of a Shiny Pokémon appearing in a Tera Raid is 1/4103.05 rather than the typical 1/4096.

The fixed symbol encounters listed above (also known as wanderers), wild Tera Pokémon, and Pokémon generated in Tera Raid Battles are all unaffected by the Shiny Charm and Sparkling Power from sandwiches, and Eggs only benefit from the Shiny Charm, but not from Sparkling Power.

• All wild Pokémon that appear in the Area Zero Underdepths are considered fixed symbol/wanderer encounters internally, and are subject to the restrictions above.

In The Teal Mask, after completing Ogre Oustin' on Hard difficulty for the first time, the receptionist rewards the player with a Shiny Munchlax. This Munchlax has a Crafty Mark and is the maximum possible Scale.

In The Indigo Disk, Cyrano will trade a Shiny Blitzle to the player after he is invited to the League Club Room as a special coach.

Methods of increasing Shiny rates

In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, both Mass Outbreaks and the "Sparkling Power" bonus from certain Sandwiches have an effect on the chances for a Pokémon to appear as Shiny in the wild.

Outbreaks can be cleared via catching, battling, or using the Auto Battle feature to forcibly despawn Pokémon, and this progress is retained even if the game is saved and exited, or if the player leaves the area. However, Pokémon that despawn if the player leaves the area, enters a town, or enters a Picnic will not deplete a Mass Outbreak, allowing for the player to progress to 60 cleared Pokémon, then continue respawning the Mass Outbreak encounters indefinitely.

During multiplayer sessions via the Union Circle, progress in an Outbreak is shared by all players, and the Outbreaks that appear will match the host player's singleplayer session. Any progress in a given Outbreak is retained between singleplayer and multiplayer.

Base Shiny Rate Variables Wild Shiny Rate Mass Outbreak Shiny Rate Shiny Rolls Base Shiny Rates 1/4096 1/4096 1 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared 1/2048.25 2 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared 1/1365.67 3 Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 1/2048.25 1/2048.25 2 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 1/1365.67 3 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 1/1024.38 4 Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 1/1365.67 1/1365.67 3 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 1/1024.38 4 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 1/819.60 5 Sparkling Power Lvl. 3 1/1024.38 1/1024.38 4 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 3 1/819.60 5 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 3 1/683.08 6

Shiny Charm Variables Wild Shiny Rate Mass Outbreak Shiny Rate Shiny Rolls Base Shiny Rate & 1/1365.67 1/1365.67 3 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared & 1/1024.38 4 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared & 1/819.60 5 Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 & 1/1024.38 1/1024.38 4 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 & 1/819.60 5 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 1 & 1/683.08 6 Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 & 1/819.60 1/819.60 5 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 & 1/683.08 6 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lvl. 2 & 1/585.57 7 Sparkling Power Lv. 3 & 1/683.08 1/683.08 6 Outbreak: 30-59 Cleared Sparkling Power Lv. 3 & 1/585.57 7 Outbreak: 60+ Cleared Sparkling Power Lv. 3 & 1/512.44 8

Poké Portal News events

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has had several Poké Portal News events that boosted the Shiny rates of certain species of Pokémon in Mass outbreaks. During these events, the Pokémon that appeared had a flat 0.5% bonus chance of being Shiny.

The following is a list of such events in reverse chronological order:

Start date	End date	Boosted Shiny Pokémon	Notes
April 26, 2024	May 6, 2024		Released to celebrate Golden Week. Magikarp and Varoom appeared in Paldea, Shinx appeared in Kitakami, and Rellor appeared in the Terarium.
February 23, 2024	February 27, 2024		Released to celebrate Pokémon Day. Voltorb, Hisuian Voltorb, and Foongus appeared in Paldea.
December 22, 2023	December 24, 2023		Released for the Holiday season. Delibird appeared in Paldea, Kitakami, and the Terarium.
December 8, 2023	December 21, 2023		Released to celebrate the release of The Indigo Disk. Flabébé appeared in Paldea and Litwick appeared in Kitakami. Milcery appeared in the Terarium following the release of The Indigo Disk on December 14, 2023.

