While there are plenty of things that gamers won’t agree with each other about, one of the most universally hated things about the industry is scalpers. Nobody likes having to pay extortionate prices for limited-time products, and Pokemon fans will know full well just how bad the scalping problem can be, especially when it comes to the TCG side of things.
You’ve probably seen videos of grown men online grabbing crates of Pokemon cards, emptying shelves as soon as they’re restocked, forcing some retailers to ration things out sensibly. Unfortunately, online purchases don’t have that same level of security, but the official Pokemon Center has now finally taken steps to ensure at least some people are able to pay the retail price for a new Pokemon product.
The Pokemon Center Is Getting Early Access
First revealed over the weekend (thanks GamesRadar), the Pokemon Center proudly announced an “early access” system that will allow certain customers to purchase popular new products before they’re made widely available. If you sign up for the Pokemon Center Newsletter, you’ll be automatically signed up and receive invitation links to buy one or more products before anyone else.
Pokemon TCG Scalpers Are Selling A Mega Gengar Card For $800, And It Isn’t Even Out Yet
Pokemon TCG scalpers are now selling unreleased cards.
Of course, you’re not actually guaranteed to get the item that you want, and there are a couple of systems in place if you think you can get away with using multiple browsers to up your odds. Not only does this early access system prohibit the use of multiple browsers, your invitation link will only work once, and any funny business can void your invitation entirely.
It’s pretty strict, but this is Pokemon scalping we’re talking about, the same scalpers that almost demolished a Van Gogh museum for a Pikachu card. It’ll make life harder for them, but it won’t eradicate the problem entirely, and while I wish it would, it’s nice to know that the Pokemon Center itself recognizes that scalping and reselling is a big issue.
- Release Date
-
1997 – 2023
- Network
-
TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC
- Directors
-
Shigeru Omachi, Koji Ogawa, Fumihiro Ueno, Hideki Hiroshima, Maki Kodaira, Makoto Ooga, Ayumi Moriyama, Keitaro Motonaga, Shigeru Ueda, Fumihiro Yoshimura, Minoru Ohara, Yoshitaka Makino, Kiyoshi Egami, Makoto Sokuza, Bjarne Heuser, Naoki Murata, Kenichi Nishida, Tomoe Makino, Masahiko Watanabe, Hiroaki Takagi, Tazumi Mukaiyama, Ryohei Horiuchi, Yoshihiro Oda, Hiromichi Matano
-
Rica Matsumoto
Satoshi (voice)
-
Ikue Otani
Pikachu (voice)
