Any long-time collector for the Pokemon Trading Card Game may want to give their childhood attics and crawlspaces a closer look after a recent Charizard card sale. While it doesn’t top its rarer Blastoise counterpart at auction, the Fire-type leaves little to doubt in terms of the exponentially increasing value of Pokemon cards.
The card is part of the first Pokemon TCG set that was released in 1999, and since then a couple of variations have seen high bidding prices. Among the most expensive was one obtained by rapper Logic, PSA-graded 10 and having a final bidding price of $221,00 USD. That was back in October 2020, and if the price increase of similarly gaining investment routes like stocks and cryptocurrency are any proof, the price of the most recent sale makes perfect sense.
In the case of this bidder, they walked away with one of the most coveted cards in the Pokemon TCG – a shadowless, first-edition holographic Charizard with a PSA rating of ’10 Gem Mint.’ Essentially, it’s the rarest version of the card in its best condition, already being one of the most iconic and important cards to fans and the franchise alike. Given that it went for $312,000, it’d be diamonds in the hands of anyone fortunate enough to have one.
The listing description gives insight into the importance of the historic card, and why die-hard Pokemon TCG fans loved it from the beginning:
Emblematic of the strength and power its design was meant to portray, the 1st Edition Base Set Charizard card continues to inspire awe even after almost a quarter of a century. This historic piece of art designed by celebrated artist Mitsuhiro Arita is easily the most recognizable Pokemon card ever made…
…Featuring the highest attack power of any of the original Pokemon cards produced; the ferocity of the artwork coupled with the might of its Fire Spin caused most Pokemon fanatics to use it with pride. This is the 52 Topps Mantle, the 86 Fleer Jordan, the 79 O-Pee-Chee Gretzky of the Pokemon hobby; it is one of the most coveted trading cards ever produced.
The Pokemon TCG has been seeing a major increase in popularity as of late, with content creators also paying thousands of dollars for the chance to get one of the treasured cards. Accordingly, on Twitch viewership of Pokemon TCG jumped up 3,000 percent from last year with streamers opening new and vintage packs. Part of what makes the niche subject interesting is the tension and excitement behind what could be a good or bad deck.
Of course, the other side to it is the investment potential. Being a fan or having foresight into the popularity of the Pokemon TCG is reaping rewards over two decades later. It’s too late to have a heavy stake in the game without paying a lot of money up-front, though checking a couple of yard sales or old storage auctions might be fruitful. In any case, it is cool to see how lucrative an old-school hobby has become for some dedicated fans.
Although Pokemon is still releasing newer Charizard cards, none of them will likely ever hold a candle to the original fan-favorite from the 1990s. In either case, the price of these cards will only continue to increase over time and there’s no telling how high the price of the next auctioned holo-Charizard will go.
Source: eBay
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