The Pokémon franchise has been a beloved part of many people’s childhoods, and with the 25th year anniversary, nostalgia-driven demand has led to a surge in Pokémon card prices.
Sales of the cards exploded to nearly 600 per cent over the previous year’s level, with professional card graders providing valuations for cards of varying qualities.
These valuations, although indicative, provided a basis for speculative fervour and led to growing participation in the mania. ⚡
However, with the release of recent sets, the prices have since skyrocketed to a record high with supplies sold out within a matter of minutes, dealing a devastating blow to Pokemon fans and collectors.
So is this the end for Pokemon? Or is there still a glimmer of hope left…
The Pokemon Bubble Begins: Understanding Pokeinflation
In the past year, the prices of Pokémon cards have surged to unprecedented heights, leaving many collectors and enthusiasts scratching their heads.
To understand what’s driving this phenomenon, we need to take a closer look at the data.
Over the past three months, the prices of 25 of the most expensive cards from the previous Pokémon generation, Sword & Shield, have increased by an average of 42 per cent.
The infamous Moonbreon card, for example, has jumped from $975 to $1,400, a staggering 45 per cent increase.
Similarly, cards from the Crown Zenith set have seen an enormous spike, with Mewtwo VSTAR, Arceus VSTAR, and Giratina VSTAR each roughly doubling in price.
If you think this only applies to single cards, well, you’re wrong.
Prices of sealed products have also increased drastically, with typical booster box prices increasing from 150 SGD in 2022 to a whopping 250 SGD in 2025.
Infamous Sets That Caused The Initial Pokemon Price ‘Surge’
If you’re a Pokemon TCG fan yourself, you would definitely know about everyone’s favourite protagonist Pokemon: Pikachu.
But don’t be fooled by its cute appearance. The newly released set(ahem, Surging Sparks) featuring the ‘Pikachu EX Secret Illustration Rare’ has sent waves of chaos in the Pokemon market, contributing to the beginning of Pokemon price inflation.
Surging Sparks created a wave of frenzy among distributors, with the announcement of allocation cuts due to the low printing supply of the hyped set. This caused a global shortage of the set, with surging sparks being sold out in a matter of minutes on Pokemon Center.
This snowballed into a pricing catastrophe, with sealed products such as packs doubling their initial value.
The Pokémon Card Market: A Reflection of Economic Forces
@thegentlemensvault Watch Our Customer's luck with this footage he sent us. Spoiler: wasn't a good day for pokemon🫠🙃 #prismaticevolutions #pokemon #pokemonsg #pokemontcg #pokemoncentresingapore #pokemoncards #fyp ♬ original sound – The Gentlemen’s Vault
Another rising issue that is causing an uproar in the Pokemon community is the impact of scalpers that are driving prices and cutting supplies of products (at market rate).
One recent example that explains this is the release of ‘Prismatic Evolutions’, also dubbed as ‘Traumatic Evolutions’ due to the shortage of supply and record-breaking prices.
During the release date of Prismatic Evolutions, suppliers such as Pokemon Center Singapore actually halted their physical release and focused their sales on e-commerce platforms, leading to a large proportion of products being sold to bots and scalpers.
Although the negative impact of scalping is partly to blame for the price hike, partial fault could be placed on The Pokemon Company itself.
This can be explained by basic economic forces and poor decision-making made by the Pokemon Company. By underestimating the printing supply of highly valued sets, the current supply of products failed to meet the high demands from fans, ultimately causing a price hike.
Outrageous Card Prices Might Be A Recurring Issue Till Pokemon’s 30th Anniversary
With many milestones met and many more to go, the Pokemon TCG popularity will only continue increasing and becoming increasingly mainstream till its 30th anniversary in 2026.
Although the card game initially started as a hobby for people, the explosion in Pokemon TCG’s popularity will undoubtedly attract Pokemon investors and scalpers as a means of an outlet for cash grabs.
Not to mention, the usage of computer bots to buy products from distributors such as Pokemon Centre would only exacerbate the issue.
Cancellation Of Releases and Supply Cuts Have Caused Massive Struggles For The Community
Since the release of Surging Sparks, the Pokemon Company has been at the centre of controversies, with the main issue of supply shortages for recent sets.
Most recently, the product release of Blooming Waters from the 151 set was cancelled in Singapore, with major retailers and suppliers in the region experiencing no allocations of the product.
To add to the fire, the restocking of popular sets such as Surging Sparks and 151 Booster Bundle was absent as of January 2025, which caused a frenzy among Pokemon fans, with many resulting to physical confrontations as a means to get their hands on their beloved set.
Is It The End For Affordable Pokemon Collecting? Or Are There Ways To Go About It…
With The Pokemon Company announcing the reprinting of Prismatic Evolutions, there lies the sole hope left for genuine fans to get their hands on the beloved set.
The fact that Pokémon have acknowledged the issue and are taking action is a positive step forward, but it also raises questions about the allocation of stock and why most stores received only a fraction of what they ordered.
One explanation is that the number of different stores that ordered products led to a low allocation of stock for each store.
As for what the future lies for the hobby, I guess only time will tell…
Related To Pokemon:
Pokemon TCG Reprints Explained: How Reprints Drastically Affects Prices – Guidesify
