Vol. 1, Issue 35 - Memories of my Shiny Pokémon encounters
Memories of shiny Pokémon encounters, the latest Pokémon news, and more from the Johto Times mailbag!
Welcome to issue 35 of the Johto Times! We are now in October, the nights are becoming darker, and things are getting spooky! Today’s feature is a short but personal story of my memories with shiny Pokémon, across the first seven generations of mainline games, and some of the most exciting moments from my time playing through the series. However, not every encounter leaves a positive impression… We also have the latest Pokémon news, and more from our mailbag!
News
Detective Pikachu Returns releases tomorrow, October 6th 2023, on Nintendo Switch. The long-awaited title is a sequel to Detective Pikachu, originally released in 2016, in which the player joins Pikachu and his partner Tim to solve mysteries within Ryme City and get to the bottom of their own mystery.
To mark the release of the game, a special event begins today in Pokémon GO until October 9th at 20:00 local time, where you can complete themed Timed Research in the Detective Pikachu Returns Event. Wild Pokémon including Pikachu and Slowpoke wearing detective hats can be encountered, including their shiny variants. Field Research tasks, Collection Challenges, Timed Research, Avatar Poses, and more can be accessed during this time. For full details, check out the source credit below.
Will you be picking up the game? Let us know in the comments!
Source: Nintendo, Pokémon GO
Last week, the Pokémon x Van Gogh Museum collaboration began showcasing several Pokémon events, with Pokémon merchandise available for sale, including a Pokémon TCG promo card, “Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat”. Regretfully, footage from the museum appeared online showing customers pushing and shoving each other and grabbing merchandise in a desperate attempt to purchase it. It’s alleged that the people doing this are scalpers who are selling the products online at massively inflated prices, evidenced by sold listings seen on eBay. Products on the Pokémon Center website, where the promo card was available to anyone who made a purchase of them, were sold out instantly, leaving many fans highly disappointed.
Pokémon preservationist toloveL, who we have featured previously on Johto Times and works at an art gallery for her day job, speaks passionately about the situation, describing how dangerous it is to behave this way around priceless art being displayed. The Pokémon Company themselves issued a statement on Friday to apologise for the situation, and are “actively working on ways to provide more "Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat" promo cards for fans shopping at Pokémon Center in the future”. There was no mention of whether more of the previously sold products would be made available in the future.
Source: Pokémon
Feature: Memories of my Shiny Pokémon encounters
Do you remember your first shiny Pokémon encounter? I’ve got plenty of memories of finding, catching, and fainting shinies, and even watching them run away in front of my very eyes! Shiny Pokémon have been a rollercoaster of emotions over the years, and I wanted to take this opportunity to share my stories of them.
Since their introduction in Pokémon Gold and Silver, shiny Pokémon have been an exciting addition to the video game series, especially when encountered unexpectedly. With odds of 1/8192 of finding one in the wild, these Pokémon were very rarely encountered in the Game Boy titles, aside from a few exceptions such as the Red Gyarados and event-based distributions. As the generations went on, they became easier to obtain, with the odds of discovering one randomly being reduced, and obtainable tools and tricks helping to give even better chances.
Pokémon Diamond and Pearl introduced chaining with the Poké Radar, and Catch Combos were added in Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee, both of which could significantly improve your chances of discovering a shiny. The best opportunity to obtain one of these special Pokémon is in Pokémon GO, with odds of around 1/500, which become significantly better during raids and community days, where I have found several during a three-hour session.
The Shiny Charm was introduced in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 and has appeared in every generation since, obtained by completing the Pokédex. While its effectiveness differs between games, its purpose remains the same: to increase the chance of encountering a Shiny Pokémon, in the wild and when breeding. Last but not least is the Masuda method (a term coined by the community and named after co-founder and Game Freak composer Junichi Masuda), which was introduced in generation 4. By breeding two Pokémon with different languages of origin, you can increase the odds of the offspring being shiny.
My first ever shiny encounter in Pokémon Crystal was a Wooper in Union Cave. I remember that it was at night, and I was super surprised and excited to find it. I first learned about shiny variants of Pokémon on forums and in magazines, and I believe I found Wooper even before I had encountered the Red Gyarados for the first time. I vividly remember having a Poliwhirl in my team at the time that had Strength, which I thought would be enough to damage the Wooper…
Well, that plan turned out horribly, because the Strength attack fainted that Wooper in a single hit. I sat there gobsmacked in utter disbelief, my disappointment immeasurable. That moment has always stayed with me, and outside of Red Gyarados, it was my only shiny encounter in Pokémon Crystal.
