Talking Point: The Pokémon Trading Card Game Is In Desperate Need of An Evolution

The TCG is a mess. With new sets coming every three months, it is virtually impossible to collect a whole set, and eventually storage becomes an offer. Most of mine are away in storage, never to be seen again. My Ancient Mew’s are all I need.

I honestly kinda wish they shut down the online Pokemon TCG on PC and get rid of the codes, and then put the price of packs $1 less, and the other bundles for the cards to be less as well.

And I just hope they make a brand new Pokemon TCG game for the Switch, with every single card (yes the old ones too, just put them in different categories for playing), and update the game when a new release comes out (but of course you won't have every single card at the start). I just want another one like the Game Boy version, but you can play online, and also have a single player story like the GB one, etc.

Now this will be great! Just my opinion.

Put it on Switch. Everything sells well on there.

TL:DR - As in I didn't read it, not summarizing it.

I haven't bought cards of any kind in a looooong time. Maybe its because its basically IRL loot boxes, Pokemon is the most convoluted of the card games, other card games doing a better job, or (to my knowledge) most card games are digital. With digital card games, it's easier to collect cards, if only because the convenience of getting cards. you don't to worry about your card being lost, stolen or damaged and the game keeps track of everything thats happened in the game (like life points, when you can use certain cards etc...)
Not to mention Pokemon's card game is kinda similar to the Pokemon games (I say as I haven't played a card game in eons outside of a very tiny amount of Magic and Hearthstone) and since you can do more in the game, why would anyone choose the card game (outside of just being a collector)?

Mike, John and Beth are the worst starter Pokémon from any generation!

They lost me with the last set rotation, not that that's a problem with just the Pokémon tcg. I couldn't find any well attended events anyway. Also the tag team cards seem pretty dumb.

I've moved on to Yu-Gi-Oh! It's been fun modernizing my old high school deck and finally working up to going to tournaments with more meta relevant decks. I love Pokémon, but I think the Yu-Gi-Oh tcg is more fun on its own merits.

Personally I stopped collecting after the e-Card codes went away, but even prior to that, the only physical shop I saw stocking cards for ages was Argos.

I feel like the TCG's never had a great event base in London, I remember even game events tended to skip London completely at times in the GB-GBA era, so I wonder how many regular TCG events there were back in the day.

The last real format revamp they did seems to be adding a constant barrage of secret rare full art cards, following trends in Japan of adding ultra rare cards targeting collector mentalities.

One sticking point for TCG Online might be that it's developed by the US side, surprisingly for a Pokémon game. There's actually no Japanese equivalent, and it seems the JP side isn't interested in it (or at least can ignore it more easily).

It would be great to see the TCG return to consoles, but nowadays there's probably more money in doing a microtransaction phone game like Yu-Gi-Oh Duel Links...

Give them Amiibo function then watch the card collecting crazy run.

LOL, I remember that as a kid we just collected and traded the cards, we never bothered to learn the game. It was first when I bought TCG for Game Boy Color a couple of years ago that I got into the rules of it. Underrated GBC title btw.

Here in the U.S., I stopped at Base Set 2. Reverse Holofoils of -every single card-. You didn't get multiple per pack, no, just one.
And that's about the time the metagame started narrowing, too. Sure you had Rain Dance and Do the Wave decks early on, but you could still win with a Mewtwo deck or a Chansey deck or something else reasonably clever. Then, it got to the point where nigh-unstoppable card combos were intentional to drive up the value of rare cards (and thus sales/interest). Got more complex, too, which was why I didn't play any other games. Just let me race to attach energies first (you didn't mind playing again because you wrote your losses off to luck of the draw) and win! But nope.

How does it evolve now? Well, loyal consumers and suits insist that a meta isn't damaging. Dumb, but okay. If that's the case, why stop, just keep doing what you're doing. If you remove the current paradigm of play, people will either not latch onto the new thing or leave.

