Pokémon Center’s invite system is alive - but it’s still not good enough
Pokémon Center’s Early Access system has finally arrived in the UK, but its first test has left some collectors questioning whether it solves the problem it was designed to fix.
The Pokémon Center’s early access system has finally been used in the UK, but its first real test suggests it hasn’t solved the problem it was designed to fix. Select collectors received invites for a Special Delivery Box full of Pokémon cards and accessories, yet the limited-access system still struggled to meet demand.
The Pokémon TCG is in a time of unprecedented demand, and The Pokémon Company has the difficult situation of managing the continued hype and demand, alongside the printing of new Pokémon sets. Much like Japan’s recent move towards identity verification for high-demand Pokémon products, the early access system appeared to be another attempt to put products into the hands of collectors rather than resellers.
On Tuesday, 14th July, emails went out to select newsletter subscribers offering a special delivery box, which comes with a bundle of goodies including a deck box, two plushies, a plush keychain, a pin, and an Elite Trainer Box (some come with two additional booster packs). At £52.99, that’s an excellent deal that many would buy instantly - a Pokémon Center ETB retails for £54.99 alone.
Personally, I didn’t receive an email, which wasn’t unexpected. With an unknown selection criteria and potentially millions of newsletter subscribers, the odds were always going to be unclear. However, even with an unknown eligibility, many collectors lost the opportunity to buy the product, even though it has an expiry date of 20th July.
According to users in the r/pokemoncardcollectors subreddit, several who received an invite didn’t get to buy it. Some users suggest it was sold out by the time they checked their emails, within 20-30 minutes of clicking the link. Others are more drastic at just five minutes after the emails were received.
No matter how long it was between the product going live and then subsequently selling out, the fact it was sent through an exclusive invite will only lead to more frustration. Early Access should change the buying experience. Instead of competing against thousands of collectors and potential resellers at launch, invited customers should have confidence that they have a reasonable window to purchase. Otherwise, the system simply moves the queue from a product page to an inbox.
This is a big flaw for a major system, and while The Pokémon Company has not confirmed its plans, this first Early Access drop could be viewed as a test ahead of future high-demand releases, including 30th Celebration pre-orders. In that case, I think there’s a lot of fixes that need to be made before that expansion is released.
Invites should only meet the exact stock number, perhaps a little less, and if the invites expire to those who didn’t buy it, send out a few more emails to those who missed out on the first wave. Amazon does it, and buyers get 72 hours to make a decision. Chaos Cards did it, and while it’s moved to a new Product Drop system, the old invites gave collectors plenty of time to buy it. Pokémon Center should be able to do it, and make the collectors who got invited happy.
The Pokémon Company has solved one problem: fewer people are refreshing the product page. But it hasn’t solved the bigger one. Moving the queue from website refreshes to inbox refreshes doesn’t give collectors the confidence that an invite system is supposed to provide.
