On July 29, just before the A4 set drops,Pokemon TCG Pocketwill be receiving an anticipated update that will likely fix its struggling Trade feature. Introduced in January 2025 as a new way to acquire cards, trading quickly became one of the biggest letdowns inPokemon TCG Pocket’s short history.
Almost immediately after launch,Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Trade feature came under fire. Players were disappointed that it was limited mostly to common cards, required a scarce currency, and offered little to no communication features. DeNA eventually acknowledged the backlash and promised to overhaul the feature, a pledge that took nearly six months to fulfill.
The overhauled Trade feature is slated to hit the game on July 29. It will replacePokemon TCG Pocket’s Trade Tokenswith Shinedust, let players display up to three wanted cards, and double the amount of Shinedust earned from duplicate pulls. Even better, the update will allow players to convert their soon-to-be-useless tokens into Shinedust and up to 60 Pack Hourglasses. Basically, DeNA seems to be aiming for more than two birds with one stone.
Pokemon TCG Pocket’s Trade Update Will Address Critical Issues
Trading inPokemon TCG Pocketcurrently falls into two scenarios: either the two traders know each other and agree on the trade details outside the app, or they’re total strangers tossing random cards at each other and hoping to get lucky. Trading with a stranger feels like throwing a boomerang with a card taped to it, wishing it comes back with something desirable. But the upcoming update could finally fix that. After July 29, each trader will be able to display three needed cards on their profile, so the other end of a trade—the boomerang’s receiver—will know what to send back to make it work.
Trade Tokens will also be shelved with the update, allowing deals to be sealed with Shinedust, just as rumored before the Trade feature was introduced. This is great news for the community, as the current trading currency requiresconsumingPokemon TCG Pocketcards, something that feels counterintuitive to the whole point of swapping duplicates to complete the Pokedex.
It may be too soon to call theupcoming overhaul of trading inPokemon TCG Pocketa win for the fanbase. However, what’s clear is that the new mechanics are likely to make trading a bit more practical. The patch also gives fans hope that the developer hasn’t given up on trading and is looking to improve it. Maybe, in the future, the game will even go as far as allowing the exchange of high-rarity cards like crowns, shinies, and rainbows.