If they want to make it something different and and if they want to make it NFC-driven:
1. Make each individual card a reasonably-capable Pokémon that works strictly by itself (evolution works as it does currently),
2. Either uses a stamina system or the Energies (same end result), and,
3. Structure the sets such that Booster Packs don't net you a @#$!load of useless and environmentally-wasteful Common cards but rather a reasonable rate of collection.
Then it's easy to tweak the ratio on Rares as needed without making your purchase meaningless — -you- might have all of the Commons/Uncommons again while opening packs hunting for Dodecatuple Secret Rare Ancient Mewtwo, but now you've got reasonably-competitive critters to pass to a friend (and new customer/player) that will surely have a critter that they really like.

Sidenote: I really hope that the cards are printed on recycled paper or something. The sheer amount of worthless Common/Uncommon cards lying around out there has always bugged me and I'm not even terribly environmentalist. It just isn't logical.

@Quarth It's ridiculously easy (but then again, losing and repeating drawn-out scenarios/card games isn't ideal, either). Definitely worth breezing through once for the music, too!

I just dont like the nature of the business of trading card games. My older siblings starting collecting when they first came out with pokemon cards. By the time I started collecting it was around the 4th or 5th generation of pokemon. I just remember that i could never really play my cards with my siblings cards because they were so overpowered compared to the older cards. Nowadays its literally impossible to play with the original or anything near the original and have a chance of winning. Nearly every single modern 2nd evolution card could easily stomp the original's charizard, a third evolution and considered the most powerful card in the original series. I mean, the ex and mega pokemon make charizard look like a starter. I get why the cards get more powerful over time, it makes the consumer want to buy the latest cards, but it caused me to not care one bit about pokemon cards.

Pokemon trading cards game was nice at the time. I switched a long time ago in 2007 to Chaotic trading card game and I still into it right now as much as I was back into the release of Chaotic. That's sub a good game!! I want it back and company competitor is always nice for the market meaning that I dont want Pokemon to give up.

It’s the return of John, Beth, and Mike! The real Nintendo mascots we need

I still regularly play the PTCGO. It's honestly still fun.

Didn't know anyone played it in the first place. I thought everyone just collected the cards and kept them in an album.

No James, what's in desperate need of evolution is the Pokémon anime. Read this:
https://www.nintendolife.com/forums/general_discussion/the_big_problem_with_the_pokemon_anime_-_an_essay_and_a_rant_warning_long

i prefer yugioh cards over pokemon.

As a super, mega, ultra lightning casual... I don't bother keeping up with the Pokemon TCG 99% of the time because it seems like a constant bombardment of new cards.

I think Pokemon could learn from MTG and create new formats and ways to play the game.

The lack of PTCGO on Switch is especially strange. It would obviously use the same account to play, making cross-purchase, cross-progress and cross-play seamless.

@KingBowser86 Easy, but fun!

@Quarth Yeah, I liked both Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! when they were simple and, thus, fun.

Pokemon TCG is an ok game, personally, I found games too long (attaching energy to individual pokemon, lots of searching decks and shuffling).
The love the card art more than playing it. I believe the large set sizes benefit the secondary market than the players (possibly meaning more money for the company?).

I do feel the comparison to Hearthstone was a tad harsh, considering Pokemon TCG on ios and android is designed to look and feel like someone is playing the TCG, but in a digital form (with the table, draw area, pokemon bench etc). I feel its design and looks are so that someone playing the online game can transition easily to the physical game, and vice versa.

Hearthstone (which, imo, is the better and more fun game) is designed as a digital format only (since there is no official physical format of Hearthstone to play), and considering the mobile versions were released a month after the PC versions, Blizzard had already developed and designed it with mobile in mind.

That being said (with regards to mobile/portable versions), could we see Nintendo redesigning the current Pokemon TCGO onto Switch in a format and design similar to the Gameboy Color version? That I would love to see play out.

