Mystery Boxes have been in Pokemon Go for a while now, but despite their existence for many years, they remain a mystery to some players. Thankfully, they’re pretty easy to acquire once you know the process.
Meltan first graced us with its presence in 2018 during the release of Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee. However, only a few people know how to get the elusive Pokemon in Pokemon Go beyond doing Research and special events. Not to worry, though, because we’ll guide you through everything you need to know about Meltan, how to get its shiny variant, the relevance of the Mystery Box, and how you can evolve your Meltan into a Melmetal.
What’s the Mystery Box?
The Mystery Box is an item you can get in Pokemon Go required to get Meltan to spawn. It’s similar to an Incense that attracts Pokemon, but you’ll only encounter Meltans in this case. The item was first introduced in 2018 to celebrate the release of the Let’s Go! games on the Nintendo Switch. During that time, Metlan was the first Pokemon to debut in Pokemon Go.
Once the Mystery Box has been activated, you can attract Meltans for 60 minutes. Since the item has a cooldown of three days, you should make the most out of it.
How to Get the Mystery Box in Pokemon Go
The easiest way to get the Mystery Box is by transferring one of your Pokemon from Pokemon Go to your Pokemon Home or Let’s Go! Eevee/Pikachu. There’s no need to pay for any premium plan to transfer your Pokemon and get the Mystery Box.
If you’re going with the Pokemon Home route, you must download the app on the same device you use to play Pokemon Go. Once you have a Home account, follow these steps:
- Open the Pokemon Go app.
- Tap the Pokeball on the bottom screen.
- Tap on Settings from the top right corner of your screen.
- Scroll down until you see ‘Connected Devices and Services,’ then tap it.
- Tap Pokemon Home and use the Nintendo account you used to set everything up.
After you’ve done these steps, the ‘Sign In’ button should be replaced with ‘Send Pokemon.’ Whenever you need to send a Pokemon from Pokemon Go to Pokemon Home, just tap on it and select the one you want to transfer via the Go Transporter. After doing your first transfer, you’ll automatically receive a Mystery Box in your Item Bag.
Be aware that any Pokemon you’ve sent to Pokemon Home can’t be sent back to the game, so only transfer the ones you don’t mind saying goodbye to.
How to Catch A Meltan in Pokemon Go
You can only catch a Meltan by using a Mystery Box. Once you’ve done this, Meltans will spawn in your area for an hour, so be sure to catch as many as you can before the spawn period ends. After an hour has passed, you need to wait for three days until you can use a Mystery Box again. Once the cooldown is over, transfer another Pokemon from Pokemon Go to Pokemon Home to get another Mystery Box. Note that during special events, this cooldown period will be reduced.
How to Get Shiny Meltan in Pokemon Go
Catching a Shiny Meltan in Pokemon Go is possible, but they’re so few and far between since you can only encounter them during special events. To have the best chance of getting a Shiny Meltan, we recommend staying on top of the latest news and announcements. Remember that there’s no 100% guarantee you’ll encounter a shiny Meltan, even during the crossover events. That said, just try to open as many Mystery Boxes as possible to fortify your chances of catching it.
Evolving Meltan into Melmetal in Pokemon Go
Once you finally have a Meltan, your next goal will likely be getting its evolution, Melmetal. To evolve your Meltan into Melmetal, you need 400 Meltan Candies, which is challenging to accumulate. This is where farming Mystery Boxes comes into play. The best way to get lots of Meltan Candy is to use Mystery Boxes to catch as many Meltan as possible. You can also use Pinap Berries to get extra Candy.
Another method is to set a Meltan as your Buddy and raise its hearts. Plus, it’ll pick up Candy as you run around. If your inventory’s full of Meltan, you can transfer the ones you deem inferior or don’t need in exchange for Candy.
