Top 5 rarest shiny Pikachu in Pokemon GO

No one goes through wardrobe changes quite like Pikachu in Pokemon GO.

Over the years, there have been countless different designs for the mascot of Pokemon. It seems like for every large event there is a special version of Pikachu available. That makes these special Pikachu variants become more valuable over time, especially if they're shiny.

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Which versions of Pikachu are the hardest to catch in Pokemon GO?

5) Pikachu Libre

Pikachu Libre is a reward for Legend rank players in GO Battle League (Image via Niantic)

Technically anyone can get this Pikachu variant, but it takes tons of effort and planning. Only trainers who reach Legend Rank in GO Battle League will get Pikachu Libre. This is certainly doable for trainers who play PvP often and have strong teams built, but for the average player this would be a little tough to pull off.

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4) Pop Star and Rock Star Pikachu

Pikachu Rock Star and Pop Start were part of 2021's GO Fest (Image via Niantic)

These Pikachu versions were available at Pokemon GO Fest 2021 for trainers who completed the Melody Pokemon Special Research. The catch, however, was that trainers had to pick either Pop Star Pikachu or Rock Star Pikachu.

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3) Straw Hat Pikachu

Straw Hat Pikachu resembles Luffy from One Piece (Image via Niantic)

The Pikachu wearing a straw hat was released to promote the recreation of the Kumamoto Prefecture in 2019. The reason why they decided on a straw hat for this costume was because it was also the 22nd anniversary of the One Piece anime. Pikachu’s straw hat is a nod to Luffy, the main character of the show.

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2) Mimikyu-costume Pikachu

The Pikachu in a Mimikyu costume was one of several costumes for the 2019 Halloween Event (Image via Niantic)

This definitely is the most ironic variant of Pikachu, considering it’s wearing a costume of a Pokemon that is obsessed with becoming Pikachu. This version, though, was only available through the Halloween event in 2019, so any trainers who still have one around are very lucky.

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1) Detective Pikachu

It should come as no surprise that this version of Pikachu came out during the release of the Detective Pikachu movie starring Ryan Reynolds. What makes it so rare, though, is that it couldn’t even be found in the wild. Trainers had to take snapshots and hope that Detective Pikachu would photo bomb them to catch it.