Willing to spend potentially big bucks on a nostalgic trip down Pokemon Trading card game memory? A new “Classic” boxset was announced on Monday, featuring prebuilt decks featuring Charizard and the rest of the gang in a sleek new tabletop package. Why? Because me and probably loads of other old fans will buy it.
Revealed during The annual Pokemon Day 2023 Livestream, Pokemon Trading Card Game Classic is billed by The Pokémon Company as a “premium Pokémon TCG set meant to last a lifetime” with pre-made decks and accessories “uniquely designed to be both beautiful and functional, and to offer a polished combat experience”. Here’s what it contains:
- Three prebuilt decks – Core set Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur form 60-card decks alongside more complex cards like Ho-Oh ex, Lugia ex, and Suicune ex
- game board – foldable cloth board that accommodates two players and each of their card placement zones
- toolbox – Carries all game accessories, including metal balls that replace coin tosses
- tokens – stackable damage tokens and ring-shaped status tokens
- deck boxes – one for each cover theme: Fire, Water and Grass
- card sleeves – Pokeball theme and simple black and white color scheme
Pokemon Trading Card Game Classic is currently slated to hit stores before the end of 2023, but there’s no specific date when sales or pre-orders will go live. In addition, the price is currently listed as “TBD”. will it be $80 $150? does it matter?
G/O Media may receive a commission
Continue reading: Getting started with the Pokémon TCG is a lot easier than you think
This is essentially in line with Nintendo’s release of the NES and SNES Classic consoles a few years ago. It’s a pure nostalgia game that aims to tap into the minds of people who came into the world for the first time Pokemon Trading card game as kids when it started have probably fallen away by now and now have nieces, nephews or children of their own and enough disposable income to be willing to spend money to relive their childhood glory days or at least get that loved one back Foil card they lost, traded or stole in the 90’s.
However, this classic set doesn’t seem to happen in a vacuum. A full remake of the original 150 base set cards was leaked earlier this year. Thanks to illusionist Uri Geller dropping his legal claim against the Kadabra card for good because he allegedly stole his likenessThe Pokémon Company can finally start printing this card again, allowing the entire set to be reprinted intact for the first time in nearly two decades.
It’s not clear if or when booster packs of these cards will also be available for purchase, or if they’ll be legal for tournament play. It won’t be the classic set, but it will give you that warm fuzzy of holding your old favorite cards again.