Appearance

Generation I	RBY	Generation I (Japanese)	Generation I (international)	Generation II	Generation II (Japanese)	Generation II (international)	Crystal	Generation III	Generation III (Japanese)	Generation III (international)	RS	FRLG	FRLGE	Generation IV	Generation IV (Japanese)	Generation IV (international)	PtHGSS	HGSS	Generation V	BW	B2W2	Generation V (Japanese)	Generation V (international)	Generation VI	XY	ORAS	Generation VII	SMUSUM	LGPE	Generation VIII	SwSh	BDSP	Legends: Arceus	Generation IX	Stadium (JP)	Stadium	Stadium 2	Colosseum	XD	Battle Revolution	Battrio	MD: Red and Blue	MD: Time, Darkness, and Sky	MD: Blazing, Stormy, & Light Adventure Squad	MD: GTI	SMD	MD: RTDX	Rumble	Rumble Blast	Masters EX

Generation I	RBY	Generation I (Japanese)	Generation I (international)	Generation II	Generation II (Japanese)	Generation II (international)	Crystal	Generation III	Generation III (Japanese)	Generation III (international)	RS	FRLG	FRLGE	Generation IV	Generation IV (Japanese)	Generation IV (international)	PtHGSS	HGSS	Generation V	BW	B2W2	Generation V (Japanese)	Generation V (international)	Generation VI	XY	ORAS	Generation VII	SMUSUM	LGPE	Generation VIII	SwSh	BDSP	Legends: Arceus	Generation IX	Stadium (JP)	Stadium	Stadium 2	Colosseum	XD	Battle Revolution	Battrio	MD: Red and Blue	MD: Time, Darkness, and Sky	MD: Blazing, Stormy, & Light Adventure Squad	MD: GTI	SMD	MD: RTDX	Rumble	Rumble Blast	Masters EX

Generation I	RBY	Generation I (Japanese)	Generation I (international)	Generation II	Generation II (Japanese)	Generation II (international)	Crystal	Generation III	Generation III (Japanese)	Generation III (international)	RS	FRLG	FRLGE	Generation IV	Generation IV (Japanese)	Generation IV (international)	PtHGSS	HGSS	Generation V	BW	B2W2	Generation V (Japanese)	Generation V (international)	Generation VI	XY	ORAS	Generation VII	SMUSUM	LGPE	Generation VIII	SwSh	BDSP	Legends: Arceus	Generation IX	Stadium (JP)	Stadium	Stadium 2	Colosseum	XD	Battle Revolution	Battrio	MD: Red and Blue	MD: Time, Darkness, and Sky	MD: Blazing, Stormy, & Light Adventure Squad	MD: GTI	SMD	MD: RTDX	Rumble	Rumble Blast	Masters EX

Unobtainable Shiny Pokémon

Main article: List of unobtainable Shiny Pokémon

Shiny Victini is an example of an unobtainable Shiny Pokémon.

In all generations since Shiny Pokémon debuted, there are a few species that cannot be legitimately obtained as Shiny. These Pokémon are commonly referred to by fans as Shiny-locked.

This can happen if the Pokémon is coded not to appear as Shiny in the wild or via in-game gifts or trades and if the Pokémon cannot be bred or has never been distributed as Shiny via events.

Non-playable character's Shiny Pokémon

A Shiny Minccino in the introduction screen

It is possible for all of the following NPC Pokémon to be Shiny:

• The Rattata that the dude catches in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal.
• The Poochyena/Zigzagoon that attacks Professor Birch in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald.
• The Zigzagoon that Wally uses in the capture tutorial in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald.
• The Ralts that Wally catches in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald (but only when he catches it and not in subsequent battles).
• The Weedle that the old man encounters in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen.
• Rental Pokémon found in the Battle Factory in Pokémon Emerald.
• Battle Frontier Pokémon used by the AI in Pokémon Emerald.
• Wild Pokémon that appear in the Battle Pike and Battle Pyramid in Pokémon Emerald.
• The Pokémon that the player uses in Battle CDs in Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness.
• The Starly that attacks the player in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, as well as in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
• The Bidoof that Lucas or Dawn captures in the capture tutorial in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
• Battle Frontier Pokémon used by the AI in Pokémon HeartGold, SoulSilver, and Platinum.
• Professor Juniper's Minccino that appears in the "world of Pokémon" intro and the one used in the catching tutorial in Pokémon Black and White.
• Professor Juniper's Cinccino that appears in the "world of Pokémon" intro in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2
• The Purrloin that Bianca catches in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2.
• The Fletchling that the rival, Calem or Serena, uses in the capture tutorial in Pokémon X and Y.
• The Bunnelby that the rival, Calem or Serena, captures in the tutorial in Pokémon X and Y.
• Arven's Pokémon that he uses in the battles against the Titan Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

In the side series games

A Gloom nicknamed FruitSalad and an Ekans nicknamed KANS-E, sporting different colors that are different than their shiny counterparts (red eyes instead of the usual yellow)

Pokémon Stadium series

In Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2, non-Shiny Pokémon with a nickname can be colored slightly differently. The colors a nicknamed Pokémon has are determined by the Pokémon's nickname and the Original Trainer's Trainer ID number and name. Pokémon Eggs change colors in the same way, as the game internally considers "EGG" to be a nickname. Additionally, Smeargle's back and tail markings can be red, green or blue depending on its DVs.

