To coincide with the release of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, GameStop will be giving away Shiny Zacian and Zamazenta codes to owners of Pokémon Sword and Shield. A similar Shiny Pokémon Diamond and Pearl pre-order event will be held in South Korea and Japan, while a similar event for other regions has yet to be announced.
To give away special Pokémon, modern Pokémon games have used a combination of in-person events and online distributions. Previously, players had to attend physical events to obtain Mythical Pokémon, but these event Pokémon are now frequently distributed as free downloadable codes.
These are frequently associated with special promotions, such as the recent release of Shiny Celebi and Dada Zarude for Pokémon Sword and Shield to promote the Netflix premiere of Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle.
Shiny Zacian and Shiny Zamazenta codes for Pokémon Sword and Shield are rumored to be available in the United States through GameStop. Each Pokémon will have its event, according to PokéBeach. From October 22 to November 11, Pokémon Shield owners can claim a Shiny Zacian, while Pokémon Sword owners can claim a Shiny Zamazenta from November 12-27.
This will be around the time of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl release, as the Gen 4 release date is November 19. Shiny Zacian and Zamazenta codes should be redeemable via the Mystery Gift menu in Pokémon Sword and Shield.
Due to the nature of the event, people who only own one version of the game will be claiming the opposite box Legendary Pokémon from the one they own, as Zacian is the featured Legendary in Pokémon Sword and Zamazenta is on the cover of Pokémon Shield.
As the Galarian Fairy and Fighting-type Legendaries are Shiny locked in Pokémon Sword and Shield, this event is currently the only official way to obtain them. Despite having Shiny versions in the games’ code, Game Freak prevents some Pokémon from ever randomly appearing Shiny in-game (likely to avoid bugs). Only by hacking the game will you be able to obtain these Shiny Pokémon.
The Galar region’s era is coming to an end, so it’s not surprising to see The Pokémon Company figuratively close the door on Pokémon Sword and Shield with a giveaway for Shiny versions of its mascot Legendary Pokémon.
The Nintendo Switch releases sparked a number of debates, but they also became the third best-selling Pokémon game duo of all time. Whatever one thinks of Pokémon Sword and Shield, giving away free Shiny Zacian and Shiny Zamazenta codes seems like a generous way to bid farewell to Generation 8.
