Summary
APokemon GOplayer shared their frustration with the game when they lost out on the opportunity to catch a rare Shiny Pokemon. Encountering a Shiny inPokemon GOis almost always exciting, but every encounter doesn’t necessarily have a good outcome.
Pokemon GOhas Shinieslike the vast majority of mainline Pokemon games, but there are some differences with regard to how they can be caught. Players in standard Pokemon games might weaken a wild Pokemon or use debuffs to make it easier to catch, but players inPokemon GOare restricted to using berries and Poke Balls to try and catch wild creatures. Some additional mechanics ofPokemon GOcan also make capturing Pokemon tricky.
Pokemon GOplayer Final_Program6588 expressed that they hated the game after encountering a Shiny Alakazam only to lose it. The shared screenshots show a wild Shiny Alakazam with a CP of 1394 appearing, while the second shows that it ran away before the player could capture it. It’s easy to understand their frustration, as having any powerful orShiny Pokemon run awaywould be annoying or downright devastating, depending on the player’s current collection of Pokemon.
Why Did the Shiny Alakazam Run Away?
Pokemon GOplayers in the comments expressed sympathy for the player, but several wondered what went wrong with the capture attempt. Some speculated that Final_Program6588 was speed locked, judging by the string of Pokemon that ran away in rapid succession prior to the Alakazam encounter. Final_Program6588 confirmed that this was the case, and that they had been using their incense while in a moving vehicle with hopes that they would encounter aShiny Galarian legendary bird. However, players were quick to point out that while Shiny legendary birds won’t ordinarily run away while the player is trying to catch them, they are also subject to the speed rules and will run if the player is moving too quickly during the encounter.
Interestingly, Final_Program6588 actually ended up getting an unexpected eye opener that turned out to be a good thing. Final_Program6588 noted in one response that they already have aShiny Alakazam, so while this encounter frustrated them, it wasn’t a huge loss. If, on the other hand, they had found the Shiny Galarian legendary bird they were looking for only for it to run away due to the speed they were moving at, it would have been far worse. Players have recommended not trying to actually catch a Pokemon until one’s vehicle comes to a stop, but some have had mixed results. Ultimately, playing the game on foot as intended is the best way to go when hunting for rare Pokemon.
