Shiny Pokemon in Pokemon X and Y are amongst the most sought after treasures in a trainer’s trophy cabinet. These seemingly ordinary Pokemon are extremely rare and are distinguishable by their unique color pallet. For example, one might find a bright red Gyarados, or a dark purple Charizard.
So what’s the point of a shiny Pokemon? Why, bragging rights of course! The rarity of a Shiny is so great that the chances of you finding one are 1 to 8192. When one is found, the heavens open up and Jesus himself invites you to have tea and crumpets with him.
For more help on Pokemon X and Y, read our Legendary Pokemon, TM/HM Locations and EV Training Guide.
Pokemon X and Y – Shiny Pokemon Farming
Of course, there are ways of increasing your chances of finding a Shiny Pokemon. The two methods I have outlined below massively boost your chances, but keep in mind that your chances are still slim, and it’ll take you a long time to find that Shiny Rattata.
Method #1 – The PokeRadar
The PokeRadar is a device that allows you to detect Pokemon hiding in tall grass. When you use the device, up to four patches of grass shake. These patches contain Pokemon. You can use the Radar repeatedly, and if you keep finding the same Pokemon again and again, eventually you will find a Shiny.
Here’s an example of how it works; if you enter one of the patches of shaking grass and find a Pidgey, knock it out or capture it. Then use the radar again.
Enter another patch of grass, and if you find another Pidgey, you’ve just started a chain. The higher this chain goes, the greater your chances of finding a patch of tall grass that glows twice instead of shaking. This bit of grass contains a shiny.
However, there are conditions. If you run into a Pokemon that is different (i.e you find a Rattata when you were chaining Pidgeys) the chain is broken and you must start again.
Another thing to remember is that there will be other wild Pokemon around you as well, so if you’re walking towards a bush that was shaking you might just get ambushed by another Pokemon on route.
For this reason you need to carry ‘Repel’ with you, a lot of them. The last thing to know is that after using the radar, you must walk 50 steps to recharge it.
There are an excruciatingly large number of ways to break the chain. If you run into a wild Pokemon (that isn’t the one you’re chaining) you break the chain. If you enter a shaking patch of grass but find nothing, the chain is broken.
Leaving the field of grass will break the chain. Using the Roller Skates will break the chain. And finally, hatching an egg will break the chain.
Now here are some of the ways you can try to keep the chain going. Always go for the patch of grass that is 4 steps away from your position. Also, try to note how hard the patch of grass that contains your chained Pokemon shakes. It’ll increase your chance of getting the same one if you enter a patch that is shaking just as hard.
You can reset the radar and generate new shaking bushes without breaking the chain by walking 50 steps in the field (taking care to not step on the shaking grass with the Pokemon) and using the radar again.
The maximum chain you can build is 40, and this will increase your chances of finding a shiny to 1 in 200. When you reach this chain, only venture into the glowing bush, just reset the radar if no bush is glowing.
Method #2 – The Matsuda Method
This isn’t really a way to ‘catch’ a shiny, but more of a way to Breed one. It’s named after Junichi Matsuda, who was a developer on Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, and worked the method into the game.
The way this works is that if you have a male and female Pokemon, and one of them was traded from a trainer from a different country, then their egg has a 1 in 1365 chance of being shiny instead of the normal 1 in 8195.
For example, I have a European version of X and Y, and if I get a Pokemon from Gavin in the USA, then their union has a greater chance of producing a shiny. What’s more is that if you have the key item Shiny Charm equipped the chance of getting a shiny is doubled even further, bringing it to 1 in 682.5.
Don’t forget to share any other way one can find Shiny Pokemon quickly in Pokemon X and Y by commenting below!