I remember being pokemon TCG (Trading Card Game) being a blast when it came out. The gameboy game that came out for it was superbly done, great music and a good selection of the beginning sets of cards

I feel like trading card games in general has gotten too pricey...it was already a bit expensive being essentially physical loot boxes / random 'dlc', but really the cards are like paper/cardboard, they shouldn't have gone up in price. That, plus last time I played Pokemon TCG I felt like the balance had gone out the window. Some cards, particularly Mega Evolution and EX cards, are way too OP (especially basic level EX pokemon, cause you can throw them out right away, so you get excessive HP and power without any need for card combinations)

These two key items would need to be fixed before I consider any TCG

Digital TCG's have potential, but most are grindy as heck to actually get good cards or a decent collection, without paying hand over fist (which is a problem most mobile / free to play games have)

I was there when Pokemon blew up. I think I saw someone playing the game once. We just collected them.

There was a very short period my college roommate and I bought a few packs every other week during the X/Y days. It was fun opening packs but packs are way too overpriced in my opinion. It's $4 a pack and your chances of getting a rare card are pretty slim. They really need some type of refresh with lower price points, like $2 a pack and more rare cards. I dont think that's too unreasonable either considering there are now holographic, GX, full-art, rainbow rares, and gold cards.

I think the evolution system is unbalanced. It always seems like the fully evolved Pokémon is still weaker than the EX Pokémon you could have had out on the first turn, and EX Pokémon are easily worth it no matter how many prizes your opponent takes for em.

Nintendo could set up a recycling program where you send in your Pokemon cards that they can use for Labo, and you get eShop coins in exchange

I quickly lost interest in the online game because it was such a tedious grind fest and damn near impossible to build a collection of cards.

In the GBC games, you almost always receive two booster packs for every NPC you battle. It was fun, rewarding, and didn't take too long to get the cards you wanted.

At the moment, I am only interested in a new digital TCG which is as fun (and generous) as the GBC games were (I must have put over 50 hours into the 3DS rerelease). They could make it an annual franchise and I would feverishly anticipate each one. What made the GBC games so appealling is that any card was within reach, regardless of real-world cost/rarity/clutter/storage. They threw that simple design philosophy out the window with the current online game.

I don't get it. The Pokemon TCG is one of the big three ahead of Yu-Gi-Oh and only second to Magic the Gathering.
It offers something Magic players really want. Codes to redeem packs online in every pack. Could the online version require a facelift? Perhaps but it is not needed.
The game is far from being left behind. It is the second most suuccessful card game ever created and it does not show any sign of failing. Heck there was even a time a couple of years ago where Magic had rather big problems and Pokemon made a lot of ground on it.

Old timer collector here, been collecting seriously since kindergarten, and to date I've seen someone actually play the Pokemon Trading Card game maybe twice. My biggest complaint is that there is a lack of parity between Pokemon types in the card game and the video games and television series (for example, Ice is its own type in the Pokemon series and has been for years, but Ice type Pokemon are designated to Water types in the card game. Unnecessary point of confusion).

I've collected all types of cards, and my one other complaint today would have to be the overly-busy look many new cards have compared to the classic Wizards designs. The "shell" of the Wizards cards continues to be an iconic, nostalgia-inducing design.

This design is immediately recognizable and instantly legible. In contrast, I could not for the life of me try to learn to play the game with the card designs today. Beautiful as some may be, they are not as legible, informative, nor timeless as the Wizards Of The Coast card design:

Every since the Amiibos came on the scene this became the goto collecting. If there was NSW Pokemon that could scan and use the cards as game pieces that would change the calculations but since nothing came it died a thousand cuts.

@Kinoen Why not play the video game? Because some of us enjoy the social interaction of playing physical games face to face with friends where we don't all look at one screen, can apply house rules, and enjoy the tactile joy of playing with physical items rather than pixels on a screen. I'm a big Pokemon game fan and never really enjoy battling my friends in the games, where I have a small collection of the cards and me and my friends love to get together and play some rounds

I think this is a case of the author thinking the game needs to evolve. The player base voting with their cash seem to think the game is fine.

I just want a new version of the TCG that was on GBC. I second @Silly_G. It was quick, rewarding, and superbly fun. That music still gets in my head.

