Sword and Shield fans spot unique effect for certain Shiny Pokémon Eurogamer.net If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. Sword and Shield fans spot unique effect for certain Shiny Pokémon Unova thing to collect. News by Tom Phillips Deputy Editor Updated on 21 Nov 2019 5 comments Pokémon Sword and Shield contains a new appearance effect for certain Shiny Pokémon, fans have discovered. This phenomenon has lead some fans to dub the discovery as a new, even rarer tier of alternate-coloured monsters. But this may not be entirely true. Shiny Pokémon are meant to be extremely rare in mainline Pokémon games. The odds of finding one are usually around 1/4000, and they offer no advantage other than having an alternate colour scheme. (Pokémon Go makes them considerably easier to find.) But for collectors, the pursuit of Shiny Pokémon has long been an obsession. Pokéfans have spent hours restarting their games over and over until they get a Shiny version of their starter Pokémon, or employing one of the series' various mechanics to raise their chances of finding a Shiny by a fraction of a degree. When one does arrive - its alternate colour scheme visible, and with an effect like a flash of stars to make sure you notice - it is a big deal. So it's an even bigger deal that Pokémon Sword and Shield has certain Shiny Pokémon which boast an alternate effect. Instead of a flash of stars, they arrive with what looks like a flash of squares, or diamonds. Well seems like my shiny Shiftry is actually an ultra rare "square shiny"... lucky me #PokemonEpeeBouclier #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/KaW54mwJjh- BSoD (@BSoD38) November 20, 2019 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings This comparison image comes from Reddit: Pokémon Stars and Squares. Today, we're starting to get an idea of why this happens. Peering into each games' code, Pokémon trainer Kurt claims to have found evidence that the likelihood of a Shiny with the square effect is 1/16th that of the base Shiny rarity. This is determined, as ever, by each game profile's unique Trainer ID code, and whether it matches the number string of the unique Pokémon ID code in question. A shiny with the square effect requires an even "cleaner" match of these numbers, Kurt says. In a surprising twist, it looks like chained shinies that are destined to be shiny are forced to be shiny in such a way that the xor results in 0 (squares). So, under certain conditions, you're more likely to get one than the other! pic.twitter.com/ZkjjivEwop- Kurt (@Kaphotics) November 20, 2019 To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings But there's something else going on, too. A follow-up tweet suggests getting a Shiny Pokémon using chaining (a recently-added method which increases Shiny chances) actually pushes the chances of getting the supposedly rarer square effect much higher - making it unclear how much rarer it actually is. Kurt has said more research is now needed. What is clear is that there are now two appearance effects for Shiny Pokémon in Sword and Shield. And for trainers who do want to catch 'em all - well, the job just became even harder. Become a Eurogamer subscriber and get your first month for £1 Get your first month for £1 (normally £3.99) when you buy a Standard Eurogamer subscription. Enjoy ad-free browsing, merch discounts, our monthly letter from the editor, and show your support with a supporter-exclusive comment flair! Support us View supporter archive More News Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Modder dives into Demon's Souls files following PS5 jailbreak, discovers fabled Ring of the Chieftain Who knows what's nexus? 4 Google announces cloud gaming Chromebooks less than a fortnight after Stadia shutdown GeForce Now preinstalled. 11 Latest Articles Digital Foundry Sennheiser's legendary HD 599 open-back headphones are just £70 at Amazon in the Prime Early Access Sale Comfortable with neutral sound and a wide sound stage. Preview Football Manager's new Console edition is the best you'll get without a PC Getting Touch-right. 1 Splatoon 3 Amiibos will be out next month Ink-coming! 3 Fans think Phil Spencer's shelf is teasing the Xbox Game Pass streaming box UPDATE: Xbox confirms old Keystone prototype. 61 Supporters Only Premium only Off Topic: Take a minute to appreciate Cookin' with Coolio's incredible scallops recipe. What a great book. Premium only Off Topic: Reading City of Glass in comic form "Where exactly am I going?" Premium only Off Topic: Il Buco is a transporting film about a really big hole Underlands. Off-Topic Netflix handled Sandman brilliantly It was Dreamy. 9 Buy things with globes on them And other lovely Eurogamer merch in our official store! Explore our store