The Pokémon Trading Card Game was launched in October 1996 in Japan by Media Factory, under license from The Pokémon Company and Nintendo. The timing was no accident: the Pokémon Red and Blue video games had just been released on Game Boy in February of the same year and were an immediate success. The idea was simple — extend the Pokémon universe into the physical world, create a bridge between the screen and the table.

The first set — the Japanese Base Set — contained 102 cards divided into several rarity levels. Boosters contained 11 cards: 7 common, 3 uncommon, and 1 rare or holographic. A format that would remain virtually unchanged for 25 years, until the Sword & Shield era.

The release of the English Base Set in January 1999, followed by European languages later that year, triggered an unprecedented collective fever in card game history. Nintendo of America had planned to produce 9 million boosters for the American market. They sold 9 million in four days. The stock ran out immediately, completely, and would remain so for months.

In French schoolyards, Pokémon cards replaced marbles and Panini stickers as a medium of exchange. Every child had their "precious" card that they wouldn't trade. Holographic Charizards and Mewtwos were traded for dozens of common cards. Parents queued outside supermarkets to find booster packs. Teachers banned cards in class.

In 1999-2000, the Pokémon TCG was one of the best-selling products in the world — ahead of some toys, ahead of most video games. It was a collective fever that no one had anticipated, that no one really understood, and that would mark an entire generation.

After the euphoria of the early years, the Pokémon TCG entered a phase of normalization. The schoolyard frenzy subsided — the children of 1999 grew up, went to secondary school, and put away their cards. Sales dropped significantly compared to the peaks of 2000-2001.

But the TCG did not disappear — it focused. It transitioned from a mass phenomenon to a niche game cultivated by competitive players and loyal collectors. Play! Pokémon (the official tournament organization) became structured, world championships grew in scale, and a core group of players kept the flame alive for ten years.

During this period, cards accumulated in shoeboxes, attics, and flea markets. Base Set Charizards sold for a few euros. No one yet knew what they would be worth twenty years later.

The renaissance of the Pokémon TCG didn't come from a new expansion or marketing campaign. It came from YouTube. Content creators — first in the United States, then gradually in France — began filming their booster pack openings and publishing them online. The format was simple, immediate, universal: a hand tearing open a booster, the cards revealed one by one, the creator's authentic reaction.

This unboxing format found its natural audience: 25-35 year olds who grew up with Pokémon in 1999 and who, watching these videos, rediscovered something they thought they had lost. Nostalgia became monetized. YouTube channels specializing in Pokémon TCG accumulated millions of subscribers. Unboxing videos of displays reached tens of millions of views.

The XY era (2013-2016) and then the Sun & Moon era (2016-2019) benefited from this dynamic. The introduction of Gold Rares in the Sun & Moon era — these entirely golden cards that shine uniquely — created a new level of desirability and "shareworthy" content for creators.

2020 changed everything — and not just for the Pokémon TCG. The global lockdown created an unprecedented context: millions of people confined to their homes, with time, screens, and a desire to rediscover something simple and joyful. Pokémon — the franchise, the game, the cards — benefited from a massive global return of nostalgia.

In February 2021, American YouTuber and boxer Logan Paul purchased a sealed 1st edition Base Set box for $200,000 and opened it live in front of millions of viewers. The event made headlines in the international mainstream press. Prices of vintage cards soared. The general public discovered that the "Pokémon cards from their childhood" were sometimes worth fortunes.

Stock shortages multiplied worldwide. In France, adults queued outside supermarkets on delivery mornings to buy Sword & Shield displays before they disappeared from shelves. On eBay and Cardmarket, prices skyrocketed. The Pokémon TCG made headlines in economic newspapers.

The Scarlet & Violet era (launched in March 2023) marks a new aesthetic evolution of the TCG. SAR (Special Art Rare) and Hyper Rare cards — full-art cards with gold treatment — reach unprecedented levels of artistic quality in the history of the card game. The Charizard ex SAR from the first Scarlet & Violet expansion becomes one of the most sought-after modern cards, regularly exceeding €100.

In parallel, October 2024 sees the launch of Pokémon TCG Pocket — a mobile application that digitizes the booster opening experience. Within weeks, it accumulates tens of millions of downloads and introduces a new generation to the world of Pokémon cards — who then often transition to the physical format.

In 2026, the Pokémon TCG is simultaneously a structured competitive game with world tournaments, a collector's market where some cards are worth several thousand euros, a content phenomenon with billions of views on YouTube and TikTok, and an object of nostalgia for an entire generation. It is this multiplicity that explains its unique resilience among collectible card games.