Latest news with #PokemonTCG
CNET
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CNET
Pokemon TCG Pocket's Breakneck Expansion Releases Are Stressing Me Out
Pokemon TCG Pocket's next Alola-themed set is releasing on May 29. Extradimensional Crisis is a sister expansion to the recent Celestial Guardians set -- and it's introducing the wacky and weird Ultra Beasts to the game. Every Pokemon from another dimension now has a special Ultra Beast tag displayed just under its health point total. And certain Pokemon abilities and Trainer cards from the new set will only work on cards with this tag. While there are always new cards that shake up the metagame, this expansion looks ike it will largely introduce cards that play well with others in the set. Extradimensional Crisis is one of TCG Pocket's smaller base set expansions. These companion sets are often released a month or so after a big expansion. Mythical Island released after the massive Genetic Apex launch set, and Triumphant Light was the supplement to Space-Time Showdown. Normally, I'd love to rip into packs in order to hunt more than 100 new base set cards being added to the game. Buzzwole, Nihilego and Guzzlord are some of my favorite monsters from the seventh-gen Pokemon games and the art for their cards is gorgeous. This time around, I'm just not able to get as excited about the new drop. The Ultra Beasts are getting their first base set cards -- and some flashy full art alternatives. DeNA/Screenshot by CNET Pokemon TCG Pocket is releasing expansions too quickly for me I've played Pokemon TCG Pocket every day since launch. With few exceptions, I've opened both of my free daily packs -- even if I have to stay up past my usual bedtime to do so. Ripping these suckers open has become a part of my daily routine, and I've been largely content to do so (even when I pull five common base set dupes). But these expansions are getting a little out of hand now. For most games, having too much content is a good problem to have, but struggling to keep up with a collectible game saps the fun. Extradimensional Crisis will be the seventh set released in the game over the course of eight months. Despite my diligence, I've only completed a single base set -- Shining Revelry -- and I've never completed a master set with all of the full art cards and shiny Pokemon. To be clear, I don't expect to be able to keep up with every expansion in the game. I don't even want to collect all of the secret cards -- I just want to put together the base sets. I'm a fully free-to-play TCG Pocket gamer, and developer DeNA Games needs to make money to keep the app running. New releases grease peoples' palms and keep the money flowing. I was lucky enough to pull the shiny Charizard full art card from Shining Revelry -- moments like that are what keep me hooked on TCG Pocket. DeNA/Screenshot by CNET Even still, these releases have been dropping at such breakneck speeds that I don't feel like I can return to past sets to finish collecting the cards I'm missing. It's disheartening to complete the majority of an expansion and then leave it behind with so many gaps. This sentiment seems to be shared among at least some parts of the Pokemon TCG Pocket community. It's probably not a great sign when a contingent of the top comments on the YouTube video of your next big reveal are asking you to stop revealing things. "Crisis? [The only] crisis is the one I'm having with so few hourglasses," said one commenter. Another person put things more plainly: "Honestly, I'd prefer if they'd slow the rollout of the expansions a little bit. Let the sets take hold for a few months and then drop bigger, higher quality sets." The joking hides real frustration, as many free players haven't been able to complete the game's full base sets. I'm not asking for these releases to be spaced out too far apart, but a single month between expansions is starting to feel untenable. Double the downtime between sets and let people breathe -- and maybe I'll finally be able to finish up Genetic Apex.
Time of India
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Best ways to maximize new Pokemon TCG Pocket pack expansion
Pokémon TCG Pocket's latest expansion brings some dazzling cards and new challenges for the collectors. With the randomized pulls and the daily pack limits, building the complete collection, however, needs strategy and sharp tactics. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now From leveraging the events to strategic resource management, here is how you can outsmart the system and ensure you make the most out of the pack. The tips will help you completely. How to maximize Pokemon TCG Pocket pack expansion? Pokémon TCG Pocket: Celestial Guardians | Coming April 30! Start by trading duplicate Pokemon cards for currency to fill the gaps in the collection. The lower-rarity swaps are free. This makes it a cost-effective means of completing the sets. for currency to fill the gaps in the collection. The lower-rarity swaps are free. This makes it a cost-effective means of completing the sets. Grind the Pokemon TCG promo events for some exclusive cards. The limited-time packs quite often include the meta-changing pulls or the stunning alternate art designs. for some exclusive cards. The limited-time packs quite often include the meta-changing pulls or the stunning alternate art designs. Pair the exclusive cards with the Wonder picks. It will help you save the pulls for the batches with the high-rarity duplicates to boost the odds of landing the chase cards. picks. It will help you save the pulls for the batches with the high-rarity duplicates to boost the odds of landing the chase cards. Manage stamina like the gold. Make sure you avoid draining it all at once. Keep 3 hears reserved to rotate the Wonder Pick deals. Add some friends for sharing the picks and earn the thank-you tickets. These tickets can be exchanged for rare items. Keep the focus on 1 pack set until the duplicates pile up. Then, make a switch to the new expansion. All the opened packs earn the Pack Points . It can buy you some specific cards. Make sure you don't spend it early. Wait till your pull starts to offer you mostly the duplicates. Then, use the points to snip the collection's last few missing cards. . It can buy you some specific cards. Make sure you don't spend it early. Wait till your pull starts to offer you mostly the duplicates. Then, use the points to snip the collection's last few missing cards. The Premium Pass offers 30 extra packs every month and exclusive gold tickets for special illustration cards. It's a fast means to expand the collection, but it's worth it if you play daily. Complete the daily missions for the tickets and hourglasses. It will ensure you a steady flow of resources for fuelling the pulls. To maximize Pokémon TCG Pocket's new expansion is not just about luck. It is also about resource management and smart decisions. Combining strategic trading, daily grinding, and patience with the Pack Points will help you build a stronger collection quickly. Whether you are a casual collector or a competitive player, the methods or, rather, the top tactics mentioned above will ensure every pack counts. So, follow it wisely. Stay patient and social. Also, do not forget to watch your deck and win.
