On Jan. 17, the Pokémon Company released 2025’s first set, Prismatic Evolutions, which left collectors and shop owners in Big Rapids scrambling as limited stock and scalpers made it nearly impossible to get the highly anticipated cards.
Featuring special illustration rare cards of the fan-favorite “Eeveelutions,” the eight Pokémon that evolve from Eevee, this set was on track to dazzle rookie and veteran fans alike. Limited stock and scalpers have made getting the newest products a nightmare. The set, featuring fan-favorite Pokémon from the Eeveelution line, was anticipated by collectors and casual fans alike.
However, problems began the moment pre-orders went live: the Pokémon Center, a store dedicated to the franchise, sold out within minutes. Similar issues occurred in big-box stores like Target and Meijer, where scalpers bought entire shelves, leaving casual consumers empty-handed.
Not everyone was happy with the release of Prismatic Evolutions. In response to customer complaints, the Pokémon Company promised a reprint, though there is no announcement on the release date.
The owner of TOFA Games in Big Rapids Brendon Carlington was unimpressed with the set and the lack of availability.
“I think it’s the Pokémon Company’s fault. I was told by my distributor that I wasn’t going to get any [Prismatic Evolutions] months before the set released,” Carlington said.
The combination of low stock and scalpers buying up all the products hurt the release of this anticipated set. Most small game stores couldn’t get any stock, similar to TOFA Games.
Carlington was also disappointed with the card artwork.
“It’s largely a reprinted set. I did not expect it to have good pull rates. Hence why the craze behind certain cards became super high beforehand,” Carlington said.
Prismatic Evolutions has become an example of how scarcity and high demand can turn a fun hobby into a frustrating and sometimes expensive pursuit. Whether or not the reprint will solve these issues is yet to be seen, but it’s clear that collectors aren’t the only ones feeling the impact.
The previous set featuring Eeveelutions, Evolving Skies, was notorious for low pull rates, meaning collectors would have to spend a fortune in search of one of those rare cards. “Evolving Cries,” as fans deemed a fitting title for the set due to the unlikelihood of pulling a card worth any value.
According to TCGPlayer.com, in an article by Peter Day, the Eeveeloution cards were about one in 332 packs. Those specific VMAX, which is a special type of power-up for Pokémon and is featured on rare full-art cards, were found to be in one of 1,994 packs.
Fans were hoping that Prismatic Evolutions would differ from Evolving Skies in pull rates, allowing collectors and battlers to find their chase cards or the cards they’d like to own, easily. Much to their disappointment, Prismatic Evolutions was quite like Evolving Skies and received its fitting nickname: “Traumatic Delusions.”
Welding engineering technology sophomore Jacob Johnson expected this outcome and clarified the situation.
“There has to be a reason for a chase card to be a chase card. Evolving Skies at least had other chase cards than Eeveelutions,” Johnson said.
Though the odds of pulling certain rare cards in Prismatic Evolutions are slightly better than in the previous set, the limited number of packs available still makes it difficult for fans to get what they want. Even with these challenges, collectors were eager to get their hands on Prismatic Evolutions when it launched.
In general, most of the cards in Prismatic Evolutions are reprints of older cards from Japan’s Terastal Festival set, but now available in English. However, one new feature in this set is the introduction of special shiny cards, like Masterball and Pokéball, which fans have never seen in English before.
Compared to the Japanese version of the set, the English release is more difficult to find and often much more expensive. Some collectors have also found that buying specific cards from other fans is more affordable than buying packs, especially since resellers mark up prices.
Overall, seeking out Prismatic Evolutions doesn’t seem profitable right now.