Pokémon TCG Pocket gets trading later this month, but rules will limit what you can swap

Trading will be added to Pokémon TCG Pocket later this month.

The Pokémon Company teased the feature at the game’s launch – it’s been right there, “coming soon”, since the app launched – but finally we have more information about which cards will be tradeable.

Firstly, trades can only be done between friends and only with cards of the same rarity. So no swapping one of those millions of Ponyta for a shiny Mewtwo.

The Pokémon Company also stated that only certain cards from both the Genetic Apex and Mythical Island booster packs will be available to trade. “We are planning to continue to expand the selection of booster packs that you can trade from,” it said.

Cards with a rarity of 1-4 diamond and 1 star can be traded. This excludes both Ex cards (generally the rarest of all) and Promo cards found in events.

Lastly, an item will need to be consumed in order to trade, presumably to stop the feature being overused (and surely provides another monetisation opportunity).

“We’ll continue to monitor player feedback and assess future updates to the trade feature while keeping in mind how to balance both the ease and enjoyability of collecting,” The Pokémon Company said.

Further, the statement confirms the next booster pack will also be added this month, though no more details were given.

The last booster pack was the Mythical Island pack, headlined by Mew, that was released in December.