Pokemon Sword & Shield player’s Shiny encounter reveals how terrifying Galar really is
Game Freak / The Pokemon CompanyA Pokemon Sword & Shield player’s Shiny catch went viral online after it revealed just how dangerous the Wild Area actually is. The Trainer’s surprise encounter had the community realizing how terrifying Pokemon in real life would be.
Pokemon Sword & Shield made its debut in 2019 and introduced several new exciting mechanics to the franchise such as the Wild Area. The open-world section of the RPG gave players a chance to hunt Pokemon in their natural habitat.
One Trainer’s experience in the Gen VIII title quickly turned tense as their attempt at Shiny hunting backfired. The hilarious clip left fans in stitches while also reminding the community just how scary ‘mon would be in the real world.
Game Freak / Twitter: @brentrkoeppPokemon Sword & Shield Shiny hunt goes viral
Since its introduction as a mechanic in 1998’s Gold & Silver, Shiny Pokemon have become one of the most popular features in the series. Some Trainers will spend thousands of hours hunting down the insanely rare variants.
One player’s attempt to hunt Shinies in Sword & Shield took a turn, however, when they themselves became the prey. ‘GreyRose’ posted a video of their encounter on the /Pokemon subreddit, exclaiming, “I guess the shinies are hunting me now.”
The viral clip shows the fan exploring the Isle of Armor when suddenly a Zoroark who looked like it was calmly frolicking in the grass turns and hurls itself at the player like a bloodthirsty beast. Incredibly, the Gen V creature was a Square Shiny.
While players having Shiny ‘mon run into them is nothing new, the imagery of the Unova ‘mon hunting down the unsuspected Trainer quickly resonated with the community who found it to be kind of terrifying.
“Hunted? More like full-sprinting, raged-induced, sideswiping spear-tackled off your bike and into a fight,” one player wrote describing the encounter. Another said, “The Pokemon world is brutal, imagine just enjoying nature, biking around and picking up apples and suddenly you’re getting football tackled by a 180lb werewolf.”
One player even pointed out, “I’ve been thinking about it lately, and the Pokemon world would be absolutely terrifying to live in.”
Ever since the Wild Area made its debut in Sword & Shield, players have found a new perspective on just how horrifying Pokemon actually are. Random spawns in the grass are drastically different then seeing a character actually hunt you down in the overworld.
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Hilariously, this isn’t the first time the community has been horrified by the realities of the Nintendo franchise. In April 2021, a New Pokemon Snap trailer went viral when it showed Magikarp violently being snatched up and taken as food by other ‘mon – absolute nightmare fuel.