PSA Suspends Card Grading Services Amid Record TCG Interest

ApricornNut

Optimistic Trainer/Collector
Member
Good on PSA for flipping the Delibird to scalpers by refusing to grade cards! Hopefully, Beckett and other companies will do the same!
 

Stalltar

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Wow, that’s something I wasn’t expecting. And with hype starting to decline this might be the beginning of a domino effect finally (and hopefully) getting flippers, scalpers etc. to leave.
 

shiningdialga

Time dino goes rawr
Member
I see everyone blaming scalpers, but I honestly don't think that's the main problem. I think at this point, it's every Logan Paul wannabe or "investor" who thinks they'll make big bucks by grading every single card they pull. I imagine most of the cards PSA is getting are bulk garbage that you'd find in dime bin at your local store. Jokes on them, though: too many graded cards will likely mean a price drop.
 

The Vish

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I see everyone blaming scalpers, but I honestly don't think that's the main problem. I think at this point, it's every Logan Paul wannabe or "investor" who thinks they'll make big bucks by grading every single card they pull. I imagine most of the cards PSA is getting are bulk garbage that you'd find in dime bin at your local store. Jokes on them, though: too many graded cards will likely mean a price drop.
Yeah I heard people were sending in hundreds at a time. Bulk Ultra Rares, Holos, etc.

And litrally anything base set. When all that comes back around October the price crash will be unprecedented.
 

zzzeraora

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I see everyone blaming scalpers, but I honestly don't think that's the main problem. I think at this point, it's every Logan Paul wannabe or "investor" who thinks they'll make big bucks by grading every single card they pull. I imagine most of the cards PSA is getting are bulk garbage that you'd find in dime bin at your local store. Jokes on them, though: too many graded cards will likely mean a price drop.
Fer real. Just go watch every YouTuber except max who opens cards, they could give less of a shit what a card is but they'll act like professional graders
 

treeckonation

Treecko is a good pokemon
Member
Fer real. Just go watch every YouTuber except max who opens cards, they could give less of a shit what a card is but they'll act like professional graders
i only keep ultra rares or holo mint who cares about the common or uncommons.
 

Mistwalker

Master of Martial Arts
Member
I understand the resentment towards scalpers, but for normal collectors like myself (I play the TCG and collect) who don't do this for a profit, this is kind of a bummer. I just recently went through CGC to get 5 of my cards graded, one of which is Rapid Strike Urshifu VMAX (the full art, secret rare one aka the most valuable card in the set). I pulled it in the only booster box I got which was so freaking exciting, I had to get it graded. But I'm not selling it. Urshifu is my favorite pokemon so Im keeping that bad boi for a long time
 

Ranger64

Mewtwo Mastermind
Member
Revenge on the scalpers! Yay! But seriously maybe this will stop at least 50% of the scalpers.
 

don()shinobi

PokeBeach's Yu-Gi-Oh enthusiast. I guess.
Member
New rule, shoppers need to show their YouTube subscriptions and watch history to prove that they haven't been influenced by Logan Paul or other attention addicts before being able to purchase cards.
 

Raigetsu

Lightning Trainer
Member
I honestly blame youtubers who keep slapping prices (inflated prices to boot) onto their openings for every ultra rare giving the impression to viewers this is an easy money scheme.
 

esperante

started there, now i'm at the bottom
Member
I love how even when you specifically write into the article that the rage in the community towards scalpers and Youtubers is baseless and misguided, every comment here is still the exact same whining that has been echoed nonstop for the past few months. I suppose that's what you get when you try to give a logical explanation to an echo chamber full of angry kids.
 

Hongo

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I love how even when you specifically write into the article that the rage in the community towards scalpers and Youtubers is baseless and misguided, every comment here is still the exact same whining that has been echoed nonstop for the past few months. I suppose that's what you get when you try to give a logical explanation to an echo chamber full of angry kids.
How is it baseless and misguided when a lot of the YouTube community shifted from pack openings for the chase of a card and went into chase for the *money* with thumbnails and clickbait titles with prices and dollar signs which then created the snowball we’re in now?
 

Number51x

Blasting off at the speed of light!
Member
I love how even when you specifically write into the article that the rage in the community towards scalpers and Youtubers is baseless and misguided, every comment here is still the exact same whining that has been echoed nonstop for the past few months. I suppose that's what you get when you try to give a logical explanation to an echo chamber full of angry kids.
Vomiting is a symptom of the Flu. Doesn't mean I can't haaaaaate vomiting.
 

Malavok

Aspiring Trainer
Member
I love how even when you specifically write into the article that the rage in the community towards scalpers and Youtubers is baseless and misguided, every comment here is still the exact same whining that has been echoed nonstop for the past few months. I suppose that's what you get when you try to give a logical explanation to an echo chamber full of angry kids.

The rage towards scalpers isn’t misguided. Scalpers suck, period. Doesn’t matter if it’s for cards, electronics, masks, etc. The problem is people are assuming that PSA is doing this to stop scalping. They’re not; they’re doing it because they’re overwhelmed. It will luckily have a negative impact on scalpers though, as a positive side effect.
 

fleshrum

Cephalophore
Member
The rage towards scalpers isn’t misguided. Scalpers suck, period. Doesn’t matter if it’s for cards, electronics, masks, etc. The problem is people are assuming that PSA is doing this to stop scalping. They’re not; they’re doing it because they’re overwhelmed. It will luckily have a negative impact on scalpers though, as a positive side effect.

Ultimately if you accept the PTCG system of rarity then you accept that a card's secondary market value is variable and scarcity is a partial determinant for that value.

I'm genuinely curious if the caterwauling comes from uninformed consumers who just can't get their hands on product or what. No kidding, the supply issues do suck. People who are only in it for financial gain can be really toxic. They might enjoy ptcg in a different way than us, but they are still enjoying it, however shallow or fleeting that enjoyment might seem.

But PSA not grading cards is not somehow a positive thing because of this. Standardized measures of condition are what keeps value in these products, and value is why we participate in this, even if that value isn't monetary. These (idk who, tbh? some sort of faceless menace) people come and go, and imo its important for card grading services to stick around to make sure that they keep coming and keep going.

What exactly makes someone a scalper vs someone who just really enjoys the hobby, has disposable income, and trades/sells products? I buy a box of the sets I want. I use the codes to play online, I give the commons and simple stuff to my school for their junior club free time activities, I build a half-deck to play with my younger cousin, I trade and sell cards I don't like for whatever reason (artwork/mechanic/set completion/dex binder) for cards I do. Often the selling is through a third party who exchanges tcg product for store credit and resells at a profit.

Change box to case and suddenly I'm breaking some unspoken rule? But my LGS isn't?

Stop using scalper as this catch-all buzzword.
 
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