Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket is The Pokemon Company's plan to make even more people addicted to the feeling of opening new booster packs, but digitally this time around. Announced earlier this year, Pokemon TCG Pocket is meant to deliver a more accessible version of the iconic card game, slashing the deck counts by a whopping 40, removing Energy Cards entirely, and introducing other small but important mechanics that will ease people in.
The Best War Games had the opportunity to attend a media event for Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket earlier this month to get some hands-on time with the game. We also saw a short presentation that gave us more information on the upcoming mobile card-collecting title. You can continue to read our general impressions of the game below, but if you want a quick rundown of 18 important things you need to know about Pocket, you can click this link here.
What's The Best Pokemon Card You've Ever Pulled?
I've pulled a few decent cards across the years of my childhood, but recently I decided to buy a bunch of different packs and get back into collecting. I purchased a few Paldean Fates booster packs, since the previous Hidden Fates set is one of my favorites, and immediately I pulled the Special Illustration Rare Charizard ex (234/091) - which is definitely the best card I've pulled in a while!
Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket Is a Collectathon First, Battler Second
So, I was able to get a smartphone (a really nice Android) from The Pokemon Company with TCG Pocket loaded on. We had about an hour or two to mess around with the game and even got the chance to battle against other people nearby. The first thing about Pokemon TCG Pocket that people should know is that collecting is the main focus, with battling and customization coming after.
The deal is you can open up to two packs a day for free (1 pack per 12 hours). These do not stack, so you can't stay away from the game for a week and expect a bunch of booster packs to open --it doesn't work like that. Each booster pack has five cards, and if you want to open more packs, there are microtransactions to reduce the waiting time. However, during our session, we had unlimited access to the currencies, so all of the media people were opening packs like crazy by the end of our demo, all trying to find a super rare card or even the Immersive cards that were shown during the initial reveal trailer for TCG Pocket.
Regarding the microtransactions for opening more than two packs a day, you can use 1 Poke Gold to reduce the time by two hours. For a pack of 5 Poke Gold, you'll need to head to the in-game shop and buy them for $0.99. Of course, there are more bundle options than that, but that is the cheapest option.
I, unfortunately, didn't know we had access to the in-game shop until my time was almost up, so I didn't get the chance to check out an Immersive Card for myself, but how it works is that a Pokemon card, like Pikachu, will have a unique illustration specific to Pocket. You can click on the card and view the background details, like other Pokemon hanging out in a forest. The developers didn't want to speak about how many Immersive Cards there will be down the road, but you can expect them to be added as the game gets updated over time.
Opening the booster packs felt so satisfying due to the way they sounded and the tactile nature of it all. The team even said they worked really hard to nail down the feeling of cracking open new packs. I can totally see myself opening this app each morning to claim my two free packs, doing a little battle or two with randoms, and then logging out until my next packs are ready.
Pokemon TCG Pocket Battling Is a Blast
I have a feeling most people are going to sleep on Pokemon TCG Pocket or treat it like just another mobile Pokemon spin-off like Pokemon Masters or Pokemon Cafe Remix, but I believe that Pocket will end up being a hit, solely based on how easy it is to get into. Oh, and the battling is actually very fun.
The decks are way smaller than the physical card game; you can auto-build decks, battles are only a few minutes long, energy cards are gone, and even with the changes, the card game is quite enjoyable. As someone who has not played the physical card game in decades, I found it amazing to go back and experience it in this manner.
I can't speak on how much fun Pokemon TCG Pocket will feel for those who decide not to spend a dollar on the game. Still, with what the team has to offer right now, I expect this not to be too microtransaction-heavy, and people can still go in and have fun without feeling like The Pokemon Company is begging for cash. I am very stoked to try this out once it launches on October 30. I don't think it'll be the new Pokemon GO, but dang, it might come close.
The Best War Games was provided travel accommodations from The Pokemon Company for this preview.
- Released
- October 30, 2024
- Developer(s)
- DeNA, Creatures Inc.
- Publisher(s)
- The Pokemon Company
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- Yes
