Posted in: Card Games, Games, Pokémon TCG, Tabletop | Tagged: chilling reign, pokemon, pokemon cards, Pokemon TCG, TCG

Pokémon TCG: Chilling Reign – Is It Safe To Pre-Order?

If you frequent a local game store or comic shop to buy Pokémon cards, you may have heard talk of allocation. Some retailers are being open with their customers that the demand for the June 2021 Pokémon TCG set, Sword & Shield: Chilling Reign, is so high that distributors are only able to provide them with a small fraction of their desired orders. This has left some customers wondering… is it safe to pre-order?

Here's the thing. In order to understand the situation around pre-ordering Pokémon TCG products through stores right now, it's important to understand the way that different stores work. Understanding those differences and coming to terms with the benefits and pitfalls of each kind of pre-order will help you determine where you want to place your order.

• Chain game stores like GameStop: GameStop will take your pre-order with no regard for the allocation. They are a huge corporation and the Pokémon TCG is part of that, but is one of many parts. This separates it from a local game shop, which is likely run by one person or a small group of people that know their customer's desires. The benefits to pre-ordering Chilling Reign through a chain-like GameStop is that you'll get it at MSRP, and you'll be able to use membership benefits to chip away at the price you're paying. Some of the drawbacks are that GameStop is likely going to limit you to a handful of booster packs… but that's only a minor drawback. The major one comes from GameStop taking unlimited pre-orders. If and when allocation hits, this will strip your pre-order of the guarantee that you'll get it in a timely fashion. For example, I pre-ordered Shining Fates at multiple GameStops. One of those stores called me when the products arrived and I got them with no problem. Another told me that I might as well cancel because they were so backed up on the list that I wouldn't be able to get my products until June. These are wildly different experiences with one chain, and that's very much how it is ordering Pokémon TCG products from places like that.
• Local game stores: Now, here is where it's important to develop relationships with your retailers. There are good retailers who will make absolutely sure to not take too many pre-orders. At their own risk, they cut off pre-orders way ahead of where they normally would so that when that allocation hits, they are still able to fulfill Pokémon TCG pre-orders even with a lower amount of product than ordered. Now, what local game stores often aren't able to do is sell at MSRP. They are being charged more now by their distributors in many cases, which trickles down to the customer. This does keep scalpers away by and large, but it also impacts real buyers.

When it comes down to it, this is a personal preference. While this big wave of interest in the Pokémon TCG has been brewing since Hidden Fates, the real soaring market began, I feel, around the time of Champion's Path. I've been pre-ordering and hunting for products now through Champion's Path, Vivid Voltage, Shining Fates, and Battle Styles. What I've learned through all of this is that the safest place to order is a trusted local game shop. It may end up costing a bit more in the end, but that person-to-person attention to detail from a retailer has allowed me to go home with more cards than any big brand store.

Best of luck to everyone attempting to pre-order Chilling Reign. We're all in the same boat here.

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