If you don’t know what a “gold pack” is (which is pronounced: “Ho my god! A gold paaaaaaaaaack!!!” when you’re an influencer), you’ve missed the Pokémon Pocket phenomenon. This online game, available on smartphones, allows you to collect virtual Pokémon cards. Every day, the app offers a free booster (a pack of 5 cards), which can be opened with a swipe of your finger on the screen. Inside, there are Pokémon cards that look a lot like the “real” ones. Sometimes we come across an “immersive”, which comes to life and allows you to enter the setting of the map. There are also all the usual varieties of more or less rare cards. And finally, there are the “gold packs”, boosters of 5 exceptional cards. It’s extremely rare, but it happens…
People who have experienced the Pokémon Go madness (the game where we hunted virtual creatures in the real world with an augmented reality mobile app) know that a phenomenon linked to Pokémon should not be taken lightly. Thus, in one month, the Pokémon Pocket application was downloaded 60 million times. In one week, the game was already twice as profitable as Pokémon Go. How? With paid passes of course. You have to have a strong will to be satisfied with one booster per day. Thus, Asian players spend on average 13 euros per day in the app (we fall to less than four euros on average in Europe).
Landing on “The Fabulous Island”
Already, some particularly keen players boast of having collected all the Pokémon available. According to an estimate of New York Timesyou have to have spent almost 1,500 euros to hope for such a collection. Furthermore, since Tuesday, December 17, the first expansion entitled “Fabulous Island” has been launched with new Pokémon…
It must be said that when it comes to encouraging a taste for card collecting, the Pokémon Company knows how to do it… Thus, the Pokémon Pocket interface is full of details that will tickle booster-cracking addicts . “The opening experience is similar to the tabletop Pokémon Trading Card Game, and you can create your own routines for how you want to experience the game,” says Ryo Tsujikawa, general manager of Creatures, the studio behind develops Pokémon games. We paid particular attention to the process of selecting the booster that appears in a carousel, then opening it and finally the way in which we can observe the cards. »
Satoru Nagaya, artistic director, explains how Creatures designed the sound that is emitted when the virtual booster is opened:
« “Since we knew players would be opening packs every day, we wanted the sound of opening packs to be identifiable. We opened a number of physical packs while we searched for a nice sound. We carefully tested the sounds at different locations within the pack, including while you slide your finger across it, or when the pack is fully opened. And I think we were able to find a sound that elicits a feeling of excitement. » »
Virtual cards, but cards all the same
Finally, Pokémon Pocket takes exactly the recipe for paper collectible cards. Ryo Tsujikawa doesn’t hide it: “There are no real differences from the physical card game in which you learn about Pokémon by looking at the card… We wanted to keep this exciting experience of meeting new Pokémon , by opening packs. And to keep the same excitement, we kept the same information on the cards, but also the same level of balance of the rarity of the cards in a pack. »
So, while the technology could have made it possible to animate the cards other than with a simple glowing effect when manipulated, Pokémon Pocket remains quite sober. However, with the success of this digital version, Pokémon is taking a big lead over its competitors. The collectible card game (CCG) market has exploded in recent years. The veteran Magic is experiencing an impressive comeback, Disney has entered the game with the game Lorcana, a giant of the sector is starting to establish itself with a Star Wars TCG, Unlimited. And even French YouTubers are getting involved with Wankul. And we’re not even talking about the many outsiders, like the brilliant Altered (French, too…)
Get caught up in the game
In addition to establishing itself in smartphones, Pokémon could take advantage of the success of Pokémon Pocket to catch up on the only delay it still has over its competitors: the game itself. For many years, although millions of Pokémon cards have been sold, players remain considerably few in number, compared to collectors. Pokémon goes to great lengths to teach its fans how to play with cards. Regularly, introductory boxes are put on sale at attractive prices. Recently, Pokémon launched a collection of “decks”: packs of cards already constructed for competition. Although very well designed, these “decks” do not succeed in imposing the Pokémon game (which is pretty good too…)
Our articles Board games
As with all card games, one of the difficulties when getting started is finding opponents. However, if the millions of Pokémon Pocket collectors one day start playing online with their virtual cards, the Pokémon game could experience considerable growth. “Although Pokémon Pocket focuses on collecting, there are various opportunities for everyone to experience the fun of battles,” explains Satoru Nagaya. For example, Pokémon Trading. App features include rental decks, deck customization, automatic battles against the app… We would love for people to discover and enjoy the Pokémon battle experience…”
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