I have some minor gripes with the online game. Namely the fact that online booster codes aren't 1:1 with the physical pack you got. It's kind of infuriating to see the card you wanted physically show up in the digital pack or vice versa. I'd also like a way to just scan in my hard cards so I can experiment with decks I actually have the resources to build. Otherwise I agree sets are a little big and I'd like PTCGO on the Switch (kinda surprised it hasn't yet, I feel like if that, the main series, and Pokken are all on the switch it would make big TPC events run smoother), but won't hold my breath on either

The biggest problem with the Pokemon TCG being played at competitive levels is cost. Building a single competitive deck can push 200 or 300 dollars from scratch. Or much more if you're buying packs and just hoping to get the cards you need for the deck. A single booster box at 100 dollars may give you, if you are lucky, 4 or 5 of the highest rarity cards - the cards most decks are built around. This drives their prices up to absurd levels. When I played there were uncommon cards selling for 10-15 bucks a piece because they were essential cards in several decks. Deck defining "EX" or "Prime" cards could push 30-40 a piece for just the normal artwork (the special artwork versions sometimes breaking 100 dollars!)

Another major limiting factor is - at least as of the last time I checked - the Pokemon Trading Card Game Online does not have means to purchase new cards without buying physical packs - unless you get cards via the in-game currency, which are then locked to your account, and untradable!

In my opinion the game simply needs to adjust the rarity system and pull rates for cards. If I buy 2 booster boxes, I should be able to get nearly that entire set of cards. At least normal artwork versions.

The two changes Pokemon needs to make are:

1. Have common and uncommon versions of all cards. Higher rarity cards should be limited to collectable foils and different artwork.

2. Allow the purchase of packs directly on the online client, and unlock cards earned via in-game currency, making them trade-able.

Bonus to go one step further, they should make a "core set" of trainer and tool cards. Staple cards like rare candy, ultra ball, potion, switch, energy retrevial, double colorless energy etc that have been in the game for years. Those cards should be in a core set, alongside basic energy cards and forever allowed in the game. That way they don't need to reprint them every other set to keep them in the format.

Just give me the damn game on Switch like on GBC! I don’t want to collect real paper cards but would be happy to collect and battle them on Switch.

Why an evolution? It's great as it is. If Pokémon did anything right, it's the TGC. All we need is a Switch version.

A little backstory about myself, relating to Pokémon (and especially the TCG):

My mother never let me watch the Pokémon anime or get into the franchise as a kid. The reason she gave was that it was too violent for me (she gave the same reason for Power Rangers; essentially, if it wasn't on PBS, daytime Nickelodeon, daytime Cartoon Network, or the Disney Channel, it wasn't acceptable for me to watch).

I never knew until years later when she admitted that the real reason was that she didn't want me to get sucked up into the TCG or the other memorabilia related to the franchise.

Joke's on her, though: I got into Yu-Gi-Oh! and Beyblade instead. I still have quite a few of my Yu-Gi-Oh! cards (including the Winged Dragon of Ra, one of the Egyptian God Cards), the Duel Disk from the Battle City arc, and the Pyramid of Light movie on DVD, with the tie-in card; and I still have all my Beyblades, including one of the battle arenas.

Over the past year I've visited the Pokemon stores in Nagoya and Okinawa, where I've been shocked to see just how little of the shop floor is now dedicated to the trading cards. I remember in other stores (such as Tokyo and Hiroshima) in the past there being many racks full of trading cards, along with special edition boxes and the like. In Nagoya, there were no trading cards to be found and in Okinawa there was one small rack. It feel like over the past year and a half Nintendo have been putting less and less of a spotlight on the TCG. It almost feels as if they don't know what to do with it, or simply don't want to push it over other forms of merchandise.

