Trainers all around the globe have experienced a roller-coaster of emotions in the last week or so, including:
- Introducing the research feature and encountering Pokemon in different ways.
- The delights of having the first Mythical Pokemon become available and for some, catching it.
- Completing the Research Breakthrough reward and encountering a particular Pokemon. No spoiler, check out our article here for details.
- The introduction of the Kanto Celebration event.
- If you’ve been keeping up to date with our articles on the Hub, you will of course also know about the recent leaks of Most of Gen 1 Shiny Pokemon forms being leaked into the code.
Earlier Predictions
The vast majority of the Pokemon Go Player-base (including myself) have become accustomed to at least one new shiny Pokemon or family being released at every event. This all started with the Valentines event in February this year when we saw shiny Luvdisc make an appearance and has been the case through the Lunar New Year Event (Shiny Poochyena,) The Eggstravaganza Event (Shiny Baby Pokemon) and April Fools day 2018 (Shiny Murkrow.)
With this trend (and the leaked shiny sprites being added to the games code behind the scenes) it’s fair to say that new shiny Pokemon were expected with the Kanto Celebration event.
This would have been the perfect time to release more shiny Pokemon and to begin with the earlier Pokedex entries. There has been some criticism that the this event leaves little to do for the hardcore/higher level players and adding a few shiny Pokemon, particularly to raids, (like Snorlax or Aerodactyl) would have given the great value event boxes another lease of life and something for the more dedicated players to chase.
Good Candidates For Shiny Forms
| Pokemon | Normal Sprite | Shiny Sprite |
|---|---|---|
| Pidgey |   |
 |
| Pidgeotto |  |
 |
| Pidgeot |  |
 |
| Weedle |  |
 |
| Kakuna |  |
 |
| Beedrill |  |
 |
| Caterpie |  |
 |
| Metapod |  |
 |
| Butterfree |  |
 |
Most of the above Pokemon are widely considered Trash by most players and are only caught to store away for mass evolving for XP gain during double XP events. But this in itself means that if these particular Pokemon had their shiny forms released, it would give players another reason to click on them and catch them. You would treasure a red Metapod more then a regular green one!
Parting Thoughts
Perhaps this is a lesson to us all. To keep our expectations a lot lower to avoid disappointment or perhaps we will be pleasantly surprised further into this event. At this point, only time will tell.
We advise that you enjoy the abundance of rarer Gen 1 Pokemon and stock up on certain candy for Pokemon that evolve in the upcoming Gen 4. Stay tuned for our guides on particular Pokemon coming soon.