In Stadium 2, nicknamed Shiny Pokémon do not vary in color. This also applies to Eggs containing Shiny Pokémon, meaning it's possible to determine if a Pokémon is Shiny before it hatches since it will always be the basic Egg color.

In the Ekans Hoop Hurl game in the Pokémon Stadium series mini-games, there are golden Diglett that are worth extra points. In Pokémon Stadium 2 mini-games, when a compatible box or party Pokémon is not available from a Transfer Pak or it is disconnected, there are color variations that it defaults to.

In Stadium 2, there is an option while viewing the list to exclude any non-Shiny Pokémon from the listing (i.e. Group Color Pokémon/Cancel Color Pokémon). This will show Shininess, even if the player is currently viewing a Generation I cartridge in the Lab.

It is possible for Challenge Cup Pokémon to be Shiny.

Pokémon Colosseum

Shiny Voltorb's box sprite in Pokémon Colosseum.

Main article: List of glitches (Generation III) → Shiny Shadow Pokémon bug

In Pokémon Colosseum, non-Shadow Pokémon obtained in the game—such as the player's initial Espeon or Umbreon and Duking's Plusle—are prevented from being Shiny.

There is roughly a 1/8192 chance of a Shadow Pokémon being Shiny. When a Shadow Pokémon is first encountered, it is assigned a random personality value, but the game ensures that the personality value does not cause it to be Shiny for its NPC Trainer (using that Trainer's Trainer ID and Secret ID). When the player catches the Shadow Pokémon, because it retains that same personality value but now has a different Trainer ID and Secret ID, it is possible for the Shadow Pokémon to be Shiny for the player. In subsequent encounters, the Shadow Pokémon retains the same personality value it had in the first encounter (meaning that whether it is Shiny for the player or not cannot change); however, because its NPC Trainer's Trainer ID and Secret ID can differ, it can be Shiny for its NPC Trainer in these subsequent encounters.

Purification has no effect on the Shiny status of a Pokémon: Shiny Pokémon remain Shiny, and non-Shiny Pokémon cannot become Shiny.

In Pokémon Colosseum, the color of a Shiny Pokémon can differ drastically from the handheld games.

Pokémon XD

In Pokémon XD, the game ensures that all Shadow Pokémon are not Shiny by recalculating the Pokémon's personality value if it would result in a Shiny Pokémon. However, non-Shadow Pokémon (such as the initial Eevee, in-game trades, Mt. Battle Johto first partner Pokémon, and Poké Spot Pokémon) can be Shiny.

Like in Pokémon Colosseum, the color of a Shiny Pokémon can differ drastically from the handheld games. Shiny Pokémon have a different profile icon next to their health bar than their normally-colored counterparts.

My Pokémon Ranch

Shiny Zigzagoon, Pikachu, and Bibarel as seen in My Pokémon Ranch

In My Pokémon Ranch, Pokémon's Shininess is visible. Pokémon traded by Hayley cannot be Shiny. (Including Mew and Phione, which despite having variable personality values, they both use the antishiny ARNG generation method which prevents them from being Shiny, the same way as Type 1 Wonder Card Pokémon and Pokémon Ranger's Manaphy Egg.)

Pokémon Battle Revolution

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Better images, technical documentation. Research Thread Additional photosVideo of shiny lucario outfit

The standard and Shiny versions of the Groudon Gear costume, as shown in the official guidebook

In Pokémon Battle Revolution, Shiny Pokémon have face-sprites which show their Shininess. Random Pokémon in Colosseum can be Shiny, but have the same chance of being Shiny as wild Pokémon. Similarly to Colosseum, the shiny Pokémon can be drastically different from their handheld counterparts.

Costumes worn by the Colosseum Leaders also have the potential to appear as Shiny, and if the Leader is encountered and defeated for the first time while wearing the Shiny variant of their costume, it will grant the player the ability to wear that gear on their Custom Pass.

In the spin-off games

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time, Darkness and Sky

In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, a Shiny Celebi is part of the story, although Shiny Pokémon are not obtainable normally in the game.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon WiiWare

Shiny Roserade

In the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games for WiiWare, Shiny Pokémon can be found in dungeons. Unlike the core series, only 36 different species of Shiny Pokémon are obtainable. The chances of finding one in a dungeon is the same as finding one in the wild in the core series. Unlike Shiny Pokémon in the past however, the Shiny Pokémon found in these games have an added bonus: their Belly stat starts at 200 as opposed to the 100 of normal Pokémon. A Red Gyarados can also be obtained at Level 30 via Wonder Mail password, as a reference to the one found in the Johto-based games.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity

Shiny Ho-Oh

In Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity, Ho-Oh can be uniquely encountered as a Shiny Pokémon at Eternal Ruins through a Legend of the Mysterious Ruins job request. This Shiny Ho-Oh has a slightly different moveset to the regular Ho-Oh that can be met. It also has a unique animation that plays before the battle begins.

Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon

Shiny Celebi

The Shiny Celebi from Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time, Darkness, and Sky makes an appearance. She is rescued as part of an expedition and subsequently connects with the player. She has a unique animation that plays when entering a dungeon.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX

Shiny Gyarados

27 Mystery Dungeons, once completed for the first time, will have "Strong Foe" Pokémon that spawn. These Pokémon have a higher than normal chance of being Shiny compared to the main series. Shiny Pokémon cannot be recruited unless the Player has the Friend Bow equipped and the Shiny Pokémon's respective Camp purchased. Recruitment is still not guaranteed if these criteria are met.

Additionally, the Shiny Celebi from past Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games also makes a cameo appearance, and can be recruited after clearing Purity Forest and visiting Mystery Houses—rare rooms that spawn in post-game dungeons—with an invitation.

Super Smash Bros. series

In the Super Smash Bros. series, Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Mewtwo, Squirtle, Ivysaur, Charizard, Lucario, Greninja, and Incineroar each have several different colorations exclusive to the series. One of Pikachu's alternate colorations is its Shiny coloration wearing Red's hat. One of Jigglypuff's alternate colorations in Super Smash Bros. Brawl is its Shiny coloration wearing a straw hat, and one of Incineroar's alternate colorations greatly resembles its Shiny coloration; Mewtwo also has its Shiny coloration in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Squirtle and Ivysaur both have their current Shiny colorations, but Charizard has its original Shiny coloration from Pokémon Gold/Silver/Crystal. All other playable Pokémon in the series do not have their actual Shiny coloration as an alternate coloration.

Pokémon Rumble series

Pokémon Rumble

Shiny Mothim

In Pokémon Rumble, Shiny Pokémon may rarely appear. They will always tip over when defeated. The chances of their appearance are unconfirmed, although they appear to occur more often than in the core series. Shiny Pokémon are always given a special trait, a blue name in menus, and a star below their picture on the Collection screen. Some Shiny Pokémon can be obtained by the use of passwords.

The Pokémon that appear during the credits can be Shiny, as well.

Pokémon Rumble U

Shiny Pokémon return to the Pokémon Rumble series in Pokémon Rumble U though are only obtainable through the use of passwords or the NFC Rumble U Figures.

Pokémon Conquest

Art of Nobunaga with his Shiny Rayquaza

A Shiny Rayquaza is featured in Pokémon Conquest, sharing a Perfect Link with Nobunaga, and is his Pokémon of choice during the final battle of the main scenario. Nobunaga's Black Rayquaza was distributed over Wi-Fi for Japanese Black and White players to commemorate the release of the game.

Pokémon Shuffle

There are 15 Shiny Pokémon, including Mega Evolved Pokémon, in Pokémon Shuffle: Charizard, Gengar, Magikarp, Gyarados, Mewtwo, Tyranitar, Ho-Oh, Gardevoir, Metagross, Rayquaza, Genesect, Hawlucha, Xerneas, Yveltal, and Diancie. Shiny Pokémon are treated as alternate forms of the standard Pokémon, sharing its Pokémon list number but not its Skill, experience, level, Mega Effect (where applicable), and sometimes type.

Dex#	NDex	Icon	Pokémon	Type	Attack Power		Max RML	Initial Skill	Alternate Skill(s)	Amelia icons
					Lv 1	Max
#006	#0006		Charizard Shiny	Flying	60	105	5	Nosedive	N/A	3
#108	#0701		Hawlucha Shiny	Fighting	50	115	10	Hammering Streak	N/A	1
#114	#0094		Gengar Shiny	Ghost	70	110	5	Blindside	N/A	3
#156	#0716		Xerneas Shiny	Fairy	80	115	5	Hyper Drain	N/A	3
#157	#0717		Yveltal Shiny	Dark	80	115	5	Hyper Drain	N/A	3
#158	#0150		Mewtwo Shiny	Psychic	80	115	5	Mega Boost	N/A	2
#162	#0384		Rayquaza Shiny	Flying	80	115	5	Dragon Talon	N/A	2
#210	#0248		Tyranitar Shiny	Dark	80	115	5	Barrier Shot	N/A	3
#226	#0649		Genesect Shiny	Bug	80	115	5	Last-Ditch Effort	N/A	3
#298	#0282		Gardevoir Shiny	Fairy	70	110	5	Stabilize++	N/A	3
#306	#0250		Ho-Oh Shiny	Fire	80	115	5	Cross Attack+	N/A	3
#307	#0719		Diancie Shiny	Fairy	70	130	15	Block Shot	N/A	3
#477	#0129		Magikarp Shiny	Water	30	100	10	Cheer	Dragon Shriek	0
#478	#0130		Gyarados Shiny	Water	70	110	5	L-Boost	N/A	2
#641	#0376		Metagross Shiny	Steel	80	130	10	Hammering Streak	N/A	3