My shiny luck changed when I borrowed a copy of Pokémon Sapphire from my friend Adam and found a shiny Zigzagoon. I was using the bathroom at the time, as I would often take my Game Boy Advance in there to play while I responded to the call of nature. I have no idea which route I obtained Zigzagoon from, but I was able to successfully capture it inside a Great Ball! Eventually, I traded it to my personal copy of Pokémon Ruby and evolved it into Linoone after it reached Level 41 and learned its final move, Belly Drum. For many years, I assumed I caught this on my own copy of Ruby, but after looking over some of my old chat logs from back then, I discovered that I had borrowed and eventually returned Adam’s copy of Sapphire to him. I even discovered the exact date I captured that Zigzagoon: September 28th 2004!
The next shiny I remember encountering was a Venomoth in Pokémon FireRed, which happened to be inside the Safari Zone, so unlike regular wild battles, it had a chance of escaping. Once again, I was using the bathroom, proving conclusively that playing Pokémon while on the toilet greatly increases the odds of finding shiny Pokémon, at least in my experience! While I don’t remember the exact details, I remember throwing mostly Safari Balls and bait, and that it felt like the fight lasted forever. Unfortunately, it decided to run away, and yet another shiny Pokémon escaped my grasp.
It would be a few years until I encountered another shiny Pokémon randomly in the wild, with Pokémon Platinum on the DS, where I was able to find a Rhydon in Victory Road. I can’t recall if this was on the way to the Elite Four or after beating them. Sadly, I no longer have my original game to confirm those details. I was sitting in my dining room at the time when the surprise encounter occurred. According to Pokémon HOME, I caught it inside a Dusk Ball, although I don’t remember this. Sadly, shiny Rhydon hasn’t seen much action outside of that initial encounter, but still lives on Pokémon HOME…
The last true shiny I encountered was a Golbat in Pokémon Sun on December 29th 2016. It had once again been some time since I had come across any shiny Pokémon, likely due to me playing Pokémon much less than I originally did, so it was a neat surprise. Just like my Rhydon in Pokémon Platinum, I caught it inside a Dusk Ball and off to the PC it went, never to be used again.
I’ve also managed to collect a lot of event shiny Pokémon over the years, as well as a substantial number from Pokémon Legends: Arceus, Pokémon Scarlet, and especially Pokémon GO. These days, discovering and capturing shiny Pokémon is commonplace, and they don’t hold the same excitement for me as they used to, so I don’t count them. Making these encounters super common has diminished the excitement almost completely. After watching some videos and streams from Pokémon fans, I am contemplating the idea of shiny hunting in older Pokémon games, something that appears to have a cult following. However, I'll always remember the magic of encountering full-odds shinies in those earlier games, because those moments, regardless of whether I was successful in capturing them or not, will continue to be some of the most exciting experiences from Pokémon.
Mailbag
Want to be a part of our newsletter? You’re welcome to submit content including (but not limited to) questions, fanart, short stories, your cherished memories, photographs of your collection, and anything else you think you want us to see. Today we have a letter from Richard Graham, who has shared a Pokémon memory with us!
Back when Pokemon had its big 25th anniversary a few years ago it reignited my love to collect the cards. Yeah, I still had no idea how to play the game, but I had a huge binder at my parents’ house filled with cards I had collected. I even had some Japanese cards I got from some cousins back in the day. It isn't the biggest collection but one I am most proud of. I actually remember my very first card. An Onix. I got it for my birthday from a cousin of mine and it was before I actually knew what Pokémon was. I thought it was the coolest thing ever. As I collected more I never knew how to play the actual game so I would play "War" with them. Whoever had a higher HP won.
Fast forward to now. I know how to play the game and still love collecting the cards. I have even gotten my kids their own cards and when they are a bit older I plan to teach them how to play. I honestly don't even care about the value of the cards. I love every single one I own as many of them have memories attached to them. Especially Onix.
Richard, Arizona
Thank you for your letter, Richard! It’s always great to hear about people’s Pokémon collections, and early era Pokémon trading cards are something I am deeply fond of. Thanks for the photo you sent across! Did you know that you actually own a shadowless Onix? One of the ways you can tell is by the thickness of the text used for the HP, so you have something a little more rare than a usual Onix card, and something even more special than you may have realised! I hope that you have continued to hold on to your collection and have taken the opportunity to share your memories of Pokémon with your children.
Your comment about having a “war” with your Pokémon reminded me of something that happened to me many years ago in my neighbourhood. I took my holo Charizard to my friend’s house, and outside his front door there was a neighbourhood kid who said he could beat my Charizard with his Weedle from the base set. He claimed that by using its Poison Sting attack, he could poison Charizard for ten damage, and repeat it over and over until it died, which would allow him to claim it for himself. Naturally, I laughed at the idea and ignored his request, but I admired his attempt at humour!