A big selling point for Pokemon is having different variations of monsters to collect alongside different version-exclusive Pokemon in each title. Some of the most iconic examples include Unown, with each version shaped like a letter of the alphabet; Vivillon, with wing patterns based on each console's geographical region; and Spinda, with upward of four billion randomized spot patterns based on a hidden trait called its "personality value." One fan of the series went out of their way to figure out how much work it would be to store every Spinda in the cloud-based storage service Pokemon Home.
It would take 715,828 Pokemon Home accounts with 6,000 free spaces each to house every Spinda variation, according to Reddit user ZoroeArc. Going off of a premium account's British price of £14.39, it would cost £10,300,764.92 per year to house them all based on their post to the r/pokemon subreddit today, with every account being completely full except one that has 705 extra spaces.
ZoroeArc said they "don't recommend attempting this," both for financial reasons and because it is unlikely they could all ever be encountered given it would take approximately 1,361 years to do so catching no duplicates every 10 seconds. The sheer absurdity of having so many Spinda was clearly recognized by Niantic, which released Spinda in its AR mobile game Pokemon GO in 2018 with only eight variants.
It is nigh-impossible to imagine even the most dedicated Spinda fans investing so much time and money into such an endeavor, especially given ZoroeArc did not account for shinies that would result in eight billion Spinda patterns as of this writing. However, the thought experiment is a fun reminder that the somewhat overlooked Generation 3 Normal-type Pokemon is one of the most unique in the entire franchise.
It's worth noting that while Spinda can be kept in Pokemon Home, a repository for all species in the long-running creature-collecting series, it cannot currently be transferred into Pokemon Sword and Shield. Home compatibility with the Isle of Armor DLC was added in May, but the new Pokemon made available in Sword and Shield did not include Spinda.
Perhaps the dizzy red panda Pokemon will have better luck when Sword and Shield's Crown Tundra DLC releases later this year. In the meantime, Pokemon Home should still be a worthy investment for fans of the franchise, as giveaways through the service have included hidden ability Galar starters and a shiny version of the Mythic Pokemon Zeraora.
Pokemon Home is available now on the App Store, Google Play, and Switch.
