How to Find and Catch Victini in Pokemon Black and White

Early purchasers of newly-released Pokemon White and Pokemon Black gain access to a pretty amazing exclusive reward, the legendary and available-for-a-limited-time-only Pokemon Victini. Victini is the first ever Fire/Psychic type in the series, and his stats make him a powerhouse addition to any Pokemon team.

The process of unlocking and catching Victini is a little convoluted, so we’ve put together this guide to walk you through the process from start to finish.

From downloading the Liberty Pass to throwing that final pokeball at Victini, we’ve got you covered.

Download the Liberty Pass

First thing’s first, before you can gain access to Liberty Island, Victini’s hideout in the game, you’ll have to download the Liberty Pass from

Nintendo. To get it, follow these steps:

1. From the game’s main menu, select “Mystery Gift.”
2. Choose “Receive Gift” on the next screen.
3. You’ll be asked if you want to open communications, select “Yes.”
4. On the next screen, choose “Get Via Nintendo WFC” (you’ll need to set up your Wi-Fi connection ahead of time).
5. When asked if you’d like to connect to Nintendo WFC, choose “Yes.”
6. The message “Searching for a Gift” will be displayed briefly. Afterward, select “Get the Liberty Pass.”
7. The download will begin. Once it’s successful, you’ll get a message confirming the download. You’ll be taken back to the main menu.

Get the Liberty Pass in Pokemon Black and White

Once the pass is downloaded, load up your save game (or start a new one) and head to the nearest Pokecenter. Inside, just to the left, a postman waits to speak to you. Walk up to him and press “A.”

The postman will give you your in-game Liberty Pass. You must pick up the pass in-game or you won’t be able to board the ship to Liberty Garden.

Head Out to Liberty Garden

You’ll need to reach Castelia City before you can capture Victini. Once you’re there, head out to Liberty Pier (it’s the farthest left of the piers on the South side of the city).

A yellow boat is tied to the left side of the pier, and the captain is wandering around outside it. Speak to him to gain passage to Liberty Garden.

Once you arrive at Liberty Garden, you’ll notice something is definitely amiss. Team Plasma is trying to capture Victini for their own nefarious purposes. Make your way around the right side of the island and into the lighthouse, fighting the various Team Plasma Grunts you encounter along the way.

Once you reach the door to the lighthouse, head inside. A gentleman just to the left of the entrance will continually heal your Pokemon for you.

One final battle with a Team Plasma Grunt stands between you and Victini. Don’t forget to head back out to the man in the hallway to heal up your Pokemon before you take on Victini.

Capture Victini in the Liberty Garden Lighthouse

Now would be a good time to save. Victini is a legendary Pokemon, and accordingly is very difficult to catch. Before you engage him, it’s a good idea to have at least 30 Great Balls and a Pokemon who can put Victini to sleep, preferably one that has a high resistance to fire.

Victini is level 15, so be careful when attacking to not defeat him completely. If you accidentally make him faint it’s not the end of the world, though. He’ll reappear if you leave the room.

One side note: if you have Pokemon you want to level up quickly, repeatedly killing Victini with them is a great way to get a lot of experience points in a hurry. He’ll constantly respawn and you can always head back up the stairs to heal up your Pokemon.

Try to get Victini’s health into the red, and put him to sleep if possible. Be prepared for a lot of frustration here. It can take 20+ attempts to get even a sleeping Victini into a Pokeball. You just need to be patient and prepared.

If you throw all your balls at him, don’t be afraid to reset the game and reload the save you made just before engaging him the first time. Don’t waste your money on more Pokeballs, the probability is the same for every throw, regardless of how many previous attempts you’ve made.

Eventually, you will succeed and you’ll have a nigh-unstoppable addition to your Pokemon crew.