A printing error has resulted in one amazingly lucky Pokémon Trading Card Game collector opening a box of holographic cards. The iconic trading card game, based on the video game Pocket Monsters Red and Green, was first published in 1996. Since then Pokémon TCG has continued to expand along with the franchise's video games, adding new Pokémon to collect, trade and battle.
Pokémon has become one of the most popular franchises in the world with video games, animated series, and trading cards for fans to consume. The popularity of the Pokémon Trading Card Game has risen in recent years, with some Pokémon cards being worth thousands of dollars. This unexpected boom has overwhelmed many industry professionals, such as card distributors and quality appraisers, who were not equipped to handle the sudden influx of business. Many factors have likely contributed to the sudden rise in Pokémon's popularity, with nostalgia being a major factor. Children who grew up playing or watching Pokêmon are now working adults, and many people happily spend money to bolster their old card collections. The COVID-19 pandemic has also apparently affected pricing in several collection markets, due to the fact that many people were stuck at home during quarantine. The Pokémon Company also often makes rare or exclusive cards that are naturally quite valuable to collectors. Recently one such card, depicting Pokémon Company President Tsunekazu Ishihara, sold for $250,000.
Gaming news website Dexerto reports that a lucky Pokémon card collector recently opened a box of 36 rare holographic cards. The so-called "God Box" was opened by SuperDuperDani, a YouTuber who specializes in Pokémon content including video games and card collections. Card packs have a very small chance of containing one rare holographic card, which is extremely valuable. However, SuperDuperDani opened a box containing 36 individual packs only to discover that every single pack contained a holographic card. The Neo Discovery box, printed in 2001, is assumed to have been the result of a printing error from Pokémon Company.
SuperDuperDani's channel demonstrates the current popularity of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and this trend has been felt by distribution sources as well. The Pokémon TCG craze resulted in an eBay policy change, with the online marketplace attempting to protect card sellers. The website now makes it impossible for bidders to retract a bid on a collectible card unless they have the seller's permission, preventing bidders from intentionally inflating a card's price and then taking back their bid. If a bidder wins an auction they are required to pay, unless the buyer agrees to remove their bid.
The Pokémon Trading Card Game's explosion in popularity is quite interesting, and it illustrates the undying appeal of Pokémon and trading cards in general. SuperDuperDani's breathtaking God Box may have been a printing error, or perhaps it was simply a stroke of extremely good luck. In any case, the YouTuber has struck Pokémon TCG gold and the occurrence may motivate others to begin purchasing card boxes of their own.
Source: Dexerto, SuperDuperDani/YouTube
