What does it mean when a Pokémon is “shiny locked”?

Shiny Pokémon are Pokémon with alternative color variants. Shiny Pokémon are among the most coveted things in the Pokémon franchise, mostly due to their rarity and the difficulty associated with getting ahold of them. Shiny Pokémon are traditionally encountered during in-game events or in the wild with an incredibly low chance of appearing. A "shiny locked" Pokémon is one that cannot be shiny when encountered in the wild.

Which Pokémon are "shiny locked"?

Starter Pokémon in certain Generations and Legendary Pokémon are the most common Pokémon to be shiny locked. This means that no matter how many times players reset their game, these Pokémon cannot be shiny upon their encounter.

Related: Can you and your Pokémon die in Pokémon Legends: Arceus?

Why are some Pokémon "shiny locked"?

Shiny locked Pokémon have not always been a thing, and really started to be commonplace around Generation 5. There are many reasons why Pokémon might be shiny locked. One reason might be to make it easier to spot when someone had hacked shiny Pokémon into the game to trade on the GTS. It also might be to keep cutscene continuity, as most of the modern titles in the franchise have a higher frequency of cutscenes, and a shiny Pokémon appearing after the normal Pokémon's variant was just seen in a cutscene would break what immersion the Pokémon games are able to gather.

Want to read more about the Pokémon franchise? Check out Pokémon Legends Arceus: How is this entry unique? on Pro Game Guides!