Pokémon GO

Main article: Shiny Pokémon (GO)

In Pokémon GO, certain Pokémon species have a chance of being Shiny, with each species having its own Shiny rate. For most Pokémon, the Shiny rate is approximately 1 in 512. However, in certain in-game events, the Shiny chance may be increased for certain Pokémon. For example, on Community Days, the featured Pokémon will always have increased Shiny odds. Shiny Pokémon may be encountered through any method: randomly in the wild, from hatching Eggs, by completing Field Research tasks, by winning Raid Battles, or as GO Battle League rewards. All Pokémon seen in the overworld appear non-Shiny, but when a player attempts to capture a Pokémon, it may appear as a Shiny Pokémon. Likewise, during a Raid Battle, the Raid Boss always appears non-Shiny during battle, but it may become Shiny during the bonus challenge. Shiny encounters are random for each player, meaning that if two players attempt to catch the same Pokémon, one player may encounter a Shiny Pokémon and the other may not.

Pokémon Duel

There are several figures that are Shiny Pokémon in Pokémon Duel. These figures are usually posed identically or near-identically to their regular Pokémon counterparts. A Shiny figure's Data Disk is always identical to the regular version's but a few have different Abilities. A Shiny figure cannot evolve or change form into a non-Shiny figure nor vice-versa. Additionally, a Shiny figure cannot be selected to be made into a Golden or Silver Figure. The following is a list of Shiny figures.

Shiny Rayquaza

Shiny Metagross

Shiny Ho-Oh

Shiny Gyarados

Shiny Magikarp

Shiny Mega Gengar

Shiny Gengar

Shiny Eevee

Shiny Vaporeon

Shiny Jolteon

Shiny Flareon

Shiny Espeon

Shiny Umbreon

Shiny Leafeon

Shiny Glaceon

Shiny Sylveon

Shiny Tapu Koko

Shiny Mimikyu

Shiny Mewtwo

Shiny Charizard

Shiny Genesect

Shiny Mega Rayquaza

Shiny Mega Charizard X

Shiny Mega Charizard Y

Shiny Mega Mewtwo X

Shiny Mega Mewtwo Y

Shiny Greninja

Pokémon: Magikarp Jump

Gold Magikarp

A Shiny Magikarp, referred to as a Gold Magikarp, is one of the possible Magikarp to fish in Pokémon: Magikarp Jump. Shiny Feebas, Luvdisc and Corsola may also appear in random encounter events during feeding. If the player breaks the Everstone that the Shiny Magikarp is holding and evolves it into a Gyarados, the Gyarados will also be Shiny.

Pokémon Quest

Shiny Tangela

Shiny Pokémon are available in Pokémon Quest. When viewing the Pokémon's details, the Pokémon's picture will appear in its Shiny coloration. The only benefit to having a Shiny Pokémon in Pokémon Quest is to gain 20 PM Tickets. Otherwise, it is just an aesthetic feature. The exact chance of a Pokémon being Shiny is unknown, but is estimated to be between 1/75 and 1/100.

Pokémon Masters EX

In Pokémon Masters EX, some of the Egg Pokémon have a chance to be Shiny. Other characters would later form sync pairs with Shiny Pokémon. A Shiny Celebi also makes its appearance during the special events Double Trouble and Blasting Off Again.

The following is a list of sync pairs with Shiny Pokémon.

