Psyduck is one of the most iconic Pokemon in the entire franchise, and Pokemon Scarlet & Violet players will have ample opportunities to catch one. The water-type Pokemon is a fixture of the series and is likely to be a steady presence throughout the story for every player.
While there have been many “vermin” Pokemon over the years that players get tired of after regular encounters, that’s not yet the case with Psyduck. The Pokemon is found almost everywhere in the Paldea region, but the ever-lovable Psyduck still remains a favorite among Pokemon Scarlet & Violet players.
Being popular isn’t really the same thing as being good, though. Here’s how to evolve Psyduck into Golduck and how it holds up against other water-type Pokemon in the games.
Where to Catch Psyduck in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Psyduck is available in multiple areas across all four provinces in the Paldea region. It mostly gravitates toward beaches, lakes, and swamps but can be found in grassy areas as well. It’s so common that Psyduck will sometimes spawn in random places. Its habitat is wide-reaching, with its Paldea Pokedex page showing just how common the Pokemon is across the region:
How to Evolve Psyduck into Golduck
Psyduck evolves into Golduck after raising it to level 33. This is the same as ever for Psyduck, with this threshold remaining in place since Pokemon Red & Blue. Pokemon Scarlet & Violet did not add any extra requirements for evolving the Pokemon. Unfortunately, Golduck is the end of the evolutionary line as it did not receive any sort of cross-generation evolution.
Players who prefer using a different water Pokemon don’t have to worry about grinding their Psyduck up, though. Golduck can be found in the wild in a number of locations around the Paldea region:
Is Golduck a Strong Pokemon?
Golduck is a generally underwhelming Pokemon outside of the game’s story. It doesn’t perform especially well in ranked battles or Tera Raid battles due to its uniformly mediocre stats.
Golduck’s base stat total is relatively high at 500. The trouble is that its stats all range from 78 to 95, leaving it mediocre in all areas. And in Pokemon games, a Pokemon that is mediocre in all areas is below average in practice.
Golduck isn’t completely bad as it has access to the Swift Swim ability, which gives it extremely high Speed when rain is up. Unfortunately, there are a number of other solid Swift Swim users who hit harder including Barraskewda, Floatzel, and Drednaw. Players ought to look in their direction instead of Golduck.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now on Nintendo Switch.