Can Ho-Oh be shiny in Pokemon GO? (March 2023)

Ho-Oh is returning to Pokemon GO in the upcoming Festival of Colors event as a limited-time 5-star Raid Boss. As such, many trainers are preparing for the event by gathering their resources and collecting their free raid passes. However, some trainers may be interested in Shiny Hunting to add a rare variant to their collection.

Shiny Hunting has been a popular pastime among veteran trainers since the debut of the variant back in the second generation of the franchise. Despite every Shiny Pokemon being present in the game's files, Niantic limits which creatures can appear in these rare varieties on live servers for Pokemon GO.

Lucky players may encounter Ho-Oh with its rare altered color palette during the Festival of Colors event. However, with the odds of finding a Shiny Pokemon being low, trainers may need to put in significant effort to catch this elusive variant.

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Tips for finding Shiny Ho-Oh in Pokemon GO

Ho-Oh as it appears in Pokemon Generations (Image via The Pokemon Company)

According to Niantic's official website for Pokemon GO, Ho-Oh will be able to be found in its shiny variant when it returns to the game for the Festival of Colors event. However, Shiny Hunting through the game's Raid Battles takes much more time and effort than it would if players chose to hunt a standard wild Pokemon.

The first thing you will need to find a Shiny Ho-Oh is an ample supply of raid passes. These items can be bought from Pokemon GO's in-app store for 100 Pokecoins, or one can be earned for free by spinning the photo disk located at any raid location or team-controlled gym spot.

One of the hardest parts of grinding Raid Bosses in the mobile game is finding an area with multiple raid locations. Urban cities often have multiple raid locations, but finding groups all hosting Ho-Oh is very unlikely. However, this can be remedied by the upcoming Ho-Oh Raid Hour.

The Raid Hour event will begin on March 8 at 6 pm local time, and Ho-Oh will appear much more frequently at raid locations for one hour. While this will not directly impact the likelihood of finding a Shiny Ho-Oh, the drastic boost to its spawn rate will hypothetically decrease the time it will take for one to appear.

It is important to note that the Raid Boss itself will not be shiny in Pokemon GO. The chance to encounter a Shiny Pokemon comes when you battle the wild Pokemon that appears once the Raid Boss has been defeated. As such, you will not know if you will get a Shiny Pokemon until after the boss has been defeated. Additionally, even if all players are participating in the same raid, some may get a Shiny Pokemon while others may not.

Shiny Hunting through Raid Battles in Pokemon GO can be a time-consuming and challenging task. While the reward of obtaining a Shiny Legendary Pokemon can be exciting for some players, it may not be worth the effort for others. Nevertheless, there is a dedicated community of hardcore trainers who enjoy the challenge and are determined to add these rare variations to their collections.