Dex	Trainer		NDex	Pokémon		Type	Weakness	Role	EX role	Base potential	Availability
#081		Anniversary 2021 Steven	#0384		Rayquaza Mega Rayquaza	Flying	Ice			★★★★★☆EX	Master Fair Sync Pair Scout
#144		Special Costume Sonia	#0763		Tsareena♀	Grass	Bug			★★★★★☆EX	Costume Sync Pair Scout
#099		Sygna Suit Morty	#0250		Ho-Oh	Fire	Electric			★★★★★☆EX	Poké Fair Sync Pair Scout
#068		Summer 2022 Hilda	#0853		Grapploct♀	Fighting	Psychic			★★★★★☆EX	Seasonal Sync Pair Scout
#092		Sygna Suit Wally	#0282		Gardevoir♂ Mega Gardevoir	Fairy	Ghost			★★★★★☆EX	Poké Fair Sync Pair Scout
#071		Champion Calem	#0658		Greninja♂	Dark	Bug			★★★★★☆EX	Master Fair Sync Pair Scout
#107		New Year's 2023 Lisia	#0078		Rapidash♂ Galarian Form	Fairy	Ghost			★★★★★☆EX	Seasonal Sync Pair Scout
#120		Sygna Suit Diantha	#0719		Diancie Mega Diancie	Rock	Steel			★★★★★☆EX	Poké Fair Sync Pair Scout
#081		Special Costume Steven	#0508		Stoutland♂	Normal	Fighting			★★★★★☆EX	Costume Sync Pair Scout
#168		Eusine	#0245		Suicune	Water	Electric			★★★★★☆EX	Poké Fair Sync Pair Scout
#109		Champion Nate	#0612		Haxorus♂	Dragon	Fairy			★★★★★☆EX	Master Fair Sync Pair Scout
#091		Champion Silver	#0248		Tyranitar♂ Mega Tyranitar	Rock	Fighting			★★★★★☆EX	Master Fair Sync Pair Scout

Pokémon Café ReMix

In Pokémon Café Mix, there was only Shiny Celebi available as a part of special event from December 23, 2020, to January 31, 2021. There were no new Shiny Pokémon added until the major overhaul.

In Pokémon Café ReMix, Shiny Pokémon can now be found randomly when selecting a customer. Similar to Pokémon GO, new Shiny Pokémon are added over time, the first being Shiny Minccino and Eevee. Shiny variants are treated as separate Pokémon, although they share the same speciality (except for Celebi), skill and alternate outfits with normal variants. From January 12, 2022, the "Shuffle Customers" button now shines if there's a Shiny Pokémon in the customer pool.

Sometimes there are events called Welcome, Shiny Pokémon! that increase Shiny encounter rate for specific Pokémon, or in Shiny Rowlet's case, are distributed via daily stamp during certain events. The following is a list of such events in reverse chronological order:

Start date	End date	Focus Shiny Pokémon	Notes
September 28, 2022	October 1, 2022
August 27, 2022	September 1, 2022
July 29, 2022	August 3, 2022
July 1, 2022	July 8, 2022		Shiny Eevee encounter rate was boosted from July 1 to July 3, 2022, while Shiny Buizel encounter rate was boosted from July 3 to July 5, 2022, and Shiny Lucario was boosted from July 5 to July 8, 2022.
May 27, 2022	June 1, 2022
April 27, 2022	May 11, 2022		Shiny Exeggutor was available on Day 5 of Golden Week's daily stamp.
April 27, 2021	May 5, 2022		Shiny Kirlia encounter rate was boosted from April 27 to May 1, 2022, while Shiny Snubbull encounter rate was boosted from May 1 to May 5, 2022.
March 25, 2022	April 1, 2022
February 27, 2022	March 2, 2022		Released for Pokémon Day.
February 23, 2022	February 27, 2022
January 28, 2022	February 1, 2022
January 19, 2022	January 27, 2022		Released for the Pokémon Legends: Arceus release. Shiny Rowlet was available on Day 5 of special event daily stamp.
December 29, 2021	January 4, 2022		Released for New Year. Shiny Minccino encounter rate was boosted from December 29, 2021, to January 1, 2022, while Shiny Eevee encounter rate was boosted from January 1 to January 4, 2022.

Pokémon UNITE

From February 22, 2024 to March 12, 2024, Shiny Rayquaza replaced the regular Rayquaza that normally appears as an objective Pokémon on Theia Sky Ruins.

In the TCG

Radiant Gardevoir, an example of a Radiant Pokémon

Main article: List of cards featuring Shiny Pokémon

Many cards in the Pokémon Trading Card Game feature Shiny Pokémon. Most of these cards are regular cards. Usually, they have especially high Rarity compared to cards that do not have Shiny Pokémon, assuming they are not released as a Black Star Promo. There are also gimmicks in the TCG that involve Shiny Pokémon. All Pokémon that use such gimmicks are Basic Pokémon (even if they are normally Evolution Pokémon) and are generally restricted to 1 per deck.

