Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket
This game is a year old, and despite being a superfan, I kinda put it off. But this game is actually very solid. Essentially it allows you to open 2 free packs per day, plus a bunch of free ways to open more. There is a premium version that sucks and offers little, so it really is game that's super easy to enjoy playing for free. There are also battles and trades that encourage you to keep collecting, which then help you build good decks, and it's a nice little feedback loop.
I mean, it's the classic Pokemon formula. It appeals to collectors, people who like competing, and people who do it for the social aspect. The art is beautiful, ripping packs always feels great, and the feeling of getting a super rare card that your friends don't have is consistently awesome. And beyond anything, Pokemon has a magic to it that is seemingly unmatched in culture that I can never quite put my finger on. Why does this appeal so strongly?
I have two people close to me who have never touched Pokemon who became obsessed with this game. One of those is my wife, and so any game that can introduce my lifelong obsession to her is good in my books. We talk about this game all the time, we rip packs together, we trade, we go through battles, and now we sometimes even battle each other! Playing Pokemon with my wife feels like a decades long fantasy coming to fruition, so I owe this game a lot.
That said, like every Pokemon product, it's far from perfect. The battle system is a little undercooked and does not allow for a lot of creativity, and so much comes down to luck. There also seems like a lack of meaningful activity once you've finished all the battles. It's funny because I've been playing for a few months, and whenever they release new battles I finish them frantically in a day and have nothing to do until the next update. The competitive scene is just too slow and lacks variety and is not really my cup of tea.
I write this review at this point because I'm losing momentum now that I'm done all the battles and just wait for future updates. Ripping packs still feels great and I've never missed a day, and I'm not sure when I will. I will have enthusiasm for anything Pokemon, and I'm glad I have yet another outlet to enjoy one of my favorite IPs. This isn't really my ideal app, but it's shockingly cheap and accessible rather than a gross money-grab, and the battles feel like a fun little puzzle to solve. I've had a lot more fun with it than I thought I would when I ignored it's ballyhooed release.
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