Shiny Hunting Isn't Easy in 'Pokémon Scarlet' and 'Violet'

Any seasoned Pokémon trainer knows that Shiny Hunting can keep even the best player hunting for hundreds of hours in any one game. Though Shiny Pokémon don't offer any specific buffs other than a unique color scheme, many trainers have no problem grinding to find their favorite Shiny.

Given that Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are the franchise's first fully open-world games, Shiny Hunting looks a bit different. But how do you tell if a Pokémon in Shiny in the new titles?

Pokémon Legends: Arceus was the first mainstream Pokémon game to make Shiny Hunting somewhat easy for players, letting them see Shiny Pokémon in the overworld and even providing a special sound effect to indicate when a Shiny Pokémon was on your screen.

Thankfully, some of the mechanics that made Shiny Hunting easy in Legends: Arceus have been carried over to Scarlet and Violet.

For starters, Shiny Pokémon are visible in the overworld, meaning you won't have to begin an encounter to confirm whether or not a Pokémon is Shiny. That being said, the incredibly helpful Shiny animation and sound effect are not available in Scarlet and Violet — meaning you'll have to pay extremely close attention to the Pokémon you pass as you play the game if you have any hopes of catching a Shiny.

If there are specific Pokémon you're hoping to Shiny Hunt, it's best to know what their Shiny variants look like ahead of time, as some Shiny Pokémon look incredibly similar to their standard variants. There are also some Pokémon that just have different variants in the Paldea region, like Deerling, so just because a Pokémon is a different color than you're used to seeing doesn't mean you've necessarily found a Shiny version.

Once you begin the encounter with the Pokémon, the Shiny animation will display, confirming you've found a Shiny Pokémon. If you begin an encounter with a Pokémon and the animation doesn't play, then it's likely just a different color variation instead of a Shiny.

Before starting the encounter with a Pokémon you believe is Shiny, though, you should save your game, as if the Pokémon flees or you accidentally defeat it, you can restart your game to begin the encounter again.

There are plenty of methods you can implement to better your chances at finding a Shiny Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, though no matter what you do, it'll likely take some grinding to have a successful hunt. You can read our guide on Shiny Hunting in Scarlet and Violet, or explore how to obtain the Shiny versions of the three starter Pokémon in the new game.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are now available exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.