Can Slakoth be shiny in Pokemon GO? (February 2023)

Slakoth arrived in Pokemon GO with its Hoenn region counterparts in 2017, and it has been caught by trainers ever since. It may not be much on its own, but it does evolve into Vigoroth and Slaking, both of which are great in certain battle formats.

However, does Slakoth have a shiny form that can be captured? Fortunately, the answer is yes, as the creature received its shiny variant on a Community Day in June 2019.

Shiny Slakoth possesses a purple coloration, though its fur color changes when it evolves into Vigoroth and Slaking. Regardless, some trainers who want to complete their shiny collection will likely want to seek out the critter in Pokemon GO.

The good news is that an upcoming Pokemon GO event presents an excellent opportunity to find its shiny variant.

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Catching a Shiny Slakoth during its Pokemon GO Spotlight Hour

Skaloth's shiny form as it is seen in Pokemon GO (Image via Niantic)

If Pokemon GO players have been hunting for a shiny Slakoth, they'll have an opportunity to find one, albeit not having much time to do so. Slakoth's Spotlight Hour begins on February 28, 2023, from 6:00 to 7:00 pm local time.

During this time, Slakoth will spawn almost exclusively in the wild, giving players a ton of chances to not only catch it, but potentially encounter its shiny form. Unfortunately, this event only lasts an hour, so trainers will want to seize the moment as quickly as they can.

To prepare, Pokemon GO trainers should stock up on Pokeballs, and they'll likely want to collect Incense and Lure Modules as well. The latter two items should increase spawns around the player and Pokestops, respectively, and more Slakoth spawns mean more opportunities to find a shiny in the wild.

As of the Mythical Wishes season, Pokemon GO's Incense items will boost spawns while a player is moving, so staying mobile is advised during this Spotlight Hour.

Even when a player has placed a Lure on a Pokestop, activating an Incense and continuing to move around it presents chances for the game to refresh and add Slakoth spawns compared to sitting next to a Lure Module and not moving and using an Incense.

Even if trainers use all the tools available to them, it's possible that they might still miss out on finding a shiny Slakoth. It's an unfortunate reality, but sometimes the low-percentage chances of shiny appearances simply don't work out during encounters, and there aren't too many remedies for bad luck in this mobile title.

If a trainer doesn't manage to find a shiny Slakoth this time, they don't need to worry. Niantic's event calendar is constantly evolving and it may only be a matter of time before Slakoth is back in the spotlight in some capacity.

It likely won't have another Spotlight Hour for quite some time and doesn't tend to have the popularity to stand out in a Community Day, but it may appear as part of other future events depending on the theme.

Considering Pokemon Sleep is slated to be released in Summer 2023, it may not be inconceivable to think that Niantic may hold its own in-game promotion with the app that may feature Pokemon who love to sleep. This is conjecture of course, but it's one potential example of how Slakoth could return later this year.