Sunkern and Sunflora are definitely overdue for new cards. These two aren't just neglected in the TCG; they are largely forgotten everywhere.
A triumphant return in the form of a GX will help mend the wounds.
Discussion Neglected Pokémon in the TCG
- Thread starter Purrloin
- Start date
A triumphant return in the form of a GX will help mend the wounds.
Same with Chimecho! I really want to see a new Chimecho card soon, whether it'd be a holo or better, or even just an uncommon.Sunkern and Sunflora are definitely overdue for new cards. These two aren't just neglected in the TCG; they are largely forgotten everywhere.
A triumphant return in the form of a GX will help mend the wounds.
Honestly, I'm more upset about Ivysaur, as it's my faviourite Pokémon!
Aaaand now I just saw that some Pokémon don't even have Megas in the TCG! Wow... I really don't think they care about Pokémon in each set past the first 2/3 sets in a gen anymore. (Unless it's Mythical related) as we're likely to have some Alolan Forms not being used in the TCG until Gen 7 re-makes.
Aaaand now I just saw that some Pokémon don't even have Megas in the TCG! Wow... I really don't think they care about Pokémon in each set past the first 2/3 sets in a gen anymore. (Unless it's Mythical related) as we're likely to have some Alolan Forms not being used in the TCG until Gen 7 re-makes.
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I think the main problem was, since the XY era was dominated by Gen 1 Pokemon, a lot of Pokemon that would have otherwise seen a return to the game ended up buried under the trillionth Mewtwo and Charizard cards. (Though it still doesn't really explain the absence of Bulbasaur-Ivysaur.)
They really just botched Gen 6 in the TCG in general; heck, XY Base had Gen 1 starters as their Ultra Rares for Pete's sake. No sense and reasoning there. And how many Gen 5 supporter characters returned in place of Gen 6 characters? (No Zinnia?!) And then there's the fact that the XY era was basically just an extension of the BW era in format and appearance, and the creation of Expanded, and all signs point to TPCi just not giving a flying Garbodor about Gen 6. It's really disappointing.
Is Gen 7 at least better so far? I think it'd be a huge shame if they stop printing Gen 1 cards, especially since Bulbasaur, Ivysaur and Abra didn't get any cards in 6th Gen. :/
SM's 4th set should be called something like "Nature's Offspring" and it features a lot of babies and neglected Grass Types.
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Something to do with a magician, according to what I remember. If you're curious, there's many articles on the topic.
Gen 7 is doing much better because TPCi is at least treating it as the newest, latest, greatest. In the TCG it's not just another extension of the BW era which is great. Yet, we're still quite early, so it's hard to predict how the future will look. We still have several Gen 7 Pokémon that need to be printed so it'll be easier to judge once the dex is complete.
I don't think they should stop printing Gen 1 cards; they just need to dial back on the nostalgia a bit. I fear we may see a repeat as we get closer to the Gen 2 anniversary. Celebrating is one thing; throwing the newer gens aside in favor of the old is another. I'm optimistic that in the long run Gen 7 won't be treated as poorly as Gen 6 was, though.
Maybe XY was another BW, because BW was shorter than the Gen 3 and 4 sets.
You mean the first post in this topic?
I made that over a year ago.
I don't plan to update it much now that I have the spreadsheet going. Also I usually post updates here of returning Pokemon as they are revealed. At the time of the post Cherubi had just left Standard a few months prior so I didn't include the line. Also the opening post was dedicated primarily to Pokemon that hadn't been seen in half a decade or more.
I know, but it makes it easier to know what hasn't been used in the TCG for 2+ gens, if you include it in the first post.You mean the first post in this topic?
I made that over a year ago.
After the next set releases in a couple weeks I'll update the main post with a more pertinent list.
Question, what do you considered to be abandoned? Things like Baby Pokemon I never really considered that would be missed since they aren't anything special in terms of Pokemon lore. Would you consider Pichu something the game needs (without any special rules) for the sake of having a card or is it better off without it like gender differences between certain species of Pokemon. I ask because they don't add anything to the game like Megas Evolution did.
Also, how do you feel about Pokemon like Deoxys who have many different forms, which affect the actual Pokemon and I guess other Pokemon with different form changes like Shaymin Sky over their base forms. The TCG seems to not really care what form a Shaymin is in for its cards since the Sky form could be considered an evolution.
Also, how do you feel about Pokemon like Deoxys who have many different forms, which affect the actual Pokemon and I guess other Pokemon with different form changes like Shaymin Sky over their base forms. The TCG seems to not really care what form a Shaymin is in for its cards since the Sky form could be considered an evolution.
One odd thing with Pokémon forms in the TCG, is that Giratina Origin has taken over as Giritina's go-to form, despite the fact that Altered was invented first.
Anyway, I'd consider Pokémon only playable in Unlimited as abandoned (especially since 25+ sets are playable in expanded), so most babies and Sunflora I'd say are abandoned.
