This Is So Sad - Price Prediction

The Pokemon Trading Card Game has seen a major resurgence in popularity over the last few years, both from legitimate fans, as well as resellers looking to make money on sites like eBay. Getting new products into the hands of the fans has been a tough task for The Pokemon Company, which is something we recently saw with the Prismatic Evolutions set. In addition to frustrating fans, this has also resulted in extra stress for retailers. Official Pokemon vending machines should make things easier for everyone, but that hasn’t quite been the case.

If you aren’t familiar with Pokemon vending machines or haven’t seen one in person, they can be found at a number of grocery chains throughout the country. These official machines are owned and operated by The Pokemon Company, rather than the retailers themselves. In theory, these machines should increase the availability of Pokemon TCG products locally, without the retailer having to worry about any of the associated pressures. This means stores don’t have to enforce purchase limits or worry about theft.

While this all sounds great in concept, the actual execution has left fans wanting. Across the internet, many have shared stories about the vending machines being consistently sold out of product. Some fans have even accused store employees of buying up Pokemon TCG products before locations are open, leaving actual customers with less product to choose from. It’s hard to say if that’s actually happening, and to what extent it might be taking place. Regardless, fans are finding it hard to actually get the cards they want from these vending machines.

“Mine hasn’t been filled in 4 weeks. Apparently some guys picked a fight with the girl who stocks them and the store manager had to get involved. This is so sad,” writes Reddit user Business_Mammoth_651.

That post came from a reply in the Pokemon TCG subreddit, where user Master_jai proposed a method that would force vending machine users to sign in using a Pokemon Center account. This would allow The Pokemon Company to enforce purchase limits, so people couldn’t just buy everything. However, that might also make it harder for more casual fans to take advantage of the vending machines. It could also make it tougher for those that want to make an impulse purchase, including parents or grandparents that want to buy cards for their loved ones.

Hopefully The Pokemon Company can find some way to fix the problem. Fans are clearly frustrated with products selling out all the time, and it’s becoming a source of stress with each new set released. It remains to be seen how things will play out when Pokemon Scarlet & Violet – Journey Together is released later this month, but hopefully there will be a good amount of stock to be found both in stores and in vending machines.

2025-03-16 18:33

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