Pokémon Go player captures a shiny Charizard in an unexpected place

A popular feature during the Horizons event in Pokémon Go led to an unlikely encounter with a shiny Charizard for one lucky player, leaving everyone in disbelief.

Every so often, Pokémon Go adds a fan-favorite feature during certain events, which lets you encounter a featured Pokémon after it photobombs your in-game photos.

Often found during Community Days and Go Fests, you can also find photobombs during the Horizons event, which celebrates the ongoing anime series with characters like Liko, Roy, and Friede alongside their signature Pokémon.

Having these characters in your photobombs will lead to encounters with Paldea starters and, in some cases, the iconic Charizard. But nothing prepared Reddit user ‘Pamela26Anne’ for the surprise of her life when they got a shiny Charizard after a photobomb of Friede was done on their photo.

Never expecting a shiny, the post author wrote: “A SERIES of photobombs led to this?!” while others were also shocked by the incredible capture.

One user mentioned that he was jealous and praised the post author’s luck. Others were surprised that the author of the post even got a Charizard, let alone a shiny, because they got Poussacha, Chochodile and Captain Pikachu.

Photobomb SERIES led to this?! byu/Pamela26Anne inpokemongo

This prompted one player to comment: “The Horizons event happening now. 5 random Pokémon appearances per day from snapshots. It’s a small group of Pokémon.”

The event began on March 5, 2024 and will run until March 11, 2024 at 8 p.m. local time, Pokémon Go trainers can have up to five photobomb encounters each day with the species featured in the anime.

But it seems like most players are getting the Paldea starters, with Captain Pikachu and Charizard being rarer, and it seems like you have more to wait for than the possibility of a shiny Charizard.

“I immediately made mine and got a shiny Pikachu!” added a player. Note that encounters with Poussacha and Chochodile cannot be shiny.