In Pokemon GO, Zorua was intended to be a surprise encounter. Thanks to a bug during the Shuppet Spotlight Hour (October 2022), Zorua snuck its way onto the roster a bit earlier than intended. Since then, Niantic has fixed the bug, and Zorua can now be caught via its intended method.
How To Find Zorua
Zorua won’t appear in its regular form in Pokemon GO’s overworld. Instead, it will take on the appearance of the player’s Buddy Pokemon. For players who don’t know, they can assign a Buddy Pokemon by tapping the trainer icon in the bottom-left corner of the screen. If this is the first time assigning a Buddy Pokemon, they’ll see an option that allows them to “Choose a Buddy.” From here, players can access the Buddy Pokemon menu by tapping their icon next to the trainer icon on the overworld map. There’s an option called Swap Buddies that, as its name indicates, allows players to swap out their current Buddy Pokemon with another. However, players can only swap out Buddies up to 20 times a day.
The Buddy Pokemon does not need to be on the overworld map with its trainer in order for Zorua to spawn. In fact, having a Buddy Pokemon out while looking for Zorua may be more confusing than helpful. If players see two of their “Buddy Pokemon”, then there’s a chance one of them is a Zorua.
Upon catching the “Buddy Pokemon,” the screen will say “Oh?” instead of “Gotcha!”. A special animation will play with a magenta-colored background. The Pokemon will then transform into Zorua similarly to Ditto’s transformation upon capture. Keep in mind that berries that increase the amount of Candy (ie: Pinap Berries, Silver Pinap Berries) will count towards Zorua Candy. So, if players use a Pinap Berry when catching a Porygon2 (assigned as their Buddy), they won’t get Porygon Candies, but will instead get Zorua Candies.
Finding Zorua Tips And Evolution
Zorua’s disguise isn’t as flawless as it thinks it is. Players struggling to find Zorua may want to consider assigning a Buddy Pokemon that’s either:
An Uncommon/Rare/Legendary Pokemon (ex: Cosmog) A Shadow or Purified Pokemon A Shiny Pokemon
As most players know, Pokemon that are Shiny do not appear as Shiny on the overworld map. Players need to interact with the Pokemon first. Zorua instead will appear on the map as a Shiny Pokemon, giving away its identity. Another trick is to assign a Shadow or Purified Pokemon as a Buddy. These Pokemon have purple (Shadow) or white (Purified) auras, and Zorua’s disguise will keep these special features when it appears. The last trick is to assign a legendary or an uncommon Pokemon as a Buddy. It’s not likely players will find a Legendary roaming about the wild outside very specific events (excluding Galarian Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno).
Once players have caught enough Zorua, they can evolve it into Zoroark with 50 Zorua Candy. As a Dark-type, Zoroark (and Zorua) will have access to moves strong against Ghost and Psychic-type Pokemon. However, trainers will want to keep them away from Fairy, Fighting, and Bug-type Pokemon.
Pokemon GO is available for mobile devices.
More: Pokemon GO: Full Game Guide | Tips, Tricks, and Events