• Shining Pokémon, introduced in the Neo Revelation expansion. There may be only 1 Shining Pokémon with the same name in a deck. The costs of attacks of these cards include Energy of multiple types.
  • Later reintroduced in the Shining Legends expansion, but no longer with the rule restricting the number of copies played nor costs including multiple Energy types..
• Pokémon , introduced in the EX Team Rocket Returns expansion. Only 1 Pokémon is allowed to be in a deck total. This means that no other Pokémon can be in the deck.
• Dual-type Pokémon cards featured in the Steam Siege expansion feature Shiny Pokémon, except for Volcanion-EX.
• Radiant Pokémon, introduced in the Astral Radiance expansion. They have the Radiant Pokémon rule, contained within a Rule Box, which only allows for 1 Radiant Pokémon to be in a deck total. This means that no other Radiant Pokémon can be in the deck.

In the anime

Main series

Main article: List of alternately colored Pokémon (anime)

Ash's Shiny Noctowl sparkling as it is sent out from its Poké Ball, similar to how Shiny Pokémon sparkle when sent into battle in the core series games

Normal and Shiny Dustox in the anime

Although the games had not premiered alternate colored Pokémon until Generation II, several Pokémon seen beforehand were colored differently. One such example is the pink Butterfree, the mate of Ash's Butterfree, which appeared as early as the twenty-first episode. This is, however, not the standard alternate coloration for a Butterfree, and therefore may not be counted as a Shiny Pokémon. Likewise, the first appearance of a Generation III Pokémon in The Kecleon Caper featured a non-standard alternately colored Pokémon, this time a purple Kecleon. Another example would be in Fighting Back the Tears!, where a non-standard alternately colored Mareanie (who happens to be James's Mareanie's first love) appears, and later evolves into a Toxapex.

In the Orange Archipelago, certain Pokémon have a different coloration because the climate is different than that of the mainland. For example, a Butterfree, instead of the normal white with black markings, would have gold wings with red spots on them. On Pinkan Island of the Orange Archipelago, all of the Pokémon are colored pink because the Pinkan Berries they eat make them that way.

The first true Shiny Pokémon that appeared was a Noctowl in Fowl Play!. Ash eventually caught it, and, as in the games, sparkles surround it as it comes from its Poké Ball. Several other Shiny Pokémon have appeared later as well, often used to make them stand out more, or be the focus of an episode. The term "Shiny" was first used in Working on a Right Move!.

A Shiny Hisuian Zorua in Pokémon: Hisuian Snow

Pokémon Generations

In The Lake of Rage, the Red Gyarados appeared at the Lake of Rage.

Pokémon: Hisuian Snow

A Shiny Hisuian Zorua debuted in Onto the Icy Blue, which was befriended by Alec. In Two Hues, it was revealed to have evolved into a Zoroark.

In the manga

Because most manga series are published in black-and-white, Shiny Pokémon are few and far between. One major exception, because of its importance to the plot of Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold, and SoulSilver, is the red Gyarados.

Movie adaptations

A Red Genesect appeared in Genesect and the Legend Awakened.

A Shiny Rayquaza appeared in Hoopa and the Clash of Ages. It had the ability to Mega Evolve into a Mega Rayquaza.

Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure

In Pocket Monsters HGSS Jō's Big Adventure, Jō and his Totodile befriend the red Gyarados by calming its rampage and feeding it Berries. It later appears to help Jō and Lance battle Ariana and Petrel.

Pokémon Adventures

Gyara, a regular Gyarados (left) and Silver's red Gyarados (right) in Pokémon Adventures

A Shiny Genesect (left) and a regular Genesect (right) in Pokémon Adventures

Gold, Silver & Crystal arc

In Raise the Red Gyarados, Silver caught a Shiny Gyarados, the raging leader of a group of Gyarados, who had been on a rampage since Team Rocket took control of the Goldenrod Radio Tower and sent out their evolution-inducing radio waves.

Crystal mentioned that she had caught a different-colored Pineco as part of the Pokémon sent to Professor Oak in Off Course with Corsola.

Black & White arc

A Shiny Genesect appeared in The Shadow Triad, although it wasn't revealed to be Shiny at this time.

Black 2 & White 2 arc

In Giant Chasm, the Shiny Genesect was revealed to be owned by Colress, who used it to battle Blake's Genesect.

The red Gyarados in Pokémon Journeys: The Series

Pokémon Journeys: The Series

Main article: Lance's Gyarados

The red Gyarados, owned by Lance, appeared in Flash of the Titans!. It participated in the finals of the World Coronation Series and was defeated by Leon and his Charizard.

A Shiny Larvesta appeared in the final chapter of the manga. It evolved into a Volcarona, which Goh collected scales from to clear his Project Mew Trial Mission.

Pokémon Pocket Monsters

The Red Gyarados made an appearance in Stop That Strange Sonic Sound!!, where Team Rocket plotted on catching it by luring it out of hiding using sonic waves, while at the same time, Clefairy went fishing for it. The Red Gyarados is darker than any normal-colored Gyarados in this media.

