Way back in 1999, Pokemon Gold and Silver hit retail shelves worldwide. It was the first direct sequel to Pokemon Red and Blue and introduced the world to a whole new region, eight new gym leaders to battle, and 100 new Pokemon for gamers to capture. Two years later, Pokemon Crystal hit shelves and was effectively the same game as Pokemon Gold and Silver but featured several improvements, which included new attack animations and visual enhancements. This was also the generation that introduced the shiny version of Pokemon to the franchise.

Technically speaking, there is no difference between the shiny version of Pokemon and the regular versions. They are neither stronger nor weaker than the non-shiny versions and the only main difference between the two is how the creatures look. However, they are rare throughout the games, which makes finding and capturing them a sport for any dedicated Pokemon player. It was considered incredibly lucky, for example when one Pokemon Legends: Arceus player discovered two shiny Piplups during a Mass Outbreak. One player, however, opted to go all the way back to Pokemon Crystal for a particular shiny.

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Of the three starters in Pokemon Gold, Silver, and Crystal, Totodile is often listed as the most popular of its generation. In a recent post a TikTok, user under the name youroldpaljosh revealed how dedicated they were to get a shiny version of the Pokemon. In the video he posted, it was revealed that he restarted Pokemon Crystal over 1,400 times in order to get the shiny version of Totodile. However, in the video itself, only his last few attempts were shown.

Since shiny Pokemon were introduced, collecting them has become a popular sport among more dedicated fans. One player, for example, managed to catch the shiny versions of all the original 151 Pokemon in a day. Other fans have even taken to the internet to imagine what the next generation starters will look like as shiny versions. While the alternate versions of these Pokemon may not have any stat bonuses, fans like these show that the alternative look is more than enough of a reason to spend some extra time on the games in order to find them.

In the second generation Pokemon games, the three starters were the Grass-type Chikorita, the Fire-type Cyndaquil, and the Water-type Totodile. At the start of the game, the player character picks one of these three before the rival, Silver, picks the Pokemon of the opposite, stronger type. As mentioned above, Totodile is often listed as the most popular of these starters, and fans continue to create tributes to the adorable creature. One fan, for example, created a stunning colored pencil drawing of Totodile. In the case of youroldpaljosh, however, he was dedicated to getting the alternate version of the iconic monster, even if it took over 1,400 attempts.

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