Noticed this current auction at Ryans_cardhouse for a PSA 9 2023 Mew VMAX from Play! Prize Pack Series 2. With the current focus on low population in the market I wondered how long it will take for collectors/investors to catch on to the other cards in Series 1 and Series 2.
Here are a selection of grails from the sets with their population numbers for PSA 8,9 & 10.
Some background information and data on Series 1:
Play! Pokémon Prize Pack Series One is a series of promotional cards released through Pokémon Organized Play events or affiliated products. This set features 170 specifically selected cards from the Sword & Shield expansion through Evolving Skies in addition to SWSH Black Star Promos and Sword & Shield Print Basic Energy cards. All cards retained their original set number, but feature the Play! Pokémon logo as a stamp. Each Booster pack contains 6 cards.
All cards listed are the same as their original versions, the only differences is the “Play! Pokémon” stamp as seen on the below images, and some have an additional full-holo variant. You get six cards (and a PTCGO code card) in each pack, with two of the six cards being holo. There is roughly a one in five chance to get an Ultra Rare (V, ex Pokemon etc) in your pack, with a small chance for both holo cards to be an Ultra Rare.
Series One booster packs were first distributed to sanctioned Play! Pokémon Leagues in November, 2022, with each store getting a box of around 180 of these booster packs. These packs are NOT FOR SALE separately anywhere (stores could get sanctioning taken away if they sold them, see the Store Handbook for more information), and the Pokémon Leagues decided themselves how they were given out (League attendance, extra tournament prizing etc).
9th November 2022 Support Your Local Game Store and Receive Play! Pokémon Prize Packs | Pokemon.com
Estimates of pull rates and supply:
Series 1 had a limited 3 month distribution window before Series 2 replaced it. The pull rate for a V or VMAX has been documented at 1 in every 5 packs on average. There are 58 V or VMAX cards in the pool.
It has also been documented that Play Stores received one box which contained 180 packs. An estimate of VMAX copies based on number of stores:
Total grades at PSA from 2023 support this limited supply. Roughly around 25 per year:
Official retail restrictions and sanctions limited secondary supply of packs and single cards. December 2023 Pokemon sends email to all Play! Pokemon Program stores.
List of Pikachu low pop PSA 10s:
