The developers of Pokémon TCG Pocket have announced significant enhancements to the game's trading system, which has been a source of frustration for players since its launch. These upcoming changes are promising, but players will have to wait until the fall for their implementation.
In a detailed post on the Pokémon community forums, the developers outlined the following changes:
Removal of Trade Tokens
- Trade Tokens Elimination: The current trading currency, Trade Tokens, will be completely phased out. Players will no longer need to sacrifice cards to acquire these tokens.
- Introduction of Shinedust for Trading: Trading cards of three-diamond, four-diamond, and one-star rarity will now require Shinedust instead of Trade Tokens.
- Shinedust Acquisition: Players will automatically earn Shinedust when opening booster packs and obtaining cards already registered in their Card Dex. The developers are considering increasing the amount of Shinedust available, as it is also used for purchasing flairs.
- Trade Token Conversion: Existing Trade Tokens will be converted to Shinedust upon removal from the game.
- No Changes for Lower Rarities: Trading for one-diamond and two-diamond rarity cards will remain unchanged.
Additional Updates in Development
- Card Sharing Feature: A new feature will allow players to share cards they are interested in trading, enhancing the in-game trading function.
The current Trade Token system is cumbersome and inefficient. To trade a single ex Pokémon card, players must currently discard five other ex cards to accumulate enough Trade Tokens. This system has discouraged many from using the trading feature.
The new system utilizing Shinedust is expected to be more user-friendly. Shinedust, already used for purchasing flairs, is earned automatically from duplicate cards and through various in-game events. With the proposed increase in Shinedust availability, players should have ample resources for trading without the need to sacrifice valuable cards.
Introducing a cost to trading remains crucial to prevent exploitation, such as creating multiple accounts to accumulate and trade rare cards to a main account. However, the Trade Token system's high cost has been a significant barrier for many players.
The new feature allowing players to share desired trade cards will significantly improve the trading experience. Currently, players can list cards for trade but cannot specify what they want in return without external communication. This change will enable more targeted and meaningful trades, encouraging more players to engage with the trading system.
The community's response to these changes has been largely positive, though there is frustration over the cards already sacrificed under the old system. While existing Trade Tokens will convert to Shinedust, the lost cards cannot be recovered.
The major downside is the timeline for these updates. Players will need to wait until the fall for these improvements, which may lead to a standstill in trading activity as the current system remains unappealing. Several expansions may come and go before the trading aspect of Pokémon TCG Pocket truly flourishes.
In the meantime, players are encouraged to save their Shinedust in anticipation of the new trading system.
