In conjunction with the 2023 Pokémon TCG World Championships and subsequently the start of the 2023-24 Pokémon TCG tournament season, a promotional Pikachu card was released in seven Asia-Pacific countries—Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines—back in August 2023.

The card would also be distributed as a participation prize at Pokémon Card Gym tournaments in Japan between September 2023 and February 2024. Now, this same card has just had its price tag absolutely skyrocket.

In recent weeks, this card has seen its price almost quintuple. This is likely because this year’s World Championships are about to take place. The 2024 Pokémon TCG World Championships will be held in Honolulu from 16-18 August.

Adding to the card’s value is its illustration which depicts Pikachu in combat against a Charizard in a large stadium. There’s actually a dual meaning behind this image. First off, it refers to how the best Pokémon players in the world—whether in the TCG, video games, or Pokémon Go—are facing off on the biggest stage of them all.

Secondly, it alludes to the climax of the original run of the Pokémon anime when Ash’s Pikachu faced off against Leon’s Charizard with the world championship title on the line; this can also be regarded as an allusion to the real-life World Championships.

The English translation of this card is card 101 in the SVP Black Star Promos.

The price tag of a Pikachu (SV-P Promotional Cards 120/SV-P) card is 26,000 JPY (~US$166).

In other TCG-related news, check out the Candice card from Paradigm Trigger [S12]. Alternatively, you can also head over to the SNKRDUNK App via the banner below and find the top trending and latest single cards and boxes.