Pokemon finally revives an ultra-rare Shiny that's gone virtually unseen for 14 years, but only the most dedicated Scarlet and Violet players can get it

An image shows Shiny Meloetta against a blue background.
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)

Pokemon Home, the cloud storage app, now allows Pokemon connoisseurs to do what was previously thought impossible: capture a Shiny Meloetta. 

Shiny Meloetta is an ultra-rare, mint-colored version of the Normal/Psychic type Pokemon, which debuted in Pokemon's Generation V around 14 years ago. Since then, Meloetta's shiny form has been obtainable only through desperate measures like hacking or cloning a hacked monster and trading it. Pokemon Home's October 16 announcement that Shiny Meloetta is finally available through safe and legal measures should be a relief to many fans who have had to thirst in the shadows for so long. 

"Got my work cut out for me, but I'm bringing Miku Meloetta home soon," said one popular post on X. "Of course, I wish I could've just Shiny-hunted this instead of being given it, but I'm just glad shiny Meloetta finally is obtainable after almost 14 years!"

"Let it be known that I will do anything for Meloetta," said another.

That's good, since the Pokemon Company isn't going easy on fans, either. In order to receive the Shiny Meloetta "Mystery Gift," a new Pokemon Home rewards feature, you'll have to completely fill out Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Paldea Pokedex, Kitakami Pokedex, and Blueberry Pokedex. There's no time limit to receive Shiny Meloetta, though, so you don't need to rush to undergo this grueling process. 

Only mobile Pokemon Home users can receive Mystery Gifts, and you'll have to link your Nintendo Account, too. But, even though all these reward requirements are highly specific and involved, it's still a great day to love the musical Meloetta.

Huge Game Freak leak reveals Pokemon source code, unused designs, Switch 2 details, and unannounced Gen 10 games

Ashley Bardhan
Senior Writer

Ashley is a Senior Writer at GamesRadar+. She's been a staff writer at Kotaku and Inverse, too, and she's written freelance pieces about horror and women in games for sites like Rolling Stone, Vulture, IGN, and Polygon. When she's not covering gaming news, she's usually working on expanding her doll collection while watching Saw movies one through 11.