How To Get Rotom In Pokemon Go

Pok�mon Go Rotom: How to get Wash Rotom and all Rotom Forms explained

How to catch the elusive Plasma Pok�mon.

Pokémon Go's Rotom has previously ranked as one of the game's most elusive creatures - with Gen 4 coming and going without a Rotom appearance.

That changed in July 2020, with the arrival of Rotom as part of the Go Fest 2020 celebrations.

This page explains how to finally get Rotom in Pokémon Go, which Rotom Forms are currently available, and others we know about from the mainline series.

On this page:

How to get Rotom with Pokémon Go
What Rotom Forms are available in Pokémon Go?
All Rotom Forms Heat, Wash, Frost, Fan and Mow Rotom explained

How to get Rotom with Pokémon Go

Rotom was first released in Pokémon Go as part of Go Fest 2020, and thankfully can be caught from the luxury of your own home on Day 1 and Day 2 of the event - somewhat fitting for a Pokémon which takes the form of electrical appliances.

First, make sure you have a Pokémon Go Fest 2020 ticket, and to wait for the event to start at 10am local time. This is required for Rotom to appear in your game.

From there, you must catch Rotom in a Snapshot Photobomb. This has been how other rare Pokémon - such as Smeargle - have appeared in the game, so might be familiar to you by now.

If not, here are the steps to catch Rotom in Pokémon Go:

Open the Snapshot mode with any Pokémon of your choosing
Take pictures of the Pokémon (turn off AR+ to make this step easier!)
Exit Snapshot mode, where you review the images you have just taken
At this point, Rotom may appear in one of your photos
If Rotom does appear, it will spawn in the wild on the map screen, to be caught like any other Pokémon
If Rotom does not appear, repeat the above steps

That's essentially it - keep using the Snapshot feature until Rotom appears. If it follows previous Snapshot Pokémon appearances, then you should be able to catch five Rotom on each day of Pokémon Go Fest 2020 - making for 10 in total.

What Rotom Forms are available in Pokémon Go?

Rotom, known as the Plasma Pokémon, has a quality which allows it to take the appearance of different electrical appliances.

The debut form of Rotom in Pokémon Go is Wash Rotom, an Electric / Water type, was made available on July 25th, 2020 as part of Pokémon Go Fest.

The official Pokémon.com Pokédex entry describes Wash Rotom as:

"This form of Rotom enjoys coming up with water- based pranks. Be careful with it if you don't want your room flooded."

The surprise appearance of Rotom means we have no clue as to whether any other Rotom Forms will be making their way into the game in the near future - but thanks to the main games, we know what to expect when they do...

The long-running Misunderstood Mischief research can now be completed - learn the latest Arlo, Cliff, Sierra counters and Giovanni counters to help you succeed. Other changes in Season of Mischief include a new Go Battle League, the addition of Raid Achievements and Ditto appearing elsewhere. Other major updates in the past year include a level cap increase, the introduction of XL Candy, boosts to some XP sources and the addition of Platinum Medals.

All Rotom Forms Heat, Wash, Frost, Fan and Mow Rotom explained

Debuting in Gen 4, Rotom can possess and take the form of different electrical appliances.

In the process, it will take on new forms and change type along the way.

Here are the Rotom Forms we know about from the mainline entries. To clarify, these are not in Pokémon Go at the time of writing, but the following gives you an idea of what to expect:

If you miss out on Wash Rotom from Go Fest 2020, then don't worry - previous photobomb Pokémon take to make a comeback in future events, so it shouldn't be forever missable!