Paper Mario-Inspired Renderings: An Artistic Take on Paradox Pokemon Sandy Shocks

Highlights

Sandy Shocks, a Paradox Pokemon exclusive to Pokemon Scarlet, is popular among fans for its high stats and unique abilities.

A fan artist has successfully recreated Sandy Shocks in the iconic Paper Mario style, garnering praise from players who admired the clever design and lively animation.

With the excitement surrounding upcoming DLC and game releases, fan artists are encouraged to explore various art styles when reimagining other Paradox Pokemon.

A Pokemon fan artist rendered a short animation of Sandy Shocks, a Paradox Pokemon, in the style of the Paper Mario games and shared it on social media. The artist received praise for their creation from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet players, who appreciated how Sandy Shocks' design seamlessly integrated into the Paper Mario series.

Sandy Shocks, exclusively found in Pokemon Scarlet, is a dual-type Electric and Ground Pokemon with exceptional special attack and speed capabilities. Being a Paradox Pokemon with a base stat total of 570, it becomes a formidable opponent when handled by a skilled Pokemon trainer. Sandy Shocks possesses the ability Protosynthesis, which allows it to enhance its stats through the use of Booster Energy or the move Sunny Day. Additionally, its moveset includes Thunderbolt and Earth Power, making it a sought-after Paradox Pokemon in Generation IX. The popularity of Sandy Shocks has even inspired fan artists to create unique interpretations of this particular Paradox Pokemon.

On Reddit, a user named TimDrawsStuff recreated Sandy Shocks, an enemy that appears in the Paper Mario games. TimDrawsStuff, known for their previous work on Fidough and Dachsbun, shared a 16-second video of Sandy Shocks in action on the r/Pokemon subreddit. In the video, Sandy Shocks' stony tufts, which are usually found across its three main segments, were depicted with bouncing motions that extended throughout its body. The animation looped constantly for one second. The coloration of Sandy Shocks' three eyes and body markings was enhanced, and a white outline was added to give it a paper cutout appearance.

TimDrawsStuff received praise from players of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet for their work. Commenters mentioned how well Sandy Shocks' design would fit in the Paper Mario universe and admired the bounciness of the animation. One user even compared the redesigned Sandy Shocks to characters from the Patapon series, a comparison that the OP agreed with. With the release of The Indigo Disk DLC for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet scheduled for winter 2023, it remains to be seen if other fan artists will create similar interpretations of Paradox Pokemon in the future.

Despite the release of the Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door remake still being a few years away (2024), artists have already started creating unique characters in the series' distinctive art style. It remains to be seen what exciting creations both gamers and fan artists will come up with to maintain the anticipation and fervor surrounding the game.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet are the flagship games of Generation IX in the popular franchise. These games introduce an impressive assortment of over 100 new Pokemon and transport players to the captivating Paldea region.

Franchise: Pokemon

Platform(s): Switch

Release Date: November 18, 2022

Developer: Game Freak

Publisher(s): Nintendo, The Pokemon Company

Genre: RPG

ESRB Rating: E for Everyone (Mild Fantasy Violence)

Metascore: 72