DeNA, the developers behind Pokemon TCG Pocket, have committed to making changes to the game's trading feature following significant player backlash. Discover the reasons behind the discontent with the current system.
Pokemon TCG Pocket Players’ Complaints About the Game’s Latest Update
TCG Pocket’s Trade Tokens are Quite Expensive to Obtain
The trading feature in Pokemon TCG Pocket, introduced on January 29, 2025, has sparked widespread dissatisfaction among players, leading DeNA to announce upcoming improvements via a Twitter (X) post on February 1, 2025. This feature enables trading of 1-4 Diamond and 1-Star rarity cards from the Genetic Apex and Mythical Island booster packs. While it's beneficial for completing Poke Dex collections, the feature's limitations, such as restricted card selection, a new in-game currency, and high trading costs, have left many players frustrated.
In response to the backlash, DeNA has pledged to "actively investigate ways to improve the feature to address these concerns." One proposed change is "to offer multiple ways to obtain trade tokens, including through event distributions." Currently, trade tokens, essential for trading, can only be acquired by sacrificing higher-rarity cards, with players receiving more tokens for rarer cards. For example, trading a 4-Diamond card (an ex Pokemon) requires 500 tokens, yet players only gain 100 tokens for a 1-Star card and 300 for 2-Star and 3-Star cards, which are of higher rarity than the 4-Diamond card. This system forces players to sacrifice valuable or multiple cards just to participate in trades.
DeNA justified the stringent trading rules by stating, "The item requirements and restrictions implemented for the trading feature were designed to prevent abuse from bots and other prohibited actions using multiple accounts." Their aim is to "balance the game while maintaining a fair environment for all players and preserving the fun of collecting cards that is core to the Pokemon TCG Pocket experience." While further changes to the trading feature remain undisclosed, it's evident that the developers are focused on preventing exploitation before rolling out any updates.
Genetic Apex Seemingly Disappears After Space-Time Smackdown’s Release
Another issue raised by players concerns the disappearance of Genetic Apex booster packs following the release of Space-Time Smackdown booster packs on January 29, 2025. Some fans expressed concern on Reddit, noting that the home screen only displayed the Mythical Island and Space-Time Smackdown packs, leading to fears that the Genetic Apex packs were gone for good.
However, this is not the case. Players can access the Genetic Apex packs by navigating to the "Select other booster packs" option at the bottom right of the pack selection screen. The small text of this option has led to confusion, which some attribute to poor design. Others speculate that it might be a deliberate move to encourage the opening of newer packs for marketing reasons. Nevertheless, not all players have completed their collections from the first booster pack, leading to suggestions that DeNA should update the home screen to display all three sets and avoid further confusion.
While DeNA has yet to address this issue directly, this clarification should reassure players that they can continue working on their Genetic Apex collections using hourglasses and time.