CBC
17-03-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Gotta buy 'em all: Pokemon card game is under threat from scalpers, fans say
Looking to buy Pokemon cards? Good luck. "It's rough right now," said Jake Wagman, a 23-year-old Pokemon card collector in Toronto. "I blinked and product is impossible to find. It's unavailable." Wagman used to be able to walk into a big box store or hobby shop and buy a handful of packs of his favourite cards with ease. But over the past few months, thanks to a boom in interest, the Pokemon Trading Card Game hobby has been plagued by scalpers emptying store shelves, then asking for double and triple the price on the resale market like on eBay. "All of a sudden people are just like seeing Pokemon, like the Pokemon brand, and they're buying a product and they don't even know what they're buying because they think it'll be valuable," said Wagman. "It's to make like, you know, 50 bucks here or 20 bucks there. And it's frankly ruining it for the people that actually want to collect and want to play." Collectors and fans worry that if it goes on for much longer, this could damage the hobby, especially for the children that make up the next generation of fans. Pokemon cards, again? The Pokemon Trading Card Game (or Pokemon TCG) first released in North America in 1998, as part of the megapopular Japanese franchise that also includes video games, television shows and action figures. In it, players take on the role of trainers who catch, trade and train animal-like monsters called Pokemon to duel with other trainers' Pokemon. The original release's most coveted card is easily the now-iconic Charizard, which now sells for thousands of dollars on the resale market. Back in '98, getting pack of 11 cards was as easy as paying $4 for one. And they were readily available on store shelves. Since then, Pokemon has completely taken off. The Pokemon Company boasts retail sales in the billions through its media and merchandise. Its total retail sales for the 2023 fiscal year reached $10.8 billion US, or more than $15 billion Cdn. "The Pokemon Company constantly comes out with so many different things that are a lot of fun," said Charlene Sutherland, an investment associate in Toronto. "I think Pokemon is just a classic. I think there's a lot of us who either grew up with the shows or are collectors, or have played the video games … and just love the way it's been done." So what's happening now? The recent shortage of Pokemon TCG cards kicked off with a new set called Surging Sparks which launched in November. A particular card featuring fan-favourite creature Pikachu sells for over $1,000 Cdn on places such as eBay, which had people buying up as many packs as they could from hobby shops and big box stores. The hype was cranked up even further with the following set, Prismatic Evolutions in January. Some of the cards from this set have sold for over $5,000 Cdn on eBay. "It was pretty wild, something I've never seen before really," said Sebastian Bilodeau, assistant store manager at Exor Games in Charlottetown. He says when Prismatic Evolutions first went on sale, they had a lineup of 50 to 60 people around the building. "Keep in mind, this is like January. Like, people are waiting outside for two, three hours in the freezing cold," said Bilodeau. In the last few months, it's become near-impossible to find any sets of Pokemon cards, and not just from the newest sets. Some Canadian stores have even reported break-ins, with the thieves going straight for the Pokemon card aisle. WATCH | The value of Pokemon cards is up and these store owners say that's leading to break-ins: The value of Pokemon cards is up and these store owners say that's leading to break-ins 1 month ago Duration 3:03 The trading cards have been around since the 1990s but have seen a boost in popularity in recent years. Their value can range from a few cents to hundreds of dollars and, in some rare cases, a lot more. It's not the first time Pokemon cards have seen a big boom. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people who collected cards as a kid got back into the hobby, and The Pokemon Company struggled to keep up with supply. But the recent surge of scalping has made this time around different. Damaging the hobby Then there were the Costco fights. Viral videos from the U.S. showed people pushing and shoving to get their hands on the product when the big-box store chain had an early release and a discounted price on a box of packs. Scalping is far from new, of course, when it comes to coveted items like concert tickets or limited edition sneakers. But it's new to Pokemon. And Sutherland says it's a bad look for the community. "Seeing videos of people who are literally getting into fist fights at Costco over Pokemon cards also has just brought a completely negative connotation to the community," she said. "When you see videos of grown adults going and fighting over Pokemon cards, knowing that it's also ruining this experience for parents and kids who are trying to get into, it just puts a bad taste." Some stores are making efforts to prevent brawls from breaking out. Bilodeau says Exor Games is reserving a large percentage of its product for in-store purchases, and capping how much an individual can buy. But Jordan Hennessy says that's not the case everywhere. He collects the cards, and runs a trading card stall at a flea market in Kelowna, B.C.. He says some stores have started charging over the retail standard for packs, with the reasoning that a scalper is just going to buy it and sell it for that higher price anyway. There's hope that the Pokemon Company will pick up on the demand and print more of these popular sets. But until then, the best chance people have at getting their favourite cards is finding out when their local store gets new stock in or paying a scalper's asking price. Hennessy is concerned that if children can't get the cards, it could hurt the Pokemon community long-term. "It's the seven, eight-year-old to 15-, 16-year-old that will always keep it relevant and keep Pokemon printing stuff, keep Pokemon making TV shows and video games," said Hennessy.
