The Pokémon Card Craze: Are We In a Bubble?

• Posted: June 23, 2025, 8:19 pm
• in Sports Card News
• by bionic

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Every Friday, it’s the same story across retail stores nationwide—long lines, empty shelves, and a stampede of collectors and flippers hoping to score Pokémon cards before they vanish. The Pokémon Trading Card Game, once a niche nostalgia trip, has transformed into a speculative frenzy. But as prices soar and print runs explode, many are asking: how much longer can this last?

The Weekly Stampede​

It’s no longer about kids buying packs for fun. On restock days, people queue up early and clean out inventory within minutes. Many of them aren’t interested in the game at all. Instead, they’re scalpers loading carts with sealed product, hoarding it in closets, or flipping it online for a profit. Some are even maxing out credit cards under the belief that these boxes will skyrocket in value.

Flooded Shelves, Flooded Market​

The demand has pushed The Pokémon Company to pump out product at full tilt. From mainline expansions to special releases, print runs are larger than ever. Cards that once carried a sense of scarcity are now showing up everywhere. The Van Gogh Pikachu promo card is a prime example—what was intended as a limited museum tie-in now has nearly 40,000 PSA 10s floating around.

That number alone should set off alarm bells. Scarcity drives value, and we’re clearly veering into overproduction territory.

Déjà Vu From the 90s​

This all feels eerily familiar to those who lived through the sports card bubble of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. Back then, trading cards were printed into oblivion. Everyone thought they were sitting on gold, but the value tanked once collectors realized just how many were out there. Sound familiar?

We’re seeing similar behavior now: sealed product hoarded like gold bars, grading services overwhelmed, and casual collectors pushed out by inflated prices. It’s the same cycle, just with different characters and shinier packaging.

When Does It All Give?​

There’s no crystal ball, but cracks are forming. As PSA pops keep climbing and wallets get tighter, we could see a tipping point. Scalpers drowning in debt may need to offload inventory. Collectors might get wise to inflated prices. If that happens, the market could correct fast—and hard.

Until then, approach the hobby with your eyes open. Collect what you love, be wary of the hype, and remember: not every chase card is destined to pay off your mortgage. The bubble may not have popped yet, but it sure feels like it’s stretching thin.