Pokémon HOME gives away extremely rare Shiny, but many fans are angry

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have announced a new treat for fans. Trainers can claim a Shiny Volcanion via Pokémon HOME for free. In practice, however, it is not really free for many players. To obtain the Shiny Pokémon, players must have invested a lot of time in Pokémon Legends: Z-A (available for around $55 on Amazon) and own the Mega Dimension expansion.

Specifically, trainers must complete the Lumiose Pokédex, the Hyperspace Pokédex and the Mega Evolution Pokédex to obtain the Shiny version of the Mythical Fire/Water-type Pokémon. The latter two require the Z-A expansion unless players can obtain all the necessary Pokémon through trades. Mega Evolutions from online battles are not required, so players do not necessarily have to play PvP to secure Volcanion.

Volcanion is a Mythical Pokémon many fans will know from Pokémon the Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel. Until now, Volcanion has only been distributed through events, which are usually Shiny-locked. The current promotion is the first official opportunity to obtain Shiny Volcanion. It remains unclear whether the promotion will be permanent. If not, this could be a rare chance to get an extremely uncommon Shiny, since Volcanion cannot be specifically hunted afterward and it is uncertain if or when a similar promotion will return.

Players who have completed all required Pokédex entries and transferred the relevant Pokémon to Pokémon HOME will find Volcanion in their Gift Box. It is level 50, has “HOME” as its Original Trainer, the ID 260427 and comes in a Cherish Ball. It also has a Modest nature, the Souvenir Ribbon and the moves Steam Eruption, Flare Blitz, Hydro Pump and Heavy Slam.

Why many fans are angry

Pokémon fans usually welcome any chance to obtain a Shiny, but the mood around the current Volcanion promotion is somewhat subdued in the Bisafans community (in German). Fans compare the high requirements to a kind of paywall. Anyone who collects Shinies may already have completed the Lumiose Pokédex, but may still need to pay for the expansion to fill the Hyperspace Pokédex as well. Since this is the first official Shiny distribution for Volcanion, some players feel the barrier is unnecessarily high.