It's getting increasingly difficult to find joy in this hobby

[nelson]

Just want to share a bit about my experience.

I started feeling burnt our after maybe around three years of joining the hobby, I started collecting relatively recently so maybe around mid-2022. Having just moved internationally and no longer having access to the US market also made me kind of dettached to the community. There was a period of time, maybe around a year where I didn’t even buy anything and just focused on personal life stuff, hitting the gym and running, and my job.

The one thing that sparkled my interest again was actually Pocket, but as I started engaging again I realised this new wave of interest had the weird vibes everyone is commenting on in this post. Gambling-like culture, purely monetary interest, etc. etc. Thankfully I’ve never been too much into modern or pack opening besides the occasional pack here and there, but still I came back to this forum because the local market talk is always about prices, reselling, “how much can I sell this card in spanish for”, and so on.

My attitude for a bit now has been not caring about the market or money. Not watching the market at all is truly a blessing, and something that’s been a real palate cleanser is to go and bid blindly on items, as I remind myself these are items I am buying because I want them and thankfully can afford. It’s also worth nothing that I have a decent notion of pricing, since while I do buy a variety of things they are generally within my collection goals.

Besides my big goals for this year that are a couple of 1 to 2k cards, I’ve been trying to “treat” myself and buy one thing a month on auctions, always going in blind. I am in a really lucky position to be able acquire these luxury items continously and I am really thankful for it.

Getting several other real life goals during my hiatus from collecting has also helped me take my mind of the cards (I ran my first marathon last year!), which only increases the joy when I am actually engaging with the hobby! As a child I was obsessed with Pokemon sure, but that was only whenever I was not playing soccer, learning how to use a computer or something else.

In the end, rediscovering joy in collecting came from stepping back and trying to remember why I loved Pokémon cards. The community might change, but our personal connection to the hobby is what truly matters, and as long as you’re able to rediscover and reconnect with it I believe you can bring that original joy back.

[voltagic]

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.

[skinst]

Huh.

Legit, I didn’t actually expect my exit message I wrote to… well, have any impact.

It’s nice to know people think about it, though, so thank you to those who did. I really appreciate that. ;v;

I guess I’ll share my own experience as well in a bit more detail.

I’ve been collecting and into Pokemon since before its western release. My brother found a badly translated rom in 1996 and I played it two years before it came out in the US, and 3 before it came out in Australia. I still remember when Pokemon was considered ‘cringe’ and all that jazz.

I was overjoyed when I first found this forum, and even moreso when the Discord was formed. At first, I had a lot of fun in there. I made some awesome purchases and trades, and I made some friends whom I still have to this day.

But when it got bigger and bigger was when the hell started. Everyone knew I was female as I had made no secret of that fact. I thought I would be respected in there, and at first I was. I mean, my knowledge of the TCG and of Pokemon was just as extensive (and in some cases, moreso than others on certain topics, like Mew cards) as any of the male members.

I got hit on, harassed, talked over, trashed and when I complained about it, it took a while for anything to actually be done about it. This was before the Discord was particuarly huge as well.

The fact of the matter is, is that this forum and the Discord now REEKS of boys club vibes. It always has, its just that more outspoken members such as myself and a few others who were female or other genders were present before it became huge.

Now it’s huge, and we’re but tiny voices drowned out within the sea of testosterone within the TCG world.

That’s why I left. That’s why I lost my joy for the TCG as a whole, among the other factors I mentioned before. I’m tired. I’d rather be in smaller servers of Pokemon fans who discuss the TCG as an aside than EVER return to this place or its associated Discord ever again.

And that is a crying shame.

It used to be great.

[Keanam77]

I think it would be a bonus for certain collectors to be moderators, they would be able to better keep an eye out for cards they’re looking for right? I think it would be extremely joyous if you’ve been looking for a card for years and one day while your moderating the card magically appears on your screen while one of the members is chatting with another member.

[pfm]

All active users have access to the same benefit

[Frosty.Puppy]

@skinst

Mew cards

Good times.

[pfm]

@pfm

To sum it up, if I randomly bumped into someone who collected graded cards prior to (roughly) 2021 - I would probably be super excited and eager to talk to them. Whereas today, I might not even bring up the fact that I have a collection.

So this actually happened yesterday where I sat next to a guy on the bus who was frantically jumping between facebook marketplace, pricecharting and grading company websites looking at some Special Delivery cards, Van Gogh pika, modern boxes. I could basically see the “what’s the lowest you’d take” happening live in front of me. I was 50-50 on talking to him but a combination of him being so locked in and the feeling like while we occupied the same hobby space we actually don’t have the same hobby I chose to just let it go . Pokemon cards and the market are so big today

[SeasidePokemon]

1999: This Pokémon thing is so cool, everyone on the playground is doing it!

2009: I better keep this to myself..

2016: Pokemon is cool again? This is awesome!

2025: I better keep this to myself..