I'm pretty new to Pokémon TCG, but I love PTCGO. I just wish I could play it on my phone or Switch since I don't always want to pull out my laptop and I don't have a tablet. The reason they say they don't support phones is because cell network connections can be spotty, but honestly most people use a computer on wifi anyway so how would it be any worse on a phone? And if your tablet is set up for 4G mobile data, then you can still play PTCGO but I can't on my iPhone which is basically a small tablet? It just seems like awful logic to me. They should just optimize the app for phones already, or at least put it on Switch.
I honestly don't think the TCG needs a drastic overhaul to be relevant. I find it to be much simpler than MtG now that I have played a few games and know how it works. It's a simple trading card game with less crazy mechanics than most others I've played but enough complexity to be really interesting, and it's way more fun to collect Pokémon cards since they're from a franchise I really care about rather than just generic vampires and monsters in MtG. I think if they just made it slightly more accessible the audience could be huge.

Think that real card games have become to limited.
Both in what you can sell to the people and what it can offer.
PC, mobile and console games are a fare easier way now to get the product out to the consumer.
And a digital card can do something a real card cannot, it can evolve and change.
Imagine a Pikachu card where you can permanently change move-set, just because you played enough official battles with it.

The Pokemon TCG has ALWAYS been a more simple, accessible alternative to Magic the Gathering.
How many people did you know who actually PLAYED the card game back in the day?
In it's late 90's and early-2000's hey day, EVERYONE collected the cards but I only knew a few other people who had any interest in playing.
The Pokemon TCG is FINE because there will always be a demand for them as long as Pokemon is a popular video game franchise, and they'll always be a collecting hobby FIRST and card game SECOND.
And at this point, Pokemon cards are a nostalgic INSTITUTION; people will always look at them fondly and grab some packs off store shelves.
I can't think of a video game franchise with more popular merchandise overall; Pokemon is bigger than Mario, Zelda, etc.
It's very telling that Pokemon merch is a consistent seller while all the Fortnite crap they're trying to push, for example, is rotting on store shelves.

I was gonna comment a differing view on this but remembered I'm on a videogame site ;P

But I will say comparing popularity of MTG to the Pokemon CCG is a bit moot considering it's the biggest game there is.

Make this for switch. This and advanced wars reboot are my only wish list games left.

@Nessjestic Absolutely! Currently, every booster pack bought includes a QR code for a digital booster pack in the online game. As the platforms available are so limited, a lot of these codes go unused. I've got hundreds I'm yet to redeem!

@TheFanatic It needs a big refresh! 200+ cards in a set at £4 a pack is ludicrous. Can't imagine the money someone would have to spend to naturally unpack every card.

What about releasing remake of TCG GB on switch?

@maawolfe36 you can easily play on your ppl hone by simply downloading the APK file.

Sounds like a lot of people commenting here dont play the game actively. I love ptcgo. Compared to physical cards, codes for boosters are extremely cheap and you avoid the storage etc predicaments.

It does seem a lot of the time evolution cards lose out to ex / gx but that's a shift that's been around a long time, and every rotation there are decks that skip ex / gx and stay with other cards and strategies.

I prefer this to Magic and like because it's simple to just pick up, has huge nostalgia for me, and anytime I can just buy a few pa ck codes cheap and be back in the game. There may not be a lot of visible local action, but the professional PTCG scene is still hopping.

As someone who played the Pokemon TCG competitively for about six years up until the Sun and Moon era, I think some the commenters on here are out of the loop on things. Rotations are going to happen every year; that means some sets will not be playable in the Standard format. However, there is a second format called Expanded where pretty much everything from Black and White (2011) and on is fair game. This is a way to keep them coming out with new sets every few months while also (supposedly) retaining value to the stuff you already bought. However, one issue here is that many local card shops only do Standard tournaments, not Expanded. This makes a large chunk of cards you could bought turn into paperweights and makes you feel ripped off. Sure, there are much larger sanctioned events like Regionals and Internationals, but that brings up another big issue in the game: cost. Entry fees are a good $50+ for these events, and that's not counting gas, food, and hotel. For those actually seeking a shot to compete at the World Championships in August, get ready to commit thousands of dollars and any available weekend off to do so.

