Pokemon Go player gets “cooked” in strange Showcase results

Em Stonham
Magikarp raid with purple sky.

Sometimes, Pokemon Go Showcases can lead to some very strange results – as one player found out while trying to win with their Rayquaza.

Have you taken part in a Pokemon Go Showcase before? These fun events pit different Pokemon against each other at PokeStops, and they’re a great way to pick up some interesting rewards.

They can feel a little illogical at times, though, as some Pokemon who may appear to be clear winners can often find themselves losing to unlikely underdogs. That was the case for a Pokemon Go player who recently attempted to win a Buddy Showcase with their Rayquaza.

Player misses out on Showcase despite entering with Rayquaza

Originally shared in this Reddit post, Pokemon Go player Jlinnenkamp20 found themselves baffled by the way that Buddy Showcase points are calculated in the game. They posted a screenshot of their game to r/TheSilphRoad, asking fellow players “how on earth are points calculated for this Showcase?”

If you’re unfamiliar with Showcases, the winning Pokemon is the biggest Pokemon. It’s important to note that this is relative to how big the average Pokemon of that species is- which is why Jlinnenkamp20’s Rayquaza can be seen losing to a Magikarp and a Vivillon.

It does seem silly, as Rayquaza is a huge Pokemon when compared to a moth and a goldfish. The results simply mean that the featured Magikarp and Vivillon are considered large for their species, though.

The replies to this post were full of other Pokemon Go players sharing similar experiences, with one player noting that their Regigigas lost to a Hoopa in a recent Showcase.

Another compared it to the Bug Catching Contest from the Gold and Silver era, saying that you could “catch Scyther/Pinsir/Heracross and lose to a Caterpie/Weedle” in some cases.

One person in the replies complained that Showcases were boring, with another player saying “Gotta disagree, seeing rayq get smoked by vivillon and magikarp is funny af” in reply. Showcases are a good idea in principle but they’re not known to always feel super logical.

Something useful that popped up in the replies was this explanation of how Great Buddy Showcases work. It goes over the different entry requirements and how points are calculated, along with a handy score calculator.

About The Author

Em Stonham was a Games Writer on Dexerto's UK team, specializing in Pokemon coverage. They are a Pokemon TCG expert, and also covered Pokemon Go, and Pokemon Sword & Shield. Em is also a big fan of trading card games and World of Warcraft, with bylines at Only Greats, Sleeve No Card Behind, and Diamond Lobby.