Can Mega Lopunny be shiny in Pokemon GO? (January 2023)

With Mega Lopunny coming to Pokemon GO's Mega Raids, many players will be taking part in the event to grind for mega energy that can be used to get a Mega Lopunny of their own. However, some trainers may be looking to take part in this activity for a rarer reward: a Shiny Pokemon.

Shiny Pokemon have been a staple in the franchise since the second generation of the main series. Ever since, they have made appearances in every form of media, including Niantic's mobile game. However, there are certain complications when it comes to finding such creatures.

Niantic is infamous for being rather stingy regarding what creatures can and cannot appear in their shiny variants in Pokemon GO. With this in mind, players will need to do a fair bit of research before they commit their time and effort into hunting for a specific Shiny Pokemon. Shiny Mega Lopunny is available in Pokemon GO. However, the grind to find one is no easy task.

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Tips for finding Shiny Lopunny in Pokemon GO

Mega Lopunny as it appears in the animated trailer for Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Since Mega Lopunny rewards trainers with an encounter with a wild Lopunny upon defeating it in a Raid Battle, this would seem like the easiest way to find one.

However, grinding Raid Battles can be terribly expensive. Once you use up your free raid pass, every subsequent raid attempt will cost you around $1. Since the Lopunny encountered through this method has around a 1/64 chance of being shiny, it would not be ridiculous to assume that you could easily spend upwards of $30 before you find a Shiny Lopunny.

Mega Lopunny is a Normal and Fighting-type Pokemon. As such, Psychic and Flying-types like Alakazam, Slowbro, Pidgeot, and Salamence are all great counters to use in this Raid Battle in Pokemon GO. Their Mega Evolutions work even better if you have access to them.

Another cheaper option that you can consider if you wish to find a Shiny Lopunny is to first find a Shiny Buneary. Of course, in order to use this method, you are going to need to grind more since you now have to obtain the required candies to evolve it into Lopunny as well. To do so, you will need 50 Buneary candies.

Since Buneary is a pure Normal-type Pokemon, it has the best chance of spawning in partly cloudy weather in Pokemon GO. Once you find an area experiencing this condition to grind in, simply use Lure Modules on nearby Pokestops and Incenses to greatly increase the general spawn rate. This will hopefully decrease the time it takes for Buneary to spawn.

You can also choose to walk with the Buneary assigned as your Buddy Pokemon to passively earn candies as you move. With Buneary assigned, you will earn one candy for every three kilometers you walk. After evolving it, the only thing left to do is to challenge a Mega Lopunny in a Raid Battle to acquire the mega energy required to Mega Evolve your new Shiny Lopunny.