[YogiTheCollector]

Keeping the distance definitely keeps the joy alive for me. Occasionally dipping in, whether its about a purchase, or even visiting this forum, is much much better for the long term in terms of keeping it as a hobby. Ive been balls deep in reading, music, basketball, so much other stuff, and I learn everytime that distance is better than completely identifying with it, because i burn out on things. This goes for franchises even. I remember being fatigued by zelda games (specifically tears of the kingdom), and had to stay away for a long time to get back in again and complete the game.

Its all about balancing

[jupitersailfish]

@banks

Most of the concerns I see in this thread aren’t card specific, rather they stem from the rise of social media platforms designed to farm engagement. Drama, polemics and anger drive the most engagement on Instagram, Twitter and YouTube so that is what people lean into. We get the world we deserve.

The opposite is true of E4. There’s no financial or clout incentive here. Attempts to shill are snuffed and people are free to share their thoughts in the spirit of having a genuine conversation about their interests.

This whole post is basically my feelings on the whole situation. This is happening all across the board to every corner of the internet. Doesn’t matter which hobby, these forms of content are what get the most views, reaction and ad revenue so it’s just being pushed out everywhere. Fishing, video games, cards, gardening, take a pick. I hate the phrase like “tune out the noise” or something like that but it’s true.

I’ve been having a ton of fun in the Pokemon space the past couple years. Of course it sucks everything is sky high and rare to see some packs in a store, granted my only source of packs/boxes IRL is a Walmart or a Target like 20-30 minutes away that barely had cards anyways since I got back into Pokemons in 2017 so I’m kinda used to just buying online. But the great thing is that we just don’t have to buy it if you don’t want to. It will pass and there is so much more fun to be had over the bad in everything.

[needszeebs]

I remember for the longest time my friend and I were so tight lipped about liking Pokemon. For a good reason too, people said some real nasty shit to me over the years I remember back in like 2011, this girl at our school said she knew a secret about us that we didnt want her to know, and I was so anxious. I was like no way… how does she know we spend hours training and trading our Pokemon in FireRed?? Looking back at how fearful I was that someone would find out I liked Pokemon, its unbelievable how things are today.

I always viewed Pokemon as something that was inclusive and safe for everyone. Its really shitty the negativity and behaviour of others has pushed passionate collectors away from this hobby

[kromaticlanturn]

Did you ever find out if that was the secret she was referring to?

[needszeebs]

I dont remember what it was honestly. Something that would seem like a big deal if you were 12, but she didnt know about the Pokemon so it was nbd to me lol

[nrs]

It’s turned out like a lot of other collectible/limited edition stuff where the value has gone up and so the companies push the value as far as they can in many ways. That results in many fans trying to make money off the hobby to fund the stuff they want, and over time that can result in it being pretty toxic.

For example anyone trying to complete a modern set would have to spend a crazy amount of money now, it’s basically not possible for kids. So then you have to make sub-goals instead, or go the money route. That sucks a lot of the fun out of it. If you put anything out there to help others (say a in-demand card at a low price, a link to a shop etc) you know the people who will first see it are likely the ones REALLY into it and typically trying to make money so it’s not about them loving the card, it’s just so they earn more. That sucks a lot of joy from it, as with other hobbies due to damaging the community spirit.

You can skip this part but it’s going to cost a lot or mean a much more limited scope unless you’re a big earner. Even if you skip it then it’s still everywhere in forums, facebook etc.

[pokenoob]

When I was a kid I wasn’t concerned with collecting an entire set, I didn’t even know that Base, Jungle and Fossil had different exclusive Pokemon. I didn’t catch onto that until Team Rocket and not wanting the reprint cards in Base 2.

Anyone concerning themselves with completing a new set now a days has deep pockets, or helicopter parents.

[wisewailmer]

I was literally typing this out and I figured eh idk if people will relate.

But when I opened packs and saw new Pokemon I was like oh shit!

I had no idea they were making new sets I guess I assumed it was one infinitely large pool of cards and I never felt the need to collect them all.

Also as a kid, I didn’t need the flashiest chase card. There’s some classic memories of trading my shining Gyarados for Unown N and stuff like that.

It’s a bit sad that the new Gen doesn’t get to collect this way

[triple]

@pokenoob

When I was a kid I wasn’t concerned with collecting an entire set, I didn’t even know that Base, Jungle and Fossil had different exclusive Pokemon. I didn’t catch onto that until Team Rocket and not wanting the reprint cards in Base 2.

Correct, most kids won’t spend the time to learn all of this. Obviously there is Tiktok now so that may change how kids view cards now, but I am not a kid so can’t really give a solidified answer/opinion.

[koala]

@wisewailmer

But when I opened packs and saw new Pokemon I was like oh shit!

It’s still possible to have this experience, new people from younger generations have 1025 Pokémon to learn from and haven’t figured out their favourites yet. They can pick whichever pack, in demand or not, as they’re more open minded

[wisewailmer]

When I’m at the LGS all the kids are asking for alt arts and Charizard/Eevee type stuff

[c0ll3ct0r]

Just like we did, except our chases were worth $30 and not $3000 or whatever.