Lastly, I will say that Pokemon seems to just not have really adjusted to the digital age of smartphones and subscription models. Having to rely on manually entering in codes from packs bought and hoping to get what you need or trading for them online is silly. There should be a set subscription fee like Magic's online app. Maybe pay $8 for an all-you-can-eat type deal? There are currently cards like Tropical Beach that can only be obtained by trading hundreds of packs away in the game; that shouldn't ever be a thing.

I love the card game I’ve been playing on and off from the start but the cost is too high now. I honestly don’t know how anyone affords it.

Many talk about a remake in line with the GBC version for the Switch, and I think it's a great idea.

What would make it even better is if such game were made in a really grand scale, where every card (and I mean EVERY card) were made available, even those only available in the two GBA games in digital form. Mind you, with many of yesteryear's favorite cards with updated text to fit the current format. There are so many pieces of art many outside of Japan haven't seen or played with.

That, and presenting the playfield with the Active Pokémon as if rendered by AR, and customizable player character, and we might have a winner of a digita trading card game, especially on Switch.

I used to frequently collect these all the time. Now I just use it to get 1 or 2 extra clicks on my unboxing videos. However, the rush you get on a rare card still feels so GOOD!

@IceEarthGuard so what you're saying is, you want them to get rid of the currently FREE Pokemon TCG Online service (to decrease the cost of physical boosters by $1) and replace it with a Switch exclusive version that people would probably have to pay $60 for... but which includes the WotC cards that would be a pain for The Pokemon Company to secure and would be unplayable in the modern meta anyway?

I'm struggling to think of a worst idea... are you sure you're not a managing director at EA?

@Kinoen So let me get this right, you haven't read the article and you haven't played the game in forever, but you know exactly what's wrong with it?

Firstly it does have online functionality, every booster, theme deck and gift set comes with code cards for their free digital TCG service for PC, smart phones and tablets, which offers several modes of play and allows you to trade and acquire cards and theme decks going all the way back to when they took the game off WotC.

Secondly, how is it convoluted, you have one active Pokemon, upwards of eight benched Pokemon, you put energy cards on them to power their attacks (like PP but in reverse), you play Trainer cards which do a number of different things and you keep KOing your opponent's creatures till you've collected all your prizes... doesn't sound any more complicated than any other TCG/CCG and far simpler to games like Yu-Gi-Oh! where you have at least nine different ways to summon monsters.

How is it similar to the Pokemon video games? You don't capture, train or breed Pokemon, you don't go collection gym badges (outside of organised events), you don't take photos or grow berries or enter beauty contests... I mean that would go with your second point that you can do more in the games, but also there's a lot of Pokemon in the games that have never been as viable as their TCG counterparts and its fun to make teams of your favourites that might never have worked in another format. Also there the strategy involved in deck creation, which is always nice... oh and the competitive scene hasn't been destroyed by hackers as it has with the video games, seriously, you either hack your team or you don't bother showing up to a VG tournament.

Not to mention Pokemon's card game is kinda similar to the Pokemon games (I say as I haven't played a card game in eons outside of a very tiny amount of Magic and Hearthstone) and since you can do more in the game, why would anyone choose the card game (outside of just being a collector)?

@DeltaPeng EXs and Mega EXs were phased out and replaced by GXs and Tag Team GXs. Yet all four (EX/MEX/GX/TTGX) can be stopped by Pokemon and Trainers that prevent them from dealing damage or using their hostile attack effects, the Fairy type is especially good at this as they have a bunch of Item cards that make the attaching Fairy immune.

@Majora101 Well you've gotta remember the majority of cards retain that WotC design, whilst the design you're display below that is limited to EXs, GXs and rare Full Art variant cards.

Also they had to limit the card types somewhat and have done that since the WotC Base Set when there were only five Ice Pokemon. In modern times Ice is one of the TCG's five sub-types (along with Ghost, Rock, Ground and Flying), being weak to Metal types instead of Grass Types.

@LSWSjr Yeah, but you miss a point in my comment, when I say bring all cards, I said put them in "different categories for playing."

More clearer answer: Old cards can only play with old cards, New cards can only play with New cards. About the same power level cards can play together only. You get what I am saying now?