Trivia

• In Generation III through Generation VII , it is possible for an Egg to hatch Shiny on one game but not another. This is because Shininess is partially determined by the Original Trainer ID and Secret ID number. Eggs have the ID and SID of the game they were originally bred on, but change to the ID and SID of the hatcher immediately after hatching. It is this change that affects Shininess.
  • Confusingly, this means that if a player hatches a traded Egg that would have been Shiny on the game it was originally bred on, it will appear Shiny on the hatching screen (since it still has the ID and SID of the original game), and then suddenly no longer be Shiny afterward (once it has obtained the ID and SID of the hatcher's game). Conversely, it is also possible for a newly hatched Egg to not appear Shiny on the hatching screen and then suddenly become Shiny afterward, if the Egg has been traded.
  • While all (Generation III onward) event Eggs are set to prevent or force Shininess, if a player other than the one who obtained it from the event hatches the Egg, this prevention is bypassed, allowing an event Egg to hatch Shiny. This is the only way to obtain a Shiny Manaphy.
• Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 have the most in-game event Shiny Pokémon available (excluding Wild Area News), with two.
• Before Generation VIII, Castform's weather forms and Magearna's default form had the same colors regardless of whether they were Shiny or not (although the latter is not legitimately available in its Shiny coloration).
• In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, during one of Jacq's biology classes, he mentions "the chance of finding a Shiny Pokémon in the wild is 1 in 4000", which is an inaccurate approximation compared to the true standard chance of 1/4096.

In other languages

Shiny Pokémon Language Title Chinese Cantonese 發光寶可夢 Faatgwōng Pokémon Mandarin 發光寶可夢 / 发光宝可梦 Fāguāng Pokémon Czech Alternativně zbarveného Pokémon Danish Skinne Pokémon Dutch Schitterende Pokémon Finnish Kiilto-Pokémon French Pokémon chromatique German Schillerndes Pokémon Indonesian Pokémon Bersinar Italian Pokémon cromatico Korean 빛나는 포켓몬 Binnaneun Pokémon Polish Lśniący Pokémon Portuguese Brazil Pokémon Brilhante* Pokémon shiny* Shiny Pokémon* Portugal Pokémon brilhante Russian Шайни покемон Shayni Pokémon Spanish Pokémon variocolor Swedish Glänsande Pokémon Turkish Parlak Pokémon Vietnamese Pokémon Sáng Ngời

Different-colored Pokémon Language Title Chinese Cantonese 異色寶可夢 Yihsīk Pokémon Mandarin 異色寶可夢 / 异色宝可梦 Yìsè Pokémon Finnish Erivärinen Pokémon French Pokémon de couleur inhabituelle German Unterschiedlich gefärbte Pokémon Italian Pokémon di colore diverso Korean 색이 다른 포켓몬 Saegi Dareun Pokémon Polish Pokémon o innym kolorze Portuguese Pokémon de cor diferente Spanish Pokémon de color diferente Thai โปเกมอนสีแตกต่าง Pokémon Si Taektang Vietnamese Pokémon khác màu

See also

• Episodes in which an alternately colored Pokémon appears
• Trainers with Shiny Pokémon

References

Pokémon forms and variants Permanent: Shiny Pokémon (GO) • Alternately colored Pokémon (animated series) Gender differences • Form differences (GO) • Brilliant Pokémon • Alpha Pokémon Transformations: Mega Evolution (Shuffle • Masters • GO) • Primal Reversion (GO) • Bond Phenomenon Ultra Burst • Dynamax (GO) • Gigantamax (GO) • Eternamax • Terastal phenomenon Groups: Totem Pokémon • Noble Pokémon • Titan Pokémon Regional forms: Alolan • Galarian • Hisuian • Paldean Analogous: Paradox Pokémon • Ecologically similar Pokémon Species-specific: Arbok variants • Pikachu variants (Surfing • Flying • Cosplay • Cap) • Ditto transformations Miscellaneous: Giant Pokémon • Spiky-eared Pichu • Partner Pokémon (LGPE) Fusions (GO) • Human–Pokémon transformation Side series original: Shadow Pokémon • Shadow Lugia Spin-off original: Shadow Pokémon (GO) • Primal Dialga • Toy Pokémon (Rusty Pokémon) Shadow Mewtwo • Pokéxel • Illumina phenomenon • Mighty Pokémon Animated series original: Pink Butterfree • Clone Pokémon • Crystal Onix Mirage Pokémon • Meta Groudon • Green-crystal Deoxys Manga original: Thu-Fi-Zer • Black Fog • Black Tyranitar

This game mechanic article is part of Project Games, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon games.