Pokemon TCG fans mock Paldean Fates’ “awful” choice of Shinies

The announcement of Pokemon TCG: Paldean Fates faced some criticism from fans over its decision to highlight some particularly underwhelming Shiny Pokemon designs.

The next Pokemon TCG set is Paldean Fates, which will bring even more of Generation 9’s Pokemon into the game. This follows Paldea Evolved, which introduced Scarlet and Violet to the TCG.

One of Paldean Fates’ big selling points is its focus on Shinies, with over 100 Shiny Pokemon cards announced for the set.

However, fans are already criticizing the set’s selection of Shinies, with most of the choices shown off so far being mocked.

Fans question why Ceruledge & Tinkaton are among the faces of Paldean Fates’ Shiny Pokemon

Paldean Fates’ announcement featured a look at the set’s booster packs. The four shown off feature the Shiny forms of Tinkaton, Pikachu, Dondozo and Ceruledge surrounded by stars and sparkle effects based on those that appear when a Shiny Pokemon enters a battle in the main series games.

However, fans were quick to mock the decision to highlight these particular Pokemon. While Shiny Dondozo is significantly different from its original look (its light and dark blue coloring swapped for white and yellow), the other three don’t look all that different from their more common forms.

Ceruledge in particular has been called out as an odd choice, with Serebii’s Joe Merrick saying “Imagine using Ceruledge to promote Shiny Pokémon in TCG art.”

If you’re having trouble spotting the difference between Shiny and regular Ceruledge, the only difference is its eyes. Regular Ceruledge has purple eyes with a white accent above them, while Shiny Ceruledge’s eyes are red with a yellow accent.

While meant as a creative reference to Armarouge that emphasizes their connection as branched evolutions of Charcadet, the difference is so subtle that you’d be forgiven for missing it.

Others pointed out that Tinkaton and Pikachu are also odd choices. “I mean, with the exception of Dondozo, those are all awful shiny selections lmao,” said one user.

“They said hmmmmm let’s pick 3 pokemon that look near identical in their shiny forms,” said another.

In fairness, Tinkaton’s Shiny is a bit more obvious in Scarlet and Violet. While its body remains the same shades of pink, the giant hammer it carries goes from gray to brown. This matches the coloration of Shiny Corviknight, which Tinkaton is said to prey upon.

However, the Paldean Fates artwork doesn’t do the design any favors, with the shading on the hammer making it look like it could be either brown or gray.

While Pikachu (whose Shiny is just a couple of shades darker) makes some sense considering it has been the face of the franchise for decades, it’s much harder to make a case for Tinkaton and Ceruledge.

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