I consider forms to be abandoned. Tcg now seems to streamline any diversity of forms.
For instance the new Burmy and Shellos-Gastrodon in XY featured their form variations together. Frillish and Jellicent feature their sexual dimorphism together and always have and not much attention is paid to presenting different gender Pokèmon equally with sone exceptions (Unfezant, Meowstic)
The Megas are abandoned. As in the remaining Megas won't get a card (lopunny, abomasnow etc) the last-minute Megas originally had EXS and it is unlike GX will have mega Evolutions given how they work.
The babies are all but abandoned as is Abra and Kadabra.
Sunkern, Sunflower and Chimecho are all egregiously neglected but I woulike argue not abandoned.
Up until Guardians Rising, Castform would be considered abandoned too by that criteria , Rampardos too (which is still neglected). Paras was neglected all through Gen III and IV.
It's just a matter of being more neglected than most in the case of some.
For instance the new Burmy and Shellos-Gastrodon in XY featured their form variations together. Frillish and Jellicent feature their sexual dimorphism together and always have and not much attention is paid to presenting different gender Pokèmon equally with sone exceptions (Unfezant, Meowstic)
The Megas are abandoned. As in the remaining Megas won't get a card (lopunny, abomasnow etc) the last-minute Megas originally had EXS and it is unlike GX will have mega Evolutions given how they work.
The babies are all but abandoned as is Abra and Kadabra.
Sunkern, Sunflower and Chimecho are all egregiously neglected but I woulike argue not abandoned.
Up until Guardians Rising, Castform would be considered abandoned too by that criteria , Rampardos too (which is still neglected). Paras was neglected all through Gen III and IV.
It's just a matter of being more neglected than most in the case of some.
I would consider Kadabra abandoned at this point. I also consider formes to be abandoned as individually named cards. Most formes get equal-ish representation in art these days though. It does make tracking prints kind of cumbersome since a Pokemon like "Wormadam Plant Cloak" will technically never be printed again, even though she'll get a normal Grass print.
Pokemon like Deoxys are a good example of why I think formes should continue as individual prints. I.E. an Attack forme print and a Defense forme print should hypothetically have different attacks, HP, retreat, etc., and this rang true in the one set that saw Deoxys have named forme prints (Legends Awakened). Having a single Deoxys card represent all four formes these days seems kind of lazy to me. I'm not saying that one set has to have 4 Deoxys cards, but by all means they could spread out the formes across many sets. A "Deoxys Defense Forme GX" or whatever would be cool to see.
Another Pokemon that definitely needs individual forme prints is Castform -- and you probably noticed in its upcoming print it only appears in its normal forme. I think TPC is a bit unsure how to approach Castform now that they've scrapped the mechanic that allowed it to function as it's supposed to, and it might explain why it didn't appear in any ORAS-era sets despite playing a role in the story.
I am unsure about whether the Baby Pokemon are abandoned at this point. They are certainly neglected, but I don't see why they could never come back. It's important to remember that while it's fair to approach the Babies as having contributed little to the game (though Mime Jr. saw a lot of play, iirc), the other side of this hobby is collecting, and there's fans of baby Pokemon (heck, I like Bonsly) so I think they should be printed again in some form or another even if they aren't mechanically interesting.
It's also worth noting that Riolu regularly gets printed despite being a Baby Pokemon. If they went a similar route with the others, where they are standard Basics, I personally would be happy with that. Or make them all optional Basics, e.g. Pichu or Pikachu could both be played as a Basic, but give a little bonus if Pichu is in play as a part of the evolution line.
I am personally not yet ready to say the remaining Megas are abandoned. If there's anything we learned from the XY era, it's that TPC gets hung up on old stuff. If trainers like N and Skyla can be printed in the XY era in lieu of the new characters, despite being many years out of date, I don't see why Megas can't be printed in the future too. (Ideally as promos though; it'd be kind of weird having EX in a set again.)
I would consider Kadabra abandoned at this point. I also consider formes to be abandoned as individually named cards. Most formes get equal-ish representation in art these days though. It does make tracking prints kind of cumbersome since a Pokemon like "Wormadam Plant Cloak" will technically never be printed again, even though she'll get a normal Grass print.
Pokemon like Deoxys are a good example of why I think formes should continue as individual prints. I.E. an Attack forme print and a Defense forme print should hypothetically have different attacks, HP, retreat, etc., and this rang true in the one set that saw Deoxys have named forme prints (Legends Awakened). Having a single Deoxys card represent all four formes these days seems kind of lazy to me. I'm not saying that one set has to have 4 Deoxys cards, but by all means they could spread out the formes across many sets. A "Deoxys Defense Forme GX" or whatever would be cool to see.
Another Pokemon that definitely needs individual forme prints is Castform -- and you probably noticed in its upcoming print it only appears in its normal forme. I think TPC is a bit unsure how to approach Castform now that they've scrapped the mechanic that allowed it to function as it's supposed to, and it might explain why it didn't appear in any ORAS-era sets despite playing a role in the story.
