Recently my friends have started collecting Pokémon cards. Years ago I had some and enjoyed playing the game. Still, as time went on and I never really had anyone to play with I remember they got packed up and put in a shed somewhere. Now though, Pokémon card collecting has become bigger than ever. There have been fights online between people trying to get new sets when they come out and stores limiting stock for customers to try and cut down on scalpers. It’s scary out there.
But with limited stock, scalpers raising prices and card scarcity on the rise why collect them at all…well I’d say there are three big reasons why people do it.
- To play the game, which I think is a really good reason and people trying to scalp and raising prices can make it difficult to play in certain ways. Which is awful.
- To make money, which I mean can happen. You have the chance to get really expensive cards but it is always a gamble. That is part of it too though, people love the risk/reward of it. Even if you get an expensive card there is still the matter of selling it, and with a fluctuating market, it can be tough. People also tend to get cards graded to try and make more money off of them and at that point it can’t really be used to play the game anymore. This also has a gambling aspect. If there is a scratch maybe you don’t initially notice and you get it graded it could actually lower the price in some cases.
- But my favourite reason is just to collect. It can be so fun when you get a full art card and I have been opening packs with my friends so when it happens we all cheer and hype each other up. Plus even if it’s not a full art if we find one of our favourites we still can enjoy it which makes it fun no matter what you get.
So am I telling you to start collecting…heck no it’s super expensive and the random aspect can lead you to not get what you’re looking for. But, in 2025 a lot more people have got into the hobby so I also won’t tell you to not check it out if you’re interested. I mean look at all the cool cards I’ve collected over the last couple of months. They are my pride and joy.
-Jared Gomes
