How to Evolve Finizen and Transform Palafin in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

For those of you who are too young to remember, in the olden days, whenever Clark Kent needed to become Superman, he’d duck into a phone booth while no one was looking and take his jacket off. Obviously, phone booths aren’t really a thing anymore, doubly so if you’re a dolphin Pokemon, but Finizen still has a hero in its heart. Here’s how to evolve Finizen and transform Palafin in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.

How to Evolve Finizen and Transform Palafin in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Finizen is a new Pokemon introduced in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. A pure Water-type, it’s the very first dolphin-like Pokemon introduced in the entire franchise, which is equal parts awesome and confusing. However, being a dolphin isn’t all Finizen has going for it. It’s got a super secret that only becomes apparent after it evolves into Palafin.

Related: What are Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Starter Evolution Types?

Firstly, in order to evolve Palafin into Finizen, it needs to be trained up to at least level 38. Same deal as any other Pokemon: use it in a lot of battles or feed it lots of Rare Candies. Once it reaches level 38, though, that’s when you need to pull off a slightly esoteric trick. You need to get another Pokemon player to connect to your game through the internet and follow you around. It can be a friend, or just some rando you meet online, either is fine. While this other player is observing you, you need to use Finizen to defeat one opponent. Either a Wild Pokemon or a Trainer works, though obviously the former is faster. If it’s sufficiently leveled, Finizen will immediately evolve into Palafin after the fight ends.

How to Transform Palafin

Now, you might be confused at first because, at a glance, Palafin looks almost identical to Finizen save for the heart-shaped mark that has appeared on its chest. This is not a glitch, Palafin is merely hiding its true nature.

If you check out Palafin’s stats post-evolution, you’ll notice two changes. Firstly, it’ll have gained a new ability called Zero to Hero. Secondly, it should have learned a new Water-type move called Flip Turn, in which it attacks the opponent and then switches with another of your Pokemon. When Palafin is sent out in battle, called back, and then sent out again, Zero to Hero activates, and Palafin transforms into its upright heroic form. Much like Clark Kent turning into Superman, Palafin can only assume its true form when no one is looking.

While the process to make it transform is a bit silly, you can’t deny the cool factor that comes with having a super-heroic dolphin Pokemon fighting evil by your side.