Omar Banat
Keep in mind that the images below feature the regular form on the left and the shiny form on the right.
Togekiss
The differences between the shiny and regular version of Togekiss is nearly indistinguishable. The shiny form is slightly more yellow than the original one, but these differences can be hard to see in many different types of lighting. The only way to truly tell the difference is by seeing the shiny animation when it appears in the wild or hops out of its Poke Ball. Honestly, the shiny versions of this whole evolutionary line are barely different from their originals. Togepi is slightly noticeable, but Togetic is just about as hard to notice as Togekiss.
Gastrodon
No matter which flavor of Gastrodon you’re looking at — East Sea or West Sea — both are equally as hard to tell apart when it comes to their shiny versions. It’s like whoever designed this Pokemon thought, “Let’s just wash out the colors a bit and call it a day.” The side-by-side comparison isn’t too bad if you look at specific parts like the brown parts of the body. However, at first glance, there’s no easy way to identify the shiny from the original. On top of that, it’s nearly impossible to tell in a situation where you don’t have the convenience of a side-by-side comparison.
Tandemaus
Here’s a good recent example of a shiny Pokemon that looks ridiculously similar to its original version. This adorable duo of unassuming mice appears white normally and white when shiny. There appears to be a slightly yellow tinge on the body in the shiny version of Tandemaus, but not enough that it could be noticeable on such a small Pokemon in the wild. The same goes for Maushold, but this is where things get even worse. Since Maushold has a 1/100 chance of having one child instead of two, this makes shiny hunting for this Pokemon an even bigger grind than usual.
Garchomp
Garchomp is one of the coolest-looking designs in Pokemon, yet its shiny version is one of the least changed in the game. Some might ask why they should mess with perfection, but part of the payoff for shiny hunting is getting to appreciate the alternate colors of Pokemon that you already enjoy using in these games. A good example of a very popular Pokemon doing a vastly different color swap is Charizard. It makes hunting it down worthwhile. On the other hand, there’s really no incentive to continue breeding or catching once you get a good Gible. Truly only the most dedicated shiny hunters would care to get this one.
Sunkern
People make fun of Magikarp for being pathetic, but at least it has better stats and a much better shiny version than Sunkern. The shiny form here, like many other similar Pokemon, just has the colors a bit more saturated than the original, yet its leaves look like they’re more faded. It’s like this Sunkern hasn’t had enough sunlight. It makes sense to collect shinies for Pokemon that are strong, so you can flex in online battles, even if they don’t look too different, like Garchomp. Of course, in this case, nobody is jumping into a competitive match with a Sunkern. No, this isn’t some kind of reverse psychology to goad people into using shiny Sunkerns in online matches. It’s safe to say that will never happen.
Plusle
Plusle is one of those weird Pokemon where the shiny version looks more like what the original should look like while still not looking different enough at first glance. The only discernable difference from one to the other is that the shiny’s colors are slightly more saturated than the original version. Just like Sunkern, it’s so weak to the point that it’s not worth hunting for a flex. Unless you’re a big fan of the generational mascots or a committed shiny hunter, there’s really no reason to go for this one with how similar both versions look. While another mascot, Pikachu, is pretty similar to the original, at least its fur is a different color and not just a slightly noticeable shade change as is seen with Plusle.
Paldean Tauros
Heading back to the Paldea region, it’s time to pick on the regional variant of Tauros. While the original version from Kanto just looks like a deathly ill version of the Wild Bull Pokemon, it at least looked different. On the other hand, the Paldean shiny just looks like someone took a bright light and shined it directly on Tauros’ mane. More of the gray stands out in its fur in the shiny version instead of it just being pitch black. However, it’s not a noticeable amount of gray. In the right — or wrong — lighting, this shiny will not look any different. This goes for the Fighting, Water, and Fire breeds. It kind of makes sense for the Fighting version since it doesn’t have any accent colors in its mane, but the Water and Fire ones could have at least changed the red and blue accents to clearly indicate if it’s shiny or not.
Elekid
With some of the early Pokemon, it can be forgivable if their shiny versions aren’t easily discernable because of the limited spectrum on Game Boy Color screens. That is until you get to Elekid. Starting in the second generation, Elekid had a clearly different shiny version that became less distinctive on GBA. However, the DS games brought back more distinctive differences. Then the 3DS had to come along and ruin everything for Elekid. Once Pokemon X and Y came out, there was almost no discernable difference between the shiny and regular versions of this ‘mon. There’s still hope for this lost soul, but for now, Elekid is stuck in the realm of boring shinies.
Basculin
Basculin is one of the most forgettable Pokemon, with two variations in its base state. So forgettable, in fact, that Basculin actually has three different forms, and you didn’t remember that until just now, even though the new white-striped version came out in one of the biggest Pokemon games ever, Legends Arceus. Just like with many other Pokemon, Basculin looks like a slightly more pale version when shiny, which could easily be mistaken for the original one. Fortunately, it doesn’t matter because Basculin doesn’t matter. The only real reason to get a shiny one is so it can evolve into Basculegion, which has extremely varied shiny colors comparatively.
Gengar
Gengar is another one of those Pokemon like Garchomp that has an awesome design and has been very popular since it came out, but it suffers from having a barely different-looking shiny. It’s hardly the worst example, but it’s just a shame, considering the simple yet eye-catching design of the Pokemon makes it feel like it should have gotten a better shiny color palate. What makes things even worse is that the alternate version of Mega Gengar is actually one of the best-looking shinies in the game. A complete swap to a white and pink body could look so good on an unevolved shiny Gengar. Unfortunately, it’s only locked to the Mega version, which reverts back to its normal, hardly noticeably shiny form at the end of a battle.
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