Reading through this thread was certaintly a journey. It’s interesting to see how many different perspectives there are, and how for some it’s about finding joy again in actually stepping back.
It’s the same sentiment I personally have and can confirm.
For a little while I found myself joining the hype train of modern, falling victim to the FOMO and the sudden “wanting” of something that I didn’t want before it existed, and others around me are also wanting in very loud unfiltered manners.
As someone who likes Umbreon a lot, I almost bit the bullet and spent 1500 euros (European here) on a Pristmatic Evolutions Umbreon.
Are being up to date with the latest set releases and jumping on the hype exciting? Sure. Is it a healthy and responsible way of engaging with the hobby? Absolutely not.
The whole ordeal with the Prototype cards drew me back into E4 (been out for a while) and allowed me to regain perspective, even though I luckily am personally not affected. I’ve been interested in owning a Grand Party in PSA 10 for a few years now. I always found the card intriguing, but never did go through with purchasing one. I was lucky enough to come across one being listed locally in my country.
Seeing this card again was the wake-up moment that I needed to cut through the noise as others have called it, not give in to the hype and FOMO that made me almost spend 1500 on a card being actively printed, and realize that this exact 1500 would get me that Grand Party.
So now I own a PSA 10 Grand Party I wanted for a while, I love looking at it, and I’ve effectively decided to step back entirely from chasing the latest things releasing. This may very well be one of my only Pokémon purchases for the remainder of 2025, and I’d be totally content with that.