Pokemon Sword and Pokemon Shield, Game Freak's latest entries in the legendary adventure series from Nintendo, is out now for the Switch. Not for the first time in the long-running series' history, the titles had a bumpy road to launch, with large parts of the fanbase up in arms about failures to update graphics and animations for the new console, as well as the large number of Pokemon that are absent from Pokemon Sword and Shield's Pokedex.
One Pokemon who did manage to survive the #Dexit purges however is Ditto, a cute, purple blob of mischievous energy with a very special ability. As the Transforming Pokemon, Ditto has a unique place in the games, both mechanically and in the lore, with its ability to take on the form of any other Pokemon. Unfortunately, it's often hard to find a Ditto and even harder to catch one. To make it easier, here's our guide to tracking one down in Pokemon Sword and Shield.
The Lake of Outrage
As befits a Pokemon of such unique power, Ditto can only be found in the late-game Lake of Outrage zone, part of the Wild Area. Players won't even be able to access this area until they've upgraded their Rotom Bike with the ability to cross water, but that isn't the only hurdle that needs to be crossed. Ditto will always be at least a level 55 encounter, meaning most players will need to have collected every gym badge before they can even think about capturing one.
Players who've both upgraded their bike and collected enough badges to capture a level 55 Pokemon should search the crowded grasses around the Lake of Outrage, keeping an eye out for Ditto's distinctive form. There's about a two-percent chance that Ditto will spawn visibly in the overworld, and a ten-percent chance of encountering it in long grass. The former is dependent on Normal weather, while the latter, unlike most Pokemon in the Wild Area, is unaffected by conditions.
Putting Ditto to Work
Ditto's most common usage in recent Pokemon games is tied to the Breeding system, which allows players to combine Pokemon to create new eggs. As a transforming Pokemon, Ditto can be massively useful as it allows players to breed any Pokemon that is capable of doing so.
As most players won't start Breeding until they've reached the late-game, Ditto is ideally placed to be caught just when the system starts to become relevant. Even though this makes Ditto one of the most useful Pokemon in the game, no-one can do everything, and as such there is no sign of a Gigantamax Ditto on the horizon.
Pokemon Sword and Shield is out now exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.