Your green ‘Shiny’ Snorlax in Pokémon Sleep is a lie

If you woke up this morning and thought you found yourself a rare Shiny Snorlax in Pokémon Sleep, think again.

Pokémon Sleep has been out for about two weeks now, and many players just unlocked the second research area, Cyan Beach. Those of us who relocated to the new beach this morning were greeted by something very unusual—a green Snorlax.

Whether we were still half asleep or just caught off guard by the green hue, a lot of fans were mistaking this green Snorlax for a Shiny one. Unfortunately, the green Snorlax is just a special variant that is native to Cyan Beach. It’s not a rare encounter.

In their defense, Shiny Pokémon are defined by having a different color scheme from their standard variant, and the green Snorlax technically fits that description. However, a true Shiny Snorlax will be a darker shade of blue rather than green, and it would have a special sparkly animation.

Even if you didn’t find a real Shiny Snorlax this morning, don’t feel too bad about it because they aren’t catchable in Pokémon Sleep anyway. Shiny Snorlax’s purpose in the game is no different from a normal one, and it doesn’t affect the Shiny odds for other Pokémon either. Plus, the same Snorlax only sticks around for a week before a new one cycles in, meaning you’d eventually have to say goodbye to your Shiny Snorlax even if you were lucky enough to find one.

For that reason, you’re better off finding any other Shiny Pokémon in the game because you can actually befriend and collect them. If you’re extra lucky, you might even find a Shiny Pokémon sleeping on your Snorlax’s belly.