Plus it is free to play, but then again their are in game purchases, like the codes you get. A $60 game would include all the cards in the game, but you will have to unlock them for free, no extra purchase. SO it would be LESS money if you think about it. And more if you buy physical packs for the codes.

Edit: For your last sentence....... seriously......

@IceEarthGuard it’s not less money though, because you’re not only buying the game, but you’d also spending several hundred dollars on a Switch.

That’s what you said you wanted, for the existing game to shut down. That would cost people way more than just using their existing and multipurpose phone, tablet and/or PC to access a free game.

And all that just to add about 40 outdated legacy sets to the growing 30+ roster currently on PTCGO.

As for different games types for different sets, how would you judge which goes where? The first handful of sets were just terrible: with only a handful of decent trainers; the matches slow and drawn out due to the lack of draw power or energy acceleration; there’s cards like Super Energy Removal that are broken even by today’s standards; and you only do serious damage if you have a type advantage.

Also there’s the question of how you get cards and/or card expansions in the Switch game? I can’t imagine it’d be a one-off $60 per account for a lifetime of cards, the two GBC games only offered 3/4 sets for that amount and the only reason PTCGO is microtransaction free is because the physical game subsidises it.

Honestly, I can’t see your idea being of much benefit to the existing playerbase as it only makes things less accessible for the sake of some limited nostalgia.

@LSWSjr ??? Wow that is a very completely different view from mine.

Plus that is false about the Switch version being more expensive. If you want all the cards and keep on buying physical cards, it will surpass the Switch in costs. Plus you are over thinking about different modes for sets, it isn't "rocket science." Who cares if matches go "slow" that is not a problem at all.

As I said, YOU DON'T get all the cards at the start, you earned them in game. Plus it is digital, stop worrying about the cost being $60 for all that digital stuff, they will still make money. Maybe $5 for whenever a new set comes out for people to download.

Plus the online Pokemon TCG game is just not appealing at all to me, I regret using my codes on it. It just isn't for me, I just want one on consoles, not on PC. Sure their will people against it, but a lot of people will definitely like the Switch version, if it even happens at all. "Less accessible," whatever floats your boat.

@Timbojay
Fair point I suppose, though I still view it as to much of a hassle.

@IceEarthGuard yes, objectively way way way ‘less accessible’, only about 30 million Switches have been sold, whilst there are billions of smartphones, tablets and computers capable of running PTCGO, so you’re talking about making it available to only 0.04% of humanity as a Switch exclusive.

And no way are they going to reduce the cost of boosters by $1 by removing the code cards and then charge people the price of a booster to add each new set to the game, especially if they follow the route of the orginal games which charged an average of $15 a set. In reality it would cost the price of a Switch if you don’t have one and then either $1,110+ to unlock all existing sets (excluding theme decks and promos) or $410 at your unrealistic $5 rate (assuming you started with four sets in that $60).

It makes no sense financially, why would Nintendo lose out on $30 from each of the thousands of booster boxes which they send out internationally every expansion, in exchange for a couple million people (because not every Switch owner would play this) spending $5-15 every three months?

@LSWSjr Eh, you are just spreading logic too me that I never thought of. Anyways I am gonna stop this comment war by saying a simple...................okay. (Still will be cool to have it on the switch though, so maybe keep both active then, but it will never ever appeal to me the Pokemon online game for PC, phones, whatever.)

@IceEarthGuard that would honestly be a way better idea, add it to Switch and try to add even more older sets to PTCGO

@LSWSjr I meant a different completely new Pokemon TCG game for the switch and keep the PTCGO running, but I guess it would be a great idea to bring the PTCGO to the switch for an alternative way to play.

@IceEarthGuard wouldn’t that just be PTCGO but you have an avatar that moves between the various opponents’ locations and could talk to NPCs for random bits of information and occasional promo cards?

Honestly, the orginal GBC game didn’t offer much beyond the card game itself, just occasionally tracking down NPCs for promos, which you needed a guide for as some would only function in certain times/ways which could be missed entirely.