Shiny Stories

In the world of the Pokémon games, a Shiny is a Pokémon for which its appearance is markedly different than usual. It appears very, very rarely but may be encountered a little more often through the possession of the Shiny Charm. Owing to their incredibly low encounter rates, Shiny Pokémon have become part of quite a few stories and experiences by players of the main series of Pokémon games, and that includes me and several of my Poké-colleagues.

I personally have not seen many Shiny Pokémon (that I didn't encounter then catch, or hatch by myself), and in fact, the last time I encountered and caught a Shiny Pokémon was when I played Platinum on the DS. It was this Golbat that I promptly captured when I saw it three years ago on April 11:

Hmm, 42 is the answer...

It was interesting that this catch happened to be for the Pokémon numbered #42 in the National Dex, for the number 42 in some circles happens to have a "prophetic" quality about it. In that sense I was being prophesied to continue playing, and coincidentally at that time I was a bit divided whether to pause playing indefinitely. I got the answer that I needed, it seems.

My Poké-colleagues, meanwhile, are a little more spirited in finding Shiny Pokémon. One of them, who happens to be in a social media group for Pokémon as I am, has recently shared experiences in going back to the third generation remakes to hunt for some Shiny Legendaries, with good results to boot. Another in the same group also has expressed the desire to complete the Pokédex early just to get the Shiny Charm by way of asking others to touch-trade Pokémon until the Dex is complete. It's a commendable though a little forced effort.

The appeal of Shiny Pokémon may be different among us, but they certainly make for wonderful stories and experiences, which are as rare as the encounter rate itself. But like most things that are rare, they are valuable, so long as they are not fully forced upon. It's a difference that is worth appreciating in that regard.