Pokémon TCG Pocket's controversial trading system fuels a thriving black market for digital cards. Numerous eBay listings offer Pokémon TCG Pocket cards for $5-$10 each, exploiting the game's friend-code-based trading mechanic. Sellers circumvent the game's rules against buying and selling virtual items by requesting a trade of an "unwanted Pokémon ex" in exchange for the desired card. This allows them to essentially profit without losing any cards, as only cards of the same rarity can be traded.

One listing, for example, priced a Starmie ex at $5.99, requiring 500 Trade Tokens, one Trade Stamina, and an unwanted Pokémon ex from the buyer. This is a clear violation of the game's terms of service.

Beyond individual cards, entire accounts containing valuable items like Pack Hourglasses and rare cards are also being sold on eBay, a common occurrence in online games regardless of terms of service violations.

The trading mechanic itself sparked controversy upon its release. Criticized for its high cost and the requirement of Trade Tokens (obtained by deleting five cards of the same rarity to trade one), the system's restrictive nature has inadvertently created this black market. Even without the token system, the lack of a public trading system within the app would likely still encourage external trading platforms.

Many players, such as Reddit user siraquakip, desired a more integrated community trading system within the game itself, eliminating the need for third-party platforms.

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Developer Creatures Inc. has warned players against real-money transactions and other forms of cheating, threatening account suspensions for violations. Ironically, the Trade Token system, implemented to prevent such exploitation, has failed and alienated a significant portion of the player base.

Creatures Inc. is investigating improvements to the trading feature, but concrete solutions remain elusive despite complaints dating back three weeks. Speculation abounds that the trading system's limitations, particularly the inability to trade 2-Star cards or higher, are designed to incentivize in-app purchases, given the game's estimated half-billion-dollar revenue in under three months prior to the trading feature's launch. One player reported spending approximately $1,500 to complete the first card set, highlighting the financial pressure to obtain rare cards.

Did you spend money on Pokémon TCG Pocket in January 2025?

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