Pokemon TCG Pocket Backlash Prompts Trading Feature Improvements

The Pokémon TCG Pocket trading feature, launched January 29th, 2025, has faced significant player backlash, prompting developer DeNA to promise improvements. The core issue centers around the high cost and restrictive nature of the trading system.

Pokémon TCG Pocket's Trading Feature: Player Complaints

Exorbitant Trade Token Costs

The trading system, while offering a much-needed way to complete Pokedex entries, requires players to trade 1-4 Diamond and 1-Star rarity cards from Genetic Apex and Mythical Island booster packs. The limited card selection and the introduction of a new, expensive in-game currency – trade tokens – have angered many players. Obtaining these tokens requires sacrificing higher-rarity cards, creating an unsustainable loop. For example, trading a 4-Diamond card needs 500 tokens, but selling a 1-Star card yields only 100, forcing players to repeatedly sacrifice rare cards.

In response to this criticism, DeNA, in a February 1st, 2025, Twitter (X) post, acknowledged the concerns and stated they are actively investigating solutions. One planned improvement includes providing multiple ways to acquire trade tokens, potentially through events. Currently, only 1-Star cards are tradeable.

DeNA explained the stringent rules as a measure to prevent bot abuse and multi-account exploitation, aiming to balance fairness and the core collecting aspect of the game. Further changes remain unannounced.

Genetic Apex Booster Pack Accessibility Concerns

Following the January 29th, 2025 release of the Space-Time Smackdown booster packs, some players reported the disappearance of the Genetic Apex packs from the home screen. This sparked concerns on Reddit about the pack's permanent removal.

However, the Genetic Apex packs remain accessible via a small, easily overlooked "Select other booster packs" option in the bottom-right corner. While understandable given the small text size, the less-than-obvious location has fueled speculation of a deliberate attempt to promote the newer packs. Players who haven't completed the Genetic Apex set have called for a homescreen update to display all three booster pack options to avoid future confusion. DeNA has yet to address this issue.