Unveiling Pokemon's Game-Changing Gimmighoul Event: A Game Changer for the Franchise!

The latest Tera Raid event in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet introduces Chest Form Gimmighoul, offering players the chance to obtain a shiny version of this Gen 9 mon for the first time. While dedicated shiny hunters will appreciate this opportunity to complete their collection, the average player of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet may not even realize they have captured a shiny Gimmighoul after finishing a raid. Unfortunately, the shiny color palette of Gimmighoul is barely distinguishable from its regular form, highlighting a persistent issue with certain shinies in the series.

Shiny hunting is a popular activity among Pokemon players, and the series has progressively made it more accessible with each new installment. Encountering a rare, uniquely colored variant of a creature while exploring the game's map is a special experience, but it can often be difficult to determine if a suspected mon is actually shiny because some critters' alternate color palettes are too similar to their original forms, making it challenging to distinguish them at a glance. This has long been a critique of the series, and it is unfortunate that newly accessible shiny mons like Gimmighoul are still encountering this problem.

The Pokemon Series Needs to Make Significant Changes to How it Handles Shiny Coloring

Before the current Gimmighoul raid event, encountering a wild shiny Gimmighoul was not possible because this particular mon was initially shiny locked. Some mons are shiny locked, meaning they cannot be found in their shiny form when initially encountered as they are usually programmed as scripted, static encounters as part of the game's storyline. Examples of shiny-locked mons include the starter trio, gift mons from NPCs, and the legendary mons Koraidon and Miraidon. It is worth noting that while shiny versions of the starters can be obtained through breeding, Gimmighoul is unique in that it is a shiny-locked mon that can only become shiny through a post-launch event.

However, despite the excitement surrounding Gimmighoul and its evolution Gholdengo being Pokedex #999 and #1000 respectively, their shiny versions are disappointing. Fans who were eagerly anticipating the release of shiny Gimmighoul and Gholdengo were met with mons whose shiny coloring is only slightly lighter than their regular form. This missed opportunity to give these coin-based creatures a more visually striking appearance is a letdown. It is not uncommon for the Pokemon series to have similarly underwhelming shiny versions for some of the most popular mons.

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Popular fan favorites like Gengar, Garchomp, and Blaziken have disappointing shiny forms that hardly differ from their regular appearances. Despite the increasing popularity of shiny hunting and Game Freak's efforts to make it more accessible, it is puzzling that they continue to create new shiny variants with such minimal changes. Not only Gimmighoul and Gholdengo from Generation 9, but also Tandemaus, Armarouge, and Ceruledge suffer from this same fate.

Future entries in the series should learn from the best shiny designs and strive to make shiny Pokémon more desirable solely based on their unique appearances, rather than just their rarity. A prime example is Sylveon's shiny form, which switches the blue and pink sections of its body while maintaining the original color palette. This simple alteration makes Sylveon's shiny form stand out significantly and remains faithful to its original design. By following this approach, more creatures could have striking shiny forms with minimal effort.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are available for Nintendo Switch.