CONNECT WITH US
Gaming

Gaming

30 Years Later, Collecting Pokemon Cards Hits A Little Different

GameSpot logo

Published on

Add as a preferred source on Google
30 Years Later, Collecting Pokemon Cards Hits A Little Different

I remember in the late '90s and early '00s, collecting Pokemon cards was a casual hobby. You'd go to your local brick-and-mortar store with the money you made from mowing the lawn or whatever, drop maybe $10 on a couple of packs, rip them open, then go to your middle school to trade cards with your friends. No one knew how to actually play the game; the cards just looked cool, and everyone wanted something. Me? I wanted a holographic Charizard, and I would've traded literally anything to get my hands on such a rarity.

It was so low-key back in the day. Saying that grosses me out, as I sound like a Boomer or Gen Xer, but it's true: Collecting Pokemon cards wasn't that serious, and we didn't put much stock in the cards, stuffing them in bags or pockets and watching them turn up in washing machines.

Now? Things are totally different. You can't just collect Pokemon cards as a hobbyist anymore. You've got to fight with scalpers looking to make a quick buck off nostalgia, as well as the kids who are either getting into the TCG for the first time or hoping to get something tradeable for their friends. (I don't decry the kids. They're not at fault.)

There have been plenty of incidents involving card collecting and violence lately. Robbers stole over $100,000 in rare cards from a California store in December 2025. A different set of robbers made off with nearly $120,000 in rare cards at gunpoint in New York in January 2026.


Source link

Disclaimer

We strive to uphold the highest ethical standards in all of our reporting and coverage. We TheMorningPulse.fyi want to be transparent with our readers about any potential conflicts of interest that may arise in our work. It's possible that some of the investors we feature may have connections to other businesses, including competitors or companies we write about. However, we want to assure our readers that this will not have any impact on the integrity or impartiality of our reporting. We are committed to delivering accurate, unbiased news and information to our audience, and we will continue to uphold our ethics and principles in all of our work. Thank you for your trust and support.