In 2021, The Pokémon Company announced it was developing The Pokémon Trading Card Game Live, a digital version of its free-to-play card game of the same name. It will also serve as a modern replacement for The Pokémon Trading Card Game Online, which was released in 2011. However, The Pokemon Company followed the initial announcement with a series of postponements, much to the frustration of fans.
Now, all of that looks set to change. The company has announced that the game will arrive this summer on June 8.
In what will be welcome news to fans, the newest expansion of the card game named Scarlet & Violet – Paldea Evolved will be available on The Pokémon TCG Live on the very first day of launch, even though the physical version won’t arrive in retail stores for another day on June 9.
The Pokémon Trading Card Game Live is set to launch on June 8, offering a modern and accessible digital version of the popular card game, with the newest expansion, Scarlet & Violet – Paldea Evolved, available from day one.
In a blog post announcing the game’s launch, The Pokémon Company International revealed that The Pokémon TCG Live "offers beginner and veteran players a fun and accessible way to experience the Pokémon TCG, including various gameplay modes, daily quests, customizable avatars and Pokémon TCG accessories, as well as fan-favorite activities like building decks and battling friends."
At the moment, The Pokémon TCG Live is available in beta to players all over the world. Apart from the expansion, the company is also offering players who log on to the game between May 2nd and June 6th numerous customized items, including digital card sleeves, deck boxes, and coins, in a bid to lure them to the new app.
Players who already use The Pokémon TCG Online will be able to transfer numerous cards, including those from the Sword & Shield series, the Sun & Moon series, the XY series, and the Black & White series. They can also transfer many accessories, including coins, card sleeves, and deck boxes. However, they won’t be able to transfer cards from the HeartGold & SoulSilver series, in-game currency, friends list, Avatar items, and saved deck lists, among others.
Ahead of the game’s launch on June 8, The Pokémon Company will sunset the current version of the online game The Pokémon TCG Online. In an FAQ published on its website, the company revealed it is sunsetting The Pokémon TCG Online to ensure that players’ saved content "can be migrated to Pokémon TCG Live, helping to ensure a more seamless transition for players."
Nevertheless, the company hasn’t set a deadline for players to migrate their accounts from The Pokémon TCG Online to The Pokémon TCG Live. According to the aforementioned FAQ, players will continue to have the ability to migrate their accounts from The Pokémon TCG Online to The Pokémon TCG Live even after the former’s demise. If this changes, the company promises to notify players in advance.
In other Pokémon news, a retail store in Japan has begun asking for identification to sell Pokémon cards. The store, named Hareruya 2, has taken this drastic step in an attempt to combat scalpers who seek to profit off the cards and sell them for exorbitant prices.
The Pokémon Trading Card Game Live will arrive on June 8 on the iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows platforms.
