Does the Pokemon TCG need to slow down to succeed?

The Pokemon trading card game has an incredibly fast-paced release schedule. But, does it need to slow down in order to continue finding success with the Pokemon community?

Keeping up to date with any sort of nerdy hobby can be tricky. No matter whether you collect figures, trading cards, or vintage games, you’re sure to find yourself struggling with a release schedule or two during your time in the hobby community.

Pokemon TCG fans, especially, are sure to know the feeling. There are heaps of exciting releases for the trading card game that take place all throughout the year, especially around holidays like Halloween or Christmas.

The Pokemon Company

But are there too many releases? It’s a concern that many fans have spoken up about over the years. It may seem silly to ask for less of a good thing, but an overwhelmingly quick release schedule could do more harm than good over time, especially for casual fans.

Cutting down on set releases could drastically impact the competitive trading card scene, though. For every casual fan who wants the release schedule to slow down, a competitive player is arguing that the release schedule keeps the game fresh and interesting.

It’s a nuanced topic, and your perspective is sure to differ based on how you interact with the game itself, so let’s dive into the key talking points for each angle. It’s important to note that we’ll only really be looking at English language sets in this piece.

Are there too many Pokemon TCG sets?

In 2023 alone, there were 6 major releases for the Pokemon trading card game- including Pokemon: Crown Zenith and the beginning of the Scarlet & Violet era for the cards.

Each major release (like Pokemon Scarlet & Violet -151) had several large product releases, usually spread out over a few months, depending on your chosen location. This included Elite Trainer Boxes, Premium Collections, TCG accessories, and other products.

Alongside these set releases, there were seasonal releases. A good example of this is the Holiday Calendar, which dropped around the same time as the Paradox Rift set. On top of these, additional premium releases were released like the Pokemon TCG Classic Collection.

All of this is to say that 2023 was busy for Pokemon TCG fans. While it’s exciting to see so many cool cards coming out, it is important to note that this is a lot for new players and casual fans to keep up with- even those who choose to focus on collecting rather than playing competitively.

One fan in the r/PokemonTCG Subreddit summarized their thoughts in this brief post and asked other Pokemon players for their opinions on the matter.

Opinion: They are putting way too many sets out
byu/MCUFanFicWriter inPokemonTCG

The original poster noted that “I feel like collecting is less fun when a new set gets released every three months” and shared that they felt as if they were missing out.

It’s a valid point: if you only buy a few packs every month or so, it can be confusing to keep up with the current competitive scene.

Completing an entire collection can feel nearly impossible when Pokemon TCG sets have become much bigger. While the set release schedule hasn’t changed much, the size of the sets definitely has.

Compare the base set for Scarlet & Violet to X & Y, for example. Ignoring secret cards, Scarlet & Violet launched with 198 cards, but X & Y launched with 146 cards. The subsequent Scarlet & Violet sets were even bigger, too.

The game has changed since X & Y in terms of mechanics and new Pokemon, but a jump to 198 cards (with 70 secret cards) seems fairly notable. There’s so much more for fans to pick up and chase now that it can feel overwhelming, and we could likely see this trend continue.

In fact, it’s a common complaint of new players that knowing where to start with the Pokemon TCG is just baffling. Things like Regulation Marks can be helpful for understanding the competitive scene, but learning the game as a whole takes a lot more time now than it used to.

Would slowing the schedule hurt the competitive scene?

While some people may assume that the answer to the problem shown above is to slow down the release schedule, it’s worth considering the impact that this may have on competitive players.

Having a consistent flow of new and interesting cards helps to keep the competitive tournament scene lively. It avoids any decks being in the top position for too long and gives players the chance to refresh their line-up frequently.

Cutting out sets from the release schedule could lead to frustration on the part of competitive players and have an impact on how the tournament schedule looks, too. It may also change how regularly the Standard Rotation is altered as well.

Luckily, not too many new mechanics or card types are introduced with every set. New mechanics pop up every expansion or so (like Tera types), but new card types aren’t introduced every time a new set name is trademarked.

Final thoughts

The Pokemon trading card game release schedule does feel hectic – but this can be said for almost any major trading card game. Significantly cutting down the release schedule may seem ideal for some players, but it’s very unlikely, as this would impact the tournament scene.

What could be beneficial for more players is smaller set sizes. This wouldn’t have as much of a knock-on effect for players, but it would make the TCG feel more accessible for new fans and collectors looking to finish their sets, too.

While ‘Gotta Catch ‘Em All’ is a great motto for a video game that you only have to purchase once, there’s something to be said for the increasing FOMO caused by fancy Secret Rare cards like the recent Shiny Charizard, and how hard it is for some people to resist additional purchases.

Plus, it can be even more difficult for neurodivergent people who struggle with impulse control, especially with YouTube videos and Twitch streams constantly bombarding people with pack pulls, selling the dream of nabbing chase cards to people with much less money.

Swapping out perhaps one new set in the yearly schedule for a special release – and a one-time purchase – like the TCG Classic Collection could be a great way to smooth out the cadence, too. It’s unlikely that we’ll see a change in the schedule, though.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the release schedule, why not take a step back and look at your collection goals? Instead of trying to complete sets, for example, why not focus on collecting cards featuring your favorite Pokemon? It could help you enjoy the process even more.