I am unsure about whether the Baby Pokemon are abandoned at this point. They are certainly neglected, but I don't see why they could never come back. It's important to remember that while it's fair to approach the Babies as having contributed little to the game (though Mime Jr. saw a lot of play, iirc), the other side of this hobby is collecting, and there's fans of baby Pokemon (heck, I like Bonsly) so I think they should be printed again in some form or another even if they aren't mechanically interesting.
It's also worth noting that Riolu regularly gets printed despite being a Baby Pokemon. If they went a similar route with the others, where they are standard Basics, I personally would be happy with that. Or make them all optional Basics, e.g. Pichu or Pikachu could both be played as a Basic, but give a little bonus if Pichu is in play as a part of the evolution line.
I am personally not yet ready to say the remaining Megas are abandoned. If there's anything we learned from the XY era, it's that TPC gets hung up on old stuff. If trainers like N and Skyla can be printed in the XY era in lieu of the new characters, despite being many years out of date, I don't see why Megas can't be printed in the future too. (Ideally as promos though; it'd be kind of weird having EX in a set again.)
I was thinking that as well. It seems they want to remove from <insert Pokemon name here> form on the card name to keep the four of a Pokemon rule in play. In the game, a Mega Pidgeot's name is still Pidgeot and a Deoxys Attack Form's name is still Deoxys. I would like to see some way of this coming back to the game since. I'd like to see the Pokemon forms. I do want to see how they handle mega evolved Pokemon now. I still need more time with my bird bro but since they are bringing evolution back to the game, they could be stage three Pokemon.
One thing I don't like, is how Arceus never got it's Fairy Type card and since the card makes are too lazy to make additional Vivillon, ME or Arceus forms, then that probably means Silvally won't get any of it's forms.
It's just a matter of time until Alolan forms are all but forgotten. Though, AF kind of deserve to be SM exclusive, as do UBs. Kinda like how Holon Delta Species Pokémon never came back, because Holon isn't Hoenn, nor does it really have anything to do with Gen 3, it just happened to be during then.
Anyway, I don't get why Rotom Dex gets a card, but Rotom's other forms haven't been seen since RR. :/ If anything, they should have all appeared in the same set.
It's just a matter of time until Alolan forms are all but forgotten. Though, AF kind of deserve to be SM exclusive, as do UBs. Kinda like how Holon Delta Species Pokémon never came back, because Holon isn't Hoenn, nor does it really have anything to do with Gen 3, it just happened to be during then.
Anyway, I don't get why Rotom Dex gets a card, but Rotom's other forms haven't been seen since RR. :/ If anything, they should have all appeared in the same set.
I feel like they could have made more useful and creative Ditto cards.
It's the week of Guardians Rising's release!
I've updated my spreadsheet (see sig)! Here is the breakdown!
Guardians Rising saw the triumphant return of Castform, who has been missing for nearly nine years!
It also brought back Wailmer, who finally resurfaced after a five year dive!
And Delibird returns from a four-and-a-half-year vacation to the South Pole.
Less impressive is the return of 13 Pokemon from Sun & Moon base -- many of which weren't even Gen 7 Pokemon, which is a bit bewildering. But at least it was only 13.
Speaking of 13, that's how many Gen 7 Pokemon remain without cards, 11 of which are Legendary/Mythical. Counting Alolan formes, that number climbs slightly to 15.
As of now, 44 Pokemon remain in BW sets, 10 Pokemon in HGSS sets, 18 Pokemon in PLAT sets, 9 Pokemon in D&P sets... and Kadabra.
I've updated my spreadsheet (see sig)! Here is the breakdown!
In Guardians Rising...
13 Pokemon were last seen in SM sets.
67 Pokemon were last seen in XY sets.
2 Pokemon were last seen in BW sets.
1 Pokemon was last seen in DPP sets.
13 Pokemon were last seen in SM sets.
67 Pokemon were last seen in XY sets.
2 Pokemon were last seen in BW sets.
1 Pokemon was last seen in DPP sets.
Guardians Rising saw the triumphant return of Castform, who has been missing for nearly nine years!
It also brought back Wailmer, who finally resurfaced after a five year dive!
And Delibird returns from a four-and-a-half-year vacation to the South Pole.
Less impressive is the return of 13 Pokemon from Sun & Moon base -- many of which weren't even Gen 7 Pokemon, which is a bit bewildering. But at least it was only 13.
Speaking of 13, that's how many Gen 7 Pokemon remain without cards, 11 of which are Legendary/Mythical. Counting Alolan formes, that number climbs slightly to 15.
As of now, 44 Pokemon remain in BW sets, 10 Pokemon in HGSS sets, 18 Pokemon in PLAT sets, 9 Pokemon in D&P sets... and Kadabra.
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