Yeah it’s a Mewtwo card iirc, this Pikachu is also pretty good
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I’m not sure people care about these anymore, but I wanted to give some updates on where I believe the populations stand.
Estimates of Total Sets (graded)
This does not include any ungraded examples that may be in collections. This also does not include any AU grades that have not been shown to the public yet.
| Set | Alpha Prototypes | Alpha Playtests | Beta Playtests | Delta Playtests | Alpha Presentations | Beta Presentations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CGC Population | 9 | 9 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
| Known AU Grades | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Totals | 11 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 4 |
To come up with this data, I took the CGC population for a specific card in each set and then added it with the number of known AUs that have been shown for it online. The sum of both should be equal to the true population count at CGC.
For transparency, I used the following Pokemon for my calculation of each set: Alpha Prototypes (Pikachu), Alpha Playtests (Charizard), Beta Playtests (Charizard), Delta Playtests (Charizard), Alpha Presentation (Pikachu), and Beta Presentation (MewTwo).
My Thoughts
I’m really shocked at how many of these prototype cards exist and have been graded. I still think they are exciting, but some transparency from someone around these would be welcomed in the future. We were originally told that Akabane only had about 6 sets of each, and now we are clearly stepping into the realm of 12+ for some of these set. We are only a few months past their initial sales to the public, and I can’t make heads or tails on if this is going to taper off or if we will continue to see steady growth in these populations.
If these are truely playtest cards, then I’m happy to own at least one of them. For now, I think I’ll be holding off on purchasing any more until some form of clarity is released (how many really exist, what sets do we not know about yet, etc)
What do you all think? Still interested in these or has your interest slowly burnt out?
Edit: For anyone reading this thread sequentially or who found this post on Google, there appears to be fakes. Please check out this thread to learn more: Many of the Pokemon playtest cards were likely printed in 2024
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Regardless of my first doubtful thoughts and the fact that there’s still tons of question marks around them the ones i obtained are still some of my favourite items in my collection
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They could have handled this a lot better than they did. They obviously went for secrecy/scarcity as a way to maximise the profits short term which is a shame for the historian side of the hobby.
Now that it turns out there are quite a few of each I imagine prices will have peaked for a while. Though alt had the raichu at 25k buy it now which seems very optimistic!
I just hope they ended up in species collectors hands but they aren’t for me for now. Maybe as a final piece of my collection but I still have plenty of less cloak and mirrors cards to find first.
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I originally heard between 6 and 10 for the alpha prototypes and now it’s clear there’s at least 10.
I’m still very interested in these, still following closely, and buying them here and there.
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There are now Akabane Signed cards posted to Alt…and just like that, I’m sucked back in! haha.
The fact that these are signature series makes me really want to own one. I am afraid to see what the big 3 sell for.
Edit: For anyone reading this thread sequentially or who found this post on Google, there appears to be fakes. Please check out this thread to learn more: Many of the Pokemon playtest cards were likely printed in 2024
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These are interesting and I am sure will go for a good amount… Im not a big auto guy generally… is it common for sketches to overlap the character like this? That line through scyther bothers me… could be my ocd.
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I really don’t think it’s a big deal whether there are 5 or 20 copies of these cards out there. It’s still a miniscule total number in the grand scheme of things.
I agree some clarity would be nice but bottom line: these cards are rare and essential pieces of the TCG’s history. There is some risk with picking these cards up as it is hard to gauge future demand or predict what else will come to light, but sometimes doubt can create the perfect storm for a buying opportunity.
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I feel like the prototypes are like the super hot girlfriend that has many uncertainties around her but even with the doubt, she’s still hot.
These feel super unqiue and stand out in my collection as well.
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When you’ve had enough attractive (at least to you) girlfriends or been around enough attractive women with major problems, your response changes. I feel similarly about these… I think they’re a really cool part of the history… potentially.
My uncle would tell a story of working a cafe in NYC where Einstein would go regularly, and he would say how he’d leave notes and drawings on napkins when he left. My uncle just threw those ridiculous scribbles away. But then… what might have survived, and how do we know. Uncle also said he never paid his bill cuz he was too absorbed in work, which kinda makes sense.
BUT How do we KNOW? How do we know…
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I’ll never own a offical but I do own a 1/1 @D3F14NC3 beta card
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The 1st and 2nd wave of these commanded some high prices, absorbing a lot of the money of people interested. On at least one of the main selling platforms a lot of the cards were relisted, indicating some people paid prices based on non serious underbidders. So far at least, holding off has seemed to be the wise choice. I bought one card at the 2-3k level and fully expect for the same card to likely turn up and sell for a lower price still.
Collectibles as a whole are a castle built on moving ground, let alone specific areas with unknown factors (like total supply, lack of historical documentation, potential for unknown variants to emerge).
Having seen the growth in the number of sets graded, I assume that something had shifted in the negotiations with Akabane and he either adjusted his prices lower or he worked out some kind of route of collaboration with an outside party with promises of a strategy that will facilitate stronger prices as was mentioned. Will you buy the bags? 
On a fundamental level, presuming everything about the cards are true to how they have been presented it is the kind of thing I would collect. But even if everything seems ‘right’ about something, I would not assume price follows how you expect. The wider market seems more pre-occupied with newly made product, the same with MTG. The Pokemon company is doing well in these market conditions.
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I hope they continue to tank
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Me too 
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Nothing. XRF isnt a valid test of authenticity, even though they’d like to believe it is.
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I haven’t seen one in person but aren’t these cards literally just ink-jet printed onto printer paper glued onto card stock? I have a hard time believing CGC has the technology to say… “yep, that’s 1996-era ink and printer paper all right!”
“The guy that sold these for millions of dollars says they’re real” isn’t proof of authenticity, I don’t care who he is or how involved he was back in the day. Of course of he’s going to say what he’s selling is real.
Edit - Now, with all that said, they probably are real. I just have lingering doubts and wouldn’t pay a lot for them. If I could get one for cheap I